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First published online 22 March 2006
doi: 10.1242/dev.02338
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1 Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, One
Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
2 Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor
Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
3 Division of Neuroscience, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Baylor
College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030, USA.
Author for correspondence (e-mail:
hbellen{at}bcm.tmc.edu)
Accepted 23 February 2006
The basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) proneural proteins Achaete and Scute cooperate with the class I bHLH protein Daughterless to specify the precursors of most sensory bristles in Drosophila. However, the mechanosensory bristles at the Drosophila wing margin have been reported to be unaffected by mutations that remove Achaete and Scute function. Indeed, the proneural gene(s) for these organs is not known. Here, we show that the zinc-finger transcription factor Senseless, together with Daughterless, plays the proneural role for the wing margin mechanosensory precursors, whereas Achaete and Scute are required for the survival of the mechanosensory neuron and support cells in these lineages. We provide evidence that Senseless and Daughterless physically interact and synergize in vivo and in transcription assays. Gain-of-function studies indicate that Senseless and Daughterless are sufficient to generate thoracic sensory organs (SOs) in the absence of achaete-scute gene complex function. However, analysis of senseless loss-of-function clones in the thorax implicates Senseless not in the primary SO precursor (pI) selection, but in the specification of pI progeny. Therefore, although Senseless and bHLH proneural proteins are employed during the development of all Drosophila bristles, they play fundamentally different roles in different subtypes of these organs. Our data indicate that transcription factors other than bHLH proteins can also perform the proneural function in the Drosophila peripheral nervous system.
Key words: Neurogenesis, Proneural genes, PNS, Sensory organs, bHLH proteins
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