FB2026_02 , released June 18, 2026
FB2026_02 , released June 18, 2026
Human Disease Model Report: cancer, neural stem cell, centrosome dysfunction
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General Information
Name
cancer, neural stem cell, centrosome dysfunction
FlyBase ID
FBhh0000780
Disease Ontology Term
Parent Disease
OMIM
Overview

Drosophila genes that affect centrosome function were assessed for capacity to produce tumors in a larval brain system. Candidate mutations were characterized using a tissue transplant assay for neoplastic capacity in which larval brain tissue is transplanted into the abdomens of wild-type adult female hosts. For loss-of-function mutations in Sas-4, polo, and aurA, brain tissue transplants exhibited unrestrained growth, filling the abdominal cavity, and killing a subset of the hosts; small colonies scattered on different parts of the host's anatomy (micrometastases) are observed. The tumors can be maintained by serial retransplantation; these tumor lines exhibit increasing amounts of polyploidy and chromosome instability (CIN).

Based on two additional observations, it has been postulated that development of tumors in neural tissues due to centrosome dysfunction is caused primarily by perturbation of the self-renewing asymmetric division of neural stem cells, rather than by CIN. First, other sources of CIN (genetic or environmental) did not result in significant tumorigenic phenotypes in the larval brain transplantation assay. Second, when imaginal disc (epithelial) tissues from loss-of-function mutations in Sas-4, polo, and aurA were transplanted into the abdomens of wild-type adult female hosts, no tumorous growth was observed.

See related human disease model reports 'cancer, models of chromosomal instability' (FBhh0000763) and 'microcephaly, centrosome-SAC dysfunction' (FBhh0000778).

[updated May 2019 by FlyBase; FBrf0222196]

Disease Summary Information
Disease Summary: cancer, neural stem cell, centrosome dysfunction
OMIM report
Human gene(s) implicated
Symptoms and phenotype

Lack of centrosomes does not prevent spindle assembly, but spindle assembly is inefficient and accuracy of chromosome segregation may be compromised (FBrf0235458 and references cited therein).

Genetics

A number of the human genes implicated in primary microcephaly encode proteins that are components of centrosomes (Patwardhan, et al., 2018, pubmed:29352115; Alcantara and O'Driscoll, 2014, pubmed:24816482).

Cellular phenotype and pathology
Molecular information
External links
    Disease synonyms
    Ortholog Information
    Human gene(s) in FlyBase
      Other mammalian ortholog(s) used
        D. melanogaster Gene Information (3)
        Gene Snapshot
        Spindle assembly abnormal 4 (Sas-4) encodes a centriole protein that is essential for centriole assembly. It is recruited to centrioles through an interaction with the centriole protein encoded by ana2, and it helps recruit microtubules to the centriole. [Date last reviewed: 2019-03-14]
        Gene Groups / Pathways
          Comments on ortholog(s)

          High-scoring ortholog of human CENPJ (1 Drosophila to 1 human); additional low-scoring orthologs in human. Dmel\Sas-4 shares 24% identity and 39% similarity with the human CENPJ gene.

          Orthologs and Alignments from DRSC
          DIOPT - DRSC Integrative Ortholog Prediction Tool - Click the link below to search for orthologs in Humans
          Gene Groups / Pathways
          Comments on ortholog(s)

          High-scoring ortholog of human PLK1; low- to moderate-scoring ortholog of human PLK2 and PLK3 (1 Drosophila to 3 human). Dmel\polo shares 52% identity and 71% similarity with the human PLK1 gene.

          Orthologs and Alignments from DRSC
          DIOPT - DRSC Integrative Ortholog Prediction Tool - Click the link below to search for orthologs in Humans
          Gene Snapshot
          aurora A (aurA) encodes a protein kinase required for proper neuroblast self-renewal by regulating assymmetric protein localization. It contributes to spindle orientation, centrosome separation and pole cell formation. [Date last reviewed: 2019-06-13]
          Gene Groups / Pathways
          Comments on ortholog(s)

          Moderate- to high-scoring ortholog of human AURKB, AURKC, and AURKA (2 Drosophila to 3 human). Dmel\aurA shares 48-55% identity and 64-74% similarity with the human genes.

          Orthologs and Alignments from DRSC
          DIOPT - DRSC Integrative Ortholog Prediction Tool - Click the link below to search for orthologs in Humans
          Other Genes Used: Viral, Bacterial, Synthetic (0)
            Summary of Physical Interactions (85 groups)
            protein-protein
            Interacting group
            Assay
            References
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot, pull down, autoradiography, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, two hybrid, bio-layer interferometry, predetermined participant, x-ray crystallography
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, peptide massfingerprinting
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, pull down, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, two hybrid, cosedimentation through density gradient, anti tag western blot, peptide massfingerprinting, autoradiography
            pull down, western blot, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, cosedimentation through density gradient, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation
            pull down, western blot, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot, two hybrid
            experimental knowledge based
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, peptide massfingerprinting
            two hybrid, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, peptide massfingerprinting, western blot, pull down, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, cosedimentation through density gradient, anti tag western blot
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, peptide massfingerprinting, western blot, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, pull down
            pull down, western blot, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, cosedimentation through density gradient
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, pull down, cosedimentation through density gradient
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, cosedimentation through density gradient, western blot
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, cosedimentation through density gradient, western blot
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, cosedimentation through density gradient
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, cosedimentation through density gradient, peptide massfingerprinting, pull down
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, cosedimentation through density gradient, western blot
            two hybrid, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, peptide massfingerprinting, pull down, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, cosedimentation through density gradient
            pull down, anti tag western blot, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, autoradiography, isothermal titration calorimetry, predetermined participant
            experimental knowledge based
            pull down, autoradiography, two hybrid
            two hybrid, pull down, autoradiography
            RNA-protein
            Interacting group
            Assay
            References
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, primer specific pcr
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry
            protein-protein
            Interacting group
            Assay
            References
            pull down, western blot, enzymatic study, autoradiography, bioluminescence resonance energy transfer, fluorescence technology
            enzymatic study, autoradiography
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot, pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry, enzymatic study, western blot
            protein kinase assay, autoradiography
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, peptide massfingerprinting
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, peptide massfingerprinting
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, peptide massfingerprinting, enzymatic study, autoradiography
            pull down, Identification by mass spectrometry, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot
            proximity ligation assay, fluorescence microscopy, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot, pull down, autoradiography
            protein kinase assay, molecular weight estimation by staining
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot
            pull down, western blot, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, Identification by mass spectrometry, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, experimental knowledge based, anti tag western blot, coimmunoprecipitation
            anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot
            affinity chromatography technology, multidimensional protein identification technology, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, two hybrid, fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation
            experimental knowledge based
            pull down, autoradiography
            pull down, western blot, enzymatic study, autoradiography
            two hybrid, pull down, autoradiography
            enzymatic study, autoradiography
            protein kinase assay, molecular weight estimation by staining
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot, western blot
            pull down, covalent binding, anti tag western blot, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, Identification by mass spectrometry
            fluorescent resonance energy transfer, fluorescence microscopy, two hybrid
            protein-protein
            Interacting group
            Assay
            References
            enzymatic study, autoradiography
            enzymatic study, autoradiography
            enzymatic study, autoradiography, pull down, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot
            pull down, autoradiography, two hybrid, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot
            enzymatic study, autoradiography, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, anti tag western blot
            anti tag coimmunoprecipitation, western blot
            enzymatic study, autoradiography
            enzymatic study, autoradiography
            enzymatic study, autoradiography
            two hybrid, enzymatic study, autoradiography, anti bait coimmunoprecipitation, western blot, anti tag coimmunoprecipitation
            Alleles Reported to Model Human Disease (Disease Ontology) (11 alleles)
            Models Based on Experimental Evidence ( 2 )
            Modifiers Based on Experimental Evidence ( 1 )
            Allele
            Disease
            Interaction
            References
            Models Based on Experimental Evidence ( 0 )
            Allele
            Disease
            Evidence
            References
            Modifiers Based on Experimental Evidence ( 6 )
            Models Based on Experimental Evidence ( 1 )
            Allele
            Disease
            Evidence
            References
            Modifiers Based on Experimental Evidence ( 3 )
            Alleles Representing Disease-Implicated Variants
            Genetic Tools, Stocks and Reagents
            Sources of Stocks
            Contact lab of origin for a reagent not available from a public stock center.
            Bloomington Stock Center Disease Page
            Related mammalian, viral, bacterial, or synthetic transgenes
            Allele
            Transgene
            Publicly Available Stocks
            Selected Drosophila transgenes
            Allele
            Transgene
            Publicly Available Stocks
            RNAi constructs available
            Allele
            Transgene
            Publicly Available Stocks
            Selected Drosophila classical alleles
            Allele
            Allele class
            Mutagen
            Publicly Available Stocks
            loss of function allele
            P-element activity
            amorphic allele - molecular evidence
            CRISPR/Cas9
            amorphic allele - molecular evidence
            CRISPR/Cas9
            amorphic allele - genetic evidence
            ethyl methanesulfonate
            amorphic allele - genetic evidence
            ethyl methanesulfonate
            amorphic allele - genetic evidence
            ethyl methanesulfonate
            ethyl methanesulfonate
            Delta2-3 transposase
            amorphic allele - genetic evidence
            References (11)