Wnt, Hedgehog and junctional Armadillo/beta-catenin establish planar polarity in the Drosophila embryo.

To generate specialized structures, cells must obtain positional and directional information. In multi-cellular organisms, cells use the non-canonical Wnt or planar cell polarity (PCP) signaling pathway to establish directionality within a cell. In vertebrates, several Wnt molecules have been propos...

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Main Authors: Pamela F Colosimo, Nicholas S Tolwinski
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Public Library of Science (PLoS) 2006-12-01
Series:PLoS ONE
Online Access:http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC1762359?pdf=render
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author Pamela F Colosimo
Nicholas S Tolwinski
author_facet Pamela F Colosimo
Nicholas S Tolwinski
author_sort Pamela F Colosimo
collection DOAJ
description To generate specialized structures, cells must obtain positional and directional information. In multi-cellular organisms, cells use the non-canonical Wnt or planar cell polarity (PCP) signaling pathway to establish directionality within a cell. In vertebrates, several Wnt molecules have been proposed as permissible polarity signals, but none has been shown to provide a directional cue. While PCP signaling components are conserved from human to fly, no PCP ligands have been reported in Drosophila. Here we report that in the epidermis of the Drosophila embryo two signaling molecules, Hedgehog (Hh) and Wingless (Wg or Wnt1), provide directional cues that induce the proper orientation of Actin-rich structures in the larval cuticle. We further find that proper polarity in the late embryo also involves the asymmetric distribution and phosphorylation of Armadillo (Arm or beta-catenin) at the membrane and that interference with this Arm phosphorylation leads to polarity defects. Our results suggest new roles for Hh and Wg as instructive polarizing cues that help establish directionality within a cell sheet, and a new polarity-signaling role for the membrane fraction of the oncoprotein Arm.
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spelling doaj.art-bc7781ef93784017ada923f21f1043c52022-12-22T00:01:04ZengPublic Library of Science (PLoS)PLoS ONE1932-62032006-12-011e910.1371/journal.pone.0000009Wnt, Hedgehog and junctional Armadillo/beta-catenin establish planar polarity in the Drosophila embryo.Pamela F ColosimoNicholas S TolwinskiTo generate specialized structures, cells must obtain positional and directional information. In multi-cellular organisms, cells use the non-canonical Wnt or planar cell polarity (PCP) signaling pathway to establish directionality within a cell. In vertebrates, several Wnt molecules have been proposed as permissible polarity signals, but none has been shown to provide a directional cue. While PCP signaling components are conserved from human to fly, no PCP ligands have been reported in Drosophila. Here we report that in the epidermis of the Drosophila embryo two signaling molecules, Hedgehog (Hh) and Wingless (Wg or Wnt1), provide directional cues that induce the proper orientation of Actin-rich structures in the larval cuticle. We further find that proper polarity in the late embryo also involves the asymmetric distribution and phosphorylation of Armadillo (Arm or beta-catenin) at the membrane and that interference with this Arm phosphorylation leads to polarity defects. Our results suggest new roles for Hh and Wg as instructive polarizing cues that help establish directionality within a cell sheet, and a new polarity-signaling role for the membrane fraction of the oncoprotein Arm.http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC1762359?pdf=render
spellingShingle Pamela F Colosimo
Nicholas S Tolwinski
Wnt, Hedgehog and junctional Armadillo/beta-catenin establish planar polarity in the Drosophila embryo.
PLoS ONE
title Wnt, Hedgehog and junctional Armadillo/beta-catenin establish planar polarity in the Drosophila embryo.
title_full Wnt, Hedgehog and junctional Armadillo/beta-catenin establish planar polarity in the Drosophila embryo.
title_fullStr Wnt, Hedgehog and junctional Armadillo/beta-catenin establish planar polarity in the Drosophila embryo.
title_full_unstemmed Wnt, Hedgehog and junctional Armadillo/beta-catenin establish planar polarity in the Drosophila embryo.
title_short Wnt, Hedgehog and junctional Armadillo/beta-catenin establish planar polarity in the Drosophila embryo.
title_sort wnt hedgehog and junctional armadillo beta catenin establish planar polarity in the drosophila embryo
url http://europepmc.org/articles/PMC1762359?pdf=render
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