A single microRNA-Hox gene module controls complex movement in morphologically-distinct developmental forms of Drosophila
| Autor: | Claudio R. Alonso, Joao Picao-Osorio, Nuno Rito, Raouf Issa, Maria Eugenia Chiappe |
|---|---|
| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2019 |
| Předmět: |
Nervous system
0303 health sciences animal structures fungi Locus (genetics) Biology 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine medicine.anatomical_structure microRNA Neural function medicine Hox gene Neuroscience Psychological repression 030217 neurology & neurosurgery Ultrabithorax Organism 030304 developmental biology |
| DOI: | 10.1101/511881 |
| Popis: | Movement is the main output of the nervous system. It emerges during development to become a highly coordinated physiological process essential to the survival and adaptation of the organism to the environment. Similar movements can be observed in morphologically-distinct developmental stages of an organism, but it is currently unclear whether these movements have a common or diverse molecular basis. Here we explore this problem inDrosophilafocusing on the roles played by the microRNA (miRNA) locusmiR-iab4/8which was previously shown to be essential for the fruit fly larva to correct its orientation if turned upside down (self-righting) (Picao-Osorio et al., 2015). Our study shows thatmiR-iab4is required for normal self-righting across all threeDrosophilalarval stages. Unexpectedly, we also discover that this miRNA is essential for normal self-righting behaviour in theDrosophilaadult, an organism with radically different morphological and neural constitution. Through the combination of gene-expression, optical imaging and quantitative behavioural approaches we provide evidence thatmiR-iab4exerts its effects on adult self-righting behaviour through repression of theHoxgeneUltrabithorax (Ubx)(Morgan, 1923; Sánchez-Herrero et al., 1985) in a specific set of motor neurons that innervate the adultDrosophilaleg. Our results show that thismiRNA-Hoxmodule affects the function, rather than the morphology of motor neurons and indicate that post-developmental changes inHoxgene expression can modulate behavioural outputs in the adult. Altogether our work reveals that a commonmiRNA-Hoxgenetic module can control complex movement in morphologically-distinct organisms and describes a novel post-developmental role of theHoxgenes in adult neural function. |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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