PUBLICATION

Expression of engrailed proteins in arthropods annelids and chordates

Authors
Patel, N.H., Martin-Blanco, E., Coleman, K.G., Poole, S.J., Ellis, M.C., Kornberg, T.B., and Goodman, C.S.
ID
ZDB-PUB-961014-861
Date
1989
Source
Cell   58: 955-968 (Journal)
Registered Authors
Goodman, Corey S., Patel, Nipam
Keywords
none
MeSH Terms
  • Amino Acid Sequence
  • Animals
  • Annelida/genetics*
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal/immunology
  • Arthropods/genetics*
  • Base Sequence
  • Biological Evolution
  • Chordata, Nonvertebrate/genetics*
  • DNA-Binding Proteins/genetics*
  • DNA-Binding Proteins/immunology
  • Genes, Homeobox*
  • Immunohistochemistry
  • Insect Hormones/genetics*
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Recombinant Proteins/immunology
PubMed
2570637 Full text @ Cell
Abstract
engrailed is a homeobox gene that has an important role in Drosophila segmentation. Genes homologous to engrailed have been identified in several other organisms. Here we describe a monoclonal antibody that recognizes a conserved epitope in the homeodomain of engrailed proteins of a number of different arthropods, annelids, and chordates; we use this antibody to isolate the grasshopper engrailed gene. In Drosophila embryos, the antibody reveals engrailed protein in the posterior portion of each segment during segmentation, and in a segmentally reiterated subset of neuronal cells during neurogenesis. Other arthropods, including grasshopper and two crustaceans, have similar patterns of engrailed expression. However, these patterns of expression are not shared by the annelids or chordates we examined. Our results provide the most comprehensive view that has been obtained of how expression patterns of a regulatory gene vary during evolution. On the basis of these patterns, we suggest that engrailed is a gene whose ancestral function was in neurogenesis and whose function was co-opted during the evolution of segmentation in the arthropods, but not in the annelids and chordates.
Genes / Markers
Figures
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Antibodies
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping