Linked Life Data

18800378

Source:http://linkedlifedata.com/resource/pubmed/id/18800378

Statements in which the resource exists as a subject.
PredicateObject
rdf:type
lifeskim:mentions
pubmed:issue
10
pubmed:dateCreated
2008-9-24
pubmed:abstractText
The Drosophila Bolwig organs are small photoreceptor bundles that facilitate the phototactic behavior of the larva. Comparative literature suggests that these highly reduced visual organs share evolutionary ancestry with the adult compound eye. A recent molecular genetic study produced the first detailed account of the mechanisms controlling differential opsin expression and photoreceptor subtype determination in these enigmatic eyes of the Drosophila larva. Here, the evolutionary implications are examined, taking into account the dynamic diversification of opsin genes and the spatial regulation of opsin homolog expression in other insects. It is concluded that, consistent with their common evolutionary roots, the Drosophila larval and adult eyes use the same mechanisms for the regulation of opsin expression and photoreceptor cell fate specification. Strikingly, the structurally highly derived Bolwig organs retained a more ancestral state of opsin expression and regulation. Inconspicuous in size, the Drosophila larval eyes deliver useful lessons in the reconstruction of homology between neuronal cell types with gene expression data, and on the conservative nature of gene regulatory network evolution during the emergence of novel organs from ancestral templates.
pubmed:language
eng
pubmed:journal
pubmed:citationSubset
IM
pubmed:chemical
pubmed:status
MEDLINE
pubmed:month
Oct
pubmed:issn
1521-1878
pubmed:author
pubmed:issnType
Electronic
pubmed:volume
30
pubmed:owner
NLM
pubmed:authorsComplete
Y
pubmed:pagination
980-93
pubmed:dateRevised
2008-11-21
pubmed:meshHeading
pubmed:year
2008
pubmed:articleTitle
Opsins and cell fate in the Drosophila Bolwig organ: tricky lessons in homology inference.
pubmed:affiliation
Department of Biological Sciences, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48202, USA. friedrichm@wayne.edu
pubmed:publicationType
Journal Article, Review