Hrp48 attenuates Sxl expression to allow for proper notch expression and signaling in wing development

Yaron Suissa, Yossi Kalifa, Tama Dinur, Patricia Graham, Girish Deshpande, Paul Schedl, Offer Gerlitz*

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

17 Scopus citations

Abstract

Different signaling pathways are deployed in specific developmental contexts to generate sexually dimorphic traits. Recently, Sex-lethal (Sxl), the female determinant in Drosophila melanogaster, was shown to down-regulate Notch (N) signaling to accomplish sex-specific patterning. Paradoxically, however, both Sxl and N are ubiquitously expressed in all of the female cells. This raises a key question as to how, during monomorphic female development, N signaling escapes the negative impact of Sxl. Here, we uncover a regulatory loop involving Hrp48, an abundant Drosophila hnRNP, Sxl and N. Phenotypic consequences of the partial loss of hrp48 resemble that of N but are more pronounced in females than in males. Likewise, N levels are drastically diminished only in females. Interestingly, monomorphic female tissues including wing, eye and antennal discs display considerable increase in Sxl amounts. Finally, female-specific attenuation of N signaling is rescued upon simultaneous removal of Sxl. Thus, our data demonstrate that in monomorphic contexts, Hrp48 functions as a moderator of Sxl expression to achieve adequate levels of N receptor production and signaling. We propose that it is critical to modulate the activities of the master determinant underling sexual dimorphism, to ensure that it does not function inappropriately in monomorphic tissues and disrupt their development.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)6930-6935
Number of pages6
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume107
Issue number15
DOIs
StatePublished - 13 Apr 2010

Keywords

  • Dosage compensation
  • Sex determination

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