Through comparative studies between distantly related animals, it has become apparent that genes and regulatory networks functioning during embryonic growth are highly conserved. This has led to the hypothesis that evolutionary changes in morphology can be traced to alterations in these regulatory modules. Studies to address this hypothesis have focused on insects, which display different modes of segmentation. Most approaches rely on cloning and expression analysis of orthologs of well-characterized Drosophila genes. However, most insects do not offer facile approaches to examine the functional significance of conserved gene expression patterns, or to test observed differences. Further, these comparisons are limited to the analysis of mechanisms discovered in flies, and do not offer the possibility of identifying genes important to segmentation in species other than flies. Our studies in Tribolium overcome these limitations, since Tribolium offers the possibility of genetic manipulation in addition to its facility for developmental and molecular studies. Moreover, the recent advances in RNA interference and germline transformation place Tribolium in the forefront of comparative model systems. We have discovered that depletion of certain pair-rule gene mRNAs by RNAi blocks segmentation and morphogenesis in Tribolium, results not predicted by the Drosophila paradigm. To understand the molecular interaction underlying these novel phenotypes we will examine the effects of Tceve and Tcrun mRNA depletion on the expression of other segmentation and homeotic genes. Analysis of the regulatory regions associated with these genes and ectopic expression of transgenes will complement the RNAi studies. To discover other genes important to segmentation in Tribolium we will execute a transposon-tagging mutagenesis scheme and characterize relevant mutants. Our research provides a unique opportunity to elucidate the genetic mechanisms underlying the regulation of the process of progressive segmentation in a cellular environment.

Agency
National Institute of Health (NIH)
Institute
Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NICHD)
Type
Research Project (R01)
Project #
2R01HD029594-11
Application #
6541985
Study Section
Genetics Study Section (GEN)
Program Officer
Moody, Sally Ann
Project Start
1992-08-01
Project End
2007-07-31
Budget Start
2002-08-01
Budget End
2003-07-31
Support Year
11
Fiscal Year
2002
Total Cost
$284,400
Indirect Cost
Name
Kansas State University
Department
Biology
Type
Schools of Arts and Sciences
DUNS #
City
Manhattan
State
KS
Country
United States
Zip Code
66506
Choe, Chong Pyo; Stellabotte, Frank; Brown, Susan J (2017) Regulation and function of odd-paired in Tribolium segmentation. Dev Genes Evol 227:309-317
El-Sherif, Ezzat; Zhu, Xin; Fu, Jinping et al. (2014) Caudal regulates the spatiotemporal dynamics of pair-rule waves in Tribolium. PLoS Genet 10:e1004677
Fu, Jinping; Posnien, Nico; Bolognesi, Renata et al. (2012) Asymmetrically expressed axin required for anterior development in Tribolium. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 109:7782-6
Bao, Riyue; Fischer, Tami; Bolognesi, Renata et al. (2012) Parallel duplication and partial subfunctionalization of ýý-catenin/armadillo during insect evolution. Mol Biol Evol 29:647-62
El-Sherif, Ezzat; Lynch, Jeremy A; Brown, Susan J (2012) Comparisons of the embryonic development of Drosophila, Nasonia, and Tribolium. Wiley Interdiscip Rev Dev Biol 1:16-39
Miller, Sherry C; Miyata, Keita; Brown, Susan J et al. (2012) Dissecting systemic RNA interference in the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum: parameters affecting the efficiency of RNAi. PLoS One 7:e47431
El-Sherif, Ezzat; Averof, Michalis; Brown, Susan J (2012) A segmentation clock operating in blastoderm and germband stages of Tribolium development. Development 139:4341-6
Robinson, Gene E; Hackett, Kevin J; Purcell-Miramontes, Mary et al. (2011) Creating a buzz about insect genomes. Science 331:1386
Brown, Sue (2010) The Nasonia genome sequence: finding gems in the jewel (wasp) box. Insect Mol Biol 19 Suppl 1:v-vii
Janssen, Ralf; Le Gouar, Martine; Pechmann, Matthias et al. (2010) Conservation, loss, and redeployment of Wnt ligands in protostomes: implications for understanding the evolution of segment formation. BMC Evol Biol 10:374

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