Project Details
Projekt
Dorsoventral pattern formation
Applicant
Professor Dr. Siegfried Roth
Subject Area
Developmental Biology
Term
from 2010 to 2017
Project identifier
Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 102336348
In Drosophila, dorsoventral (DV) axis formation begins during oogenesis when localized EGF signaling from germline lo soma provides spatial cues in the eggshell, which during embryogenesis lead lo ventral activation of the TO11/NF-KB signaling cascade. Toll signaling induces mesoderm formation and establishes a gradient of Dpp (BMP) signaling that patterns the embryonic and extraembryonic ectoderm. Using a candidate-gene approach we were able lo analyze key aspects of DV axis formation in Tribolium, but we failed lo unravel the processes leading to the localization of the germline signal, the formation of the ventral eggshell cues, the activation of the Toll ligand and the network leading lo mesoderm specification. Apparently, new components have been recruited at multiple points within a largely conserved developmental network. Furthermore, two processes lack developmental counterparts in Drosophila: DV patterning in the growth zone and extraembryonic development. Within the iBeetle project we plan lo identify missing components of the DV patterning network and identify genes required for DV patterning in the growth zone and for extraembryonic development.
DFG Programme
Research Units
