Comparative transcriptome analyses of theDrosophilapupal eye

Abstract

Tissue function is dependent on correct cellular organization and behavior. As a result, the identification and study of genes that contribute to tissue morphogenesis is of paramount importance to the fields of cell and developmental biology. Many of the genes required for tissue patterning and organization are highly conserved between phyla. This has led to the emergence of several model organisms and developmental systems that are used to study tissue morphogenesis. One such model is the Drosophila melanogaster pupal eye that has a highly stereotyped arrangement of cells. In addition, the pupal eye is postmitotic that allows for the study of tissue morphogenesis independent from any effects of proliferation. While the changes in cell morphology and organization that occur throughout pupal eye development are well documented, less is known about the corresponding transcriptional changes that choreograph these processes. To identify these transcriptional changes, we dissected wild-type Canton S pupal eyes and performed RNA-sequencing. Our analyses identified differential expression of many loci that are documented regulators of pupal eye morphogenesis and contribute to multiple biological processes including signaling, axon projection, adhesion, and cell survival. We also identified differential expression of genes not previously implicated in pupal eye morphogenesis such as components of the Toll pathway, several non-classical cadherins, and components of the muscle sarcomere, which could suggest these loci function as novel patterning factors.

Lipidome Unsaturation Affects the Morphology and Proteome of the Drosophila Eye

“…Alternatively, it is conceivable that these proteins have other, yet to be identified, functions in the Drosophila eye that are required upon increased lipid unsaturation. Interestingly, the expression of genes that are associated with muscle development has been detected in the pupal eye, and Troponin I/Wings up A additionally controls the proliferation of epithelial cells as well as the localization of apical-basal polarity signaling proteins . Third, the upregulation of muscle-related proteins could be due to a yet to be identified mechanistic link between lipid unsaturation and increased muscle protein expression that co-occur at low temperatures; we previously showed that at temperatures below 15 °C, Drosophila alter their dietary preference from yeast to plant material in laboratory foods but also in the wild, which provides unsaturated fatty acids that improve membrane fluidity and motor functions .…”