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First published online July 25, 2008

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Hh and Wg: inducers or stabilisers of cell fate?

As Jeff Axelrod and co-workers state in their paper (see p. 2767), `a fundamental concept in development is that secreted molecules such as Wg and Hh generate pattern by inducing cell fate'. They now cast doubt on this concept by reporting that, in Drosophila embryos, Wg and Hh generate pattern by inhibiting specific switches in cell identity rather than by specifying cell identity. They reached this conclusion by studying the specification and patterning of the segmental grooves that develop immediately posterior to the Hh-secreting, en-expressing cell stripes in the fly embryonic epidermis. By identifying Odd as a groove cell (GC) marker, the authors traced GC lineage and found that Wg, by maintaining En in these stripes, inhibits the development of Odd-expressing GC precursors. Thus, Wg signalling stops cells from switching to a GC identity, while cells beyond its reach can make this switch. Similarly, Hh, in a subsequent step, refines the GC pattern by blocking another transition towards a more posterior fate. How general this inhibition of cell identity progression by patterning signals is, awaits further investigation.

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Hedgehog and Wingless stabilize but do not induce cell fate during Drosophila dorsal embryonic epidermal patterning

Stephane Vincent, Norbert Perrimon, and Jeffrey D. Axelrod
Development 2008 135: 2767-2775. [Abstract] [Full Text]  

This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Email this article to a friend Related articles in Development Similar articles in this journal Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Search for Related Content Social Bookmarking                         What's this?