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Establishment of developmental precision and proportions in the early Drosophila embryo

Author

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  • Bahram Houchmandzadeh

    (Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Princeton University
    CNRS, Laboratoire de Spectrometrie Physique, BP87)

  • Eric Wieschaus

    (Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Princeton University)

  • Stanislas Leibler

    (Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Princeton University
    Princeton University
    Rockefeller University)

Abstract

During embryonic development, orderly patterns of gene expression eventually assign each cell in the embryo its particular fate. For the anteroposterior axis of the Drosophila embryo, the first step in this process depends on a spatial gradient of the maternal morphogen Bicoid (Bcd). Positional information of this gradient is transmitted to downstream gap genes, each occupying a well defined spatial domain1,2,3,4. We determined the precision of the initial process by comparing expression domains in different embryos. Here we show that the Bcd gradient displays a high embryo-to-embryo variability, but that this noise in the positional information is strongly decreased (‘filtered’) at the level of hunchback (hb) gene expression. In contrast to the Bcd gradient, the hb expression pattern already includes the information about the scale of the embryo. We show that genes known to interact directly with Hb are not responsible for its spatial precision, but that the maternal gene staufen may be crucial.

Suggested Citation

  • Bahram Houchmandzadeh & Eric Wieschaus & Stanislas Leibler, 2002. "Establishment of developmental precision and proportions in the early Drosophila embryo," Nature, Nature, vol. 415(6873), pages 798-802, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:nat:nature:v:415:y:2002:i:6873:d:10.1038_415798a
    DOI: 10.1038/415798a
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    Cited by:

    1. David M Holloway & Francisco J P Lopes & Luciano da Fontoura Costa & Bruno A N Travençolo & Nina Golyandina & Konstantin Usevich & Alexander V Spirov, 2011. "Gene Expression Noise in Spatial Patterning: hunchback Promoter Structure Affects Noise Amplitude and Distribution in Drosophila Segmentation," PLOS Computational Biology, Public Library of Science, vol. 7(2), pages 1-18, February.
    2. Jeremy A. Owen & Jordan M. Horowitz, 2023. "Size limits the sensitivity of kinetic schemes," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 14(1), pages 1-11, December.
    3. Roman Vetter & Dagmar Iber, 2022. "Precision of morphogen gradients in neural tube development," Nature Communications, Nature, vol. 13(1), pages 1-14, December.
    4. Casper J Breuker & James S Patterson & Christian Peter Klingenberg, 2006. "A Single Basis for Developmental Buffering of Drosophila Wing Shape," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 1(1), pages 1-7, December.
    5. Jingyuan Deng & Wei Wang & Long Jason Lu & Jun Ma, 2010. "A Two-Dimensional Simulation Model of the Bicoid Gradient in Drosophila," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 5(4), pages 1-11, April.

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