Bicoid gradient formation mechanism and dynamics revealed by protein lifetime analysis

Autor: Lucia Durrieu, Daniel Kirrmaier, Tatjana Schneidt, Ilia Kats, Sarada Raghavan, Lars Hufnagel, Timothy E Saunders, Michael Knop
Jazyk: angličtina
Rok vydání: 2018
Předmět:
Zdroj: Molecular Systems Biology, Vol 14, Iss 9, Pp 1-15 (2018)
Druh dokumentu: article
ISSN: 1744-4292
DOI: 10.15252/msb.20188355
Popis: Abstract Embryogenesis relies on instructions provided by spatially organized signaling molecules known as morphogens. Understanding the principles behind morphogen distribution and how cells interpret locally this information remains a major challenge in developmental biology. Here, we introduce morphogen‐age measurements as a novel approach to test models of morphogen gradient formation. Using a tandem fluorescent timer as a protein age sensor, we find a gradient of increasing age of Bicoid along the anterior–posterior axis in the early Drosophila embryo. Quantitative analysis of the protein age distribution across the embryo reveals that the synthesis–diffusion–degradation model is the most likely model underlying Bicoid gradient formation, and rules out other hypotheses for gradient formation. Moreover, we show that the timer can detect transitions in the dynamics associated with syncytial cellularization. Our results provide new insight into Bicoid gradient formation and demonstrate how morphogen‐age information can complement knowledge about movement, abundance, and distribution, which should be widely applicable to other systems.
Databáze: Directory of Open Access Journals
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