A Database of Drosophila Genes & Genomes

FB2013_03, released May 7th, 2013
 

Reference Report

Reference
Citation Specchia, V., Piacentini, L., Tritto, P., Fanti, L., D'Alessandro, R., Palumbo, G., Pimpinelli, S., Bozzetti, M.P. (2010). Hsp90 prevents phenotypic variation by suppressing the mutagenic activity of transposons.  Nature 463(7281): 662--665. (Export to RIS)
FlyBase ID FBrf0209921
Publication Type Research paper
PubMed ID 20062045
PubMed Abstract The canalization concept describes the resistance of a developmental process to phenotypic variation, regardless of genetic and environmental perturbations, owing to the existence of buffering mechanisms. Severe perturbations, which overcome such buffering mechanisms, produce altered phenotypes that can be heritable and can themselves be canalized by a genetic assimilation process. An important implication of this concept is that the buffering mechanism could be genetically controlled. Recent studies on Hsp90, a protein involved in several cellular processes and development pathways, indicate that it is a possible molecular mechanism for canalization and genetic assimilation. In both flies and plants, mutations in the Hsp90-encoding gene induce a wide range of phenotypic abnormalities, which have been interpreted as an increased sensitivity of different developmental pathways to hidden genetic variability. Thus, Hsp90 chaperone machinery may be an evolutionarily conserved buffering mechanism of phenotypic variance, which provides the genetic material for natural selection. Here we offer an additional, perhaps alternative, explanation for proposals of a concrete mechanism underlying canalization. We show that, in Drosophila, functional alterations of Hsp90 affect the Piwi-interacting RNA (piRNA; a class of germ-line-specific small RNAs) silencing mechanism leading to transposon activation and the induction of morphological mutants. This indicates that Hsp90 mutations can generate new variation by transposon-mediated 'canonical' mutagenesis.
DOI 10.1038/nature08739
Related Publication(s)
hide Recent Updates
Description
What does this section display?
This section contains items that were added to this record for each release. It currently only tracks new links between this FlyBase report and other FlyBase data classes (e.g. genes, references, stocks) or controlled vocabulary terms (e.g. GO, anatomy terms).
What does this section not display?
This section does not currently display links that were removed or gene model changes.
Update Feed
Click the icon below to subscribe to this FlyBase record and receive updates automatically through your feed reader.
FB2013_03
FB2013_02
All updates Click here to see a list of all updates to this record from FB2010_08 and on.
hide Associated Information
Comments
Associated Files
hide Other Information
Secondary IDs
Language of Publication English
Additional Languages of Abstract
Also Published As
hide Parent Publication
Publication Type Journal
Abbreviation Nature
Title Nature
Publication Year 1869-
ISBN/ISSN 0028-0836
hide Data from Reference
hideAlleles (5)
hideGenes (5)
hideInsertions (3)
hideNatural transposons (6)