Binary specification of the embryonic lineage in Caenorhabditis elegans

Wnt activates the Tak1/Nemo-like kinase pathway

Genetic studies on endoderm-mesoderm specification in Caenorhabditis elegans have demonstrated a role for several Wnt cascade components as well as for a MAPK-like pathway in this process. The latter pathway includes the MAPK kinase kinase-like MOM-4/Tak1, its adaptor TAP-1/Tab1, and the MAPK-like LIT-1/Nemo-like kinase. A model has been proposed in which the Tak1 kinase cascade counteracts the Wnt cascade at the level of beta-catenin/TCF phosphorylation. In this model, the signal that activates the Tak1 kinase cascade is unknown. As an alternative explanation of these genetic data, we have explored whether Tak1 is directly activated by Wnt. We find that Wnt1 stimulation results in autophosphorylation and activation of MOM-4/Tak1 in a TAP-1/Tab1-dependent fashion. Wnt1-induced Tak1 stimulation activates Nemo-like kinase, resulting in the phosphorylation of TCF. Our results combined with the genetic data from C. elegans imply a mechanism whereby Wnt directly activates the MOM-4/Tak1 kinase signaling pathway. Thus, Wnt signal transduction through the canonical pathway activates beta-catenin/TCF, whereas Wnt signal transduction through the Tak1 pathway phosphorylates and inhibits TCF, which might function as a feedback mechanism.

Nemo-like kinase suppresses a wide range of transcription factors, including nuclear factor-kappaB

Nemo-like kinase (NLK) is a serine/threonine kinase that suppresses the transcription activity of the beta-catenin-T-cell factor (TCF) complex through phosphorylation of TCF. Our previous study showed that NLK overexpression induces apoptosis in DLD-1 human colon cancer cells and that apoptosis induction presumably requires a mechanism other than the suppression of beta-catenin-TCF complex. Luciferase reporter gene assay with pNF-kappaB-Luc revealed that NLK could suppress transcription activity of NF-kappaB in a kinase-dependent manner. However, it appeared that transcription co-activators of NF-kappaB, such as CREB binding protein (CBP)/p300, were likely to be the direct targets of NLK, rather than NF-kappaB itself. Luciferase reporter gene analysis of GAL4-CBP fusion proteins revealed that the C-terminal region of CBP was critical for transcription suppression by NLK. In vitro kinase assay showed that NLK could phosphorylate the C-terminal domain of CBP. However, HAT activity was not suppressed by the induction of wild-type NLK in DLD-1 cells. Furthermore, we observed that NLK suppressed the transcription activity of AP-1, Smad, and p53, all of which also utilize CBP as a co-activator. The extent of suppression by NLK was similar among the transcription factors tested (50-60% reduction). Our results suggest that NLK may suppress a wide range of gene expression, possibly through CBP.

The worm's sense of smell

Animals sense their chemical environment using multiple chemosensory neuron types, each of which exhibits characteristic response properties. The chemosensory neurons of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans provide an excellent system in which to explore the developmental mechanisms giving rise to this functional diversity. In this review, we discuss the principles underlying the patterning, generation, differentiation, and diversification of chemosensory neuron subtypes in C. elegans. Current knowledge of the molecular mechanisms underlying each of these individual steps is derived from work in different model organisms. It is essential to describe the complete developmental pathways in each organism to determine whether functional diversification in chemosensory systems is achieved via conserved or novel mechanisms. Such a complete description may be possible in C. elegans.

Loss of SEC-23 in Caenorhabditis elegans causes defects in oogenesis, morphogenesis, and extracellular matrix secretion

SEC-23 is a component of coat protein complex II (COPII)-coated vesicles involved in the endoplasmic reticulum-to-Golgi transport pathway of eukaryotes. During postembryonic life, Caenorhabditis elegans is surrounded by a collagenous exoskeleton termed the cuticle. From a screen for mutants defective in cuticle secretion, we identified and characterized a sec-23 mutant of C. elegans. By sequence homology, C. elegans has only the single sec-23 gene described herein. In addition to the cuticle secretion defect, mutants fail to complete embryonic morphogenesis. However, they progress through the earlier stages of embryogenesis, including gastrulation, and achieve substantial morphogenesis before death. We demonstrated a maternal component of SEC-23 function sufficient for progression through the earlier stages of embryogenesis and explaining the limited phenotype of the zygotic mutant. By RNA-mediated interference, we investigated the effects of perturbing COPII function during various postembryonic stages. During larval stages, major defects in cuticle synthesis and molting were observed. In the adult hermaphrodite, reduction of SEC-23 function by RNA-mediated interference caused a rapid onset of sterility, with defects in oogenesis including early maturation of the germline nuclei, probably a result of the observed loss of the GLP-1 receptor from the membrane surfaces adjacent to the developing germline nuclei.

Nemo-like kinase induces apoptosis in DLD-1 human colon cancer cells

Deregulation of Wnt/beta-catenin signaling is thought to play a critical role in human carcinogenesis. Nemo-like kinase (NLK) is an evolutionarily conserved serine/threonine kinase that suppresses beta-catenin/T-cell factor (TCF) complex transcriptional activity through phosphorylation of TCF. Since NLK may be a tumor suppressor as a negative regulator of Wnt/beta-catenin pathway, we established tetracycline-inducible NLK and its kinase-negative mutant expression in DLD-1 human colon cancer cells to analyze the effect of NLK on cell growth and viability. The induction of wild-type NLK in DLD-1 cells caused suppression of cell growth whereas the kinase-negative mutant did not. Flow cytometry indicated that NLK expression increased the number of apoptotic cells but did not induce obvious cell cycle arrest. Apoptosis induction by wild-type NLK was confirmed using TUNEL assays. Our results suggest that overexpression of NLK may have targets other than TCF for induction of apoptosis in human colon carcinoma cells.

Establishment of POP-1 asymmetry in early C. elegans embryos

In Caenhorabtidis elegans embryos, the nuclei of sister cells that are born from anterior/posterior divisions show an invariant high/low asymmetry, respectively, in their level of the transcription factor POP-1. Previous studies have shown that POP-1 asymmetry between the daughters of an embryonic cell called EMS results in part from a Wnt-like signal provided by a neighboring cell, called P(2). We identify here additional signaling cells that play a role in POP-1 asymmetry for other early embryonic cells. Some of these cells have signaling properties similar to P(2), whereas other cells use apparently distinct signaling pathways. Although cell signaling plays a critical role in POP-1 asymmetry during the first few cell divisions, later embryonic cells have an ability to generate POP-1 asymmetry that appears to be independent of prior Wnt signaling.

Composition and dynamics of the Caenorhabditis elegans early embryonic transcriptome

Temporal profiles of transcript abundance during embryonic development were obtained by whole-genome expression analysis from precisely staged C. elegans embryos. The result is a highly resolved time course that commences with the zygote and extends into mid-gastrulation, spanning the transition from maternal to embryonic control of development and including the presumptive specification of most major cell fates. Transcripts for nearly half (8890) of the predicted open reading frames are detected and expression levels for the majority of them (>70%) change over time. The transcriptome is stable up to the four-cell stage where it begins rapidly changing until the rate of change plateaus before gastrulation. At gastrulation temporal patterns of maternal degradation and embryonic expression intersect indicating a mid-blastula transition from maternal to embryonic control of development. In addition, we find that embryonic genes tend to be expressed transiently on a time scale consistent with developmental decisions being made with each cell cycle. Furthermore, overall rates of synthesis and degradation are matched such that the transcriptome maintains a steady-state frequency distribution. Finally, a versatile analytical platform based on cluster analysis and developmental classification of genes is provided.

Specification of developmental fates in ascidian embryos: molecular approach to maternal determinants and signaling molecules

Tadpole larvae of ascidians represent the basic body plan of chordates with a relatively small number and few types of cells. Because of their simplicity, ascidians have been intensively studied. More than a century of research on ascidian embryogenesis has uncovered many cellular and molecular mechanisms responsible for cell fate specification in the early embryo. This review describes recent advances in our understanding of the molecular mechanisms of fate specification mainly uncovered in model ascidian species--Halocynthia roretzi, Ciona intestinalis, and Ciona savignyi. One category of developmentally important molecules represents maternal localized mRNAs that are involved in cell-autonomous processes. In the second category, signaling molecules and downstream transcription factors are involved in inductive cell interactions. Together with genome-wide information, there is a renewed interest in studying ascidian embryos as a fascinating model system for understanding how single-celled eggs develop a highly organized chordate body plan.

Drosophila nemo is an essential gene involved in the regulation of programmed cell death

Nemo-like kinases define a novel family of serine/threonine kinases that are involved in integrating multiple signaling pathways. They are conserved regulators of Wnt/Wingless pathways, which may coordinate Wnt with TGFbeta-mediated signaling. Drosophila nemo was identified through its involvement in epithelial planar polarity, a process regulated by a non-canonical Wnt pathway. We have previously found that ectopic expression of Nemo using the Gal4-UAS system resulted in embryonic lethality associated with defects in patterning and head development. In this study we present our analyses of the phenotypes of germline clone-derived embryos. We observe lethality associated with head defects and reduction of programmed cell death and conclude that nmo is an essential gene. We also present data showing that nmo is involved in regulating apoptosis during eye development, based on both loss of function phenotypes and on genetic interactions with the pro-apoptotic gene reaper. Finally, we present genetic data from the adult wing that suggest the activity of ectopically expressed Nemo can be modulated by Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) signaling. Such an observation supports the model that there is cross-talk between Wnt, TGFbeta and JNK signaling at multiple stages of development.

Canonical and non-canonical Wnt signaling pathways in Caenorhabditis elegans: variations on a common signaling theme

Wnt glycoproteins are signaling molecules that control a wide range of developmental processes in organisms ranging from the simple metazoan Hydra to vertebrates. Wnt signaling also plays a key role in the development of the nematode C. elegans, and is involved in cell fate specification and determination of cell polarity and cell migration. Surprisingly, the first genetic studies of Wnt signaling in C. elegans revealed major differences with the established (canonical) Wnt signaling pathways of Drosophila and vertebrates. Thus, the Wnt-dependent induction of endoderm in the early embryo and the specification of several asymmetric cell divisions during larval development are mediated by as yet novel Wnt signaling pathways that repress, rather than activate the TCF/LEF-1 transcription factor POP-1. Recently, however, it has been shown that, in addition to these divergent Wnt pathways, C. elegans also has a canonical Wnt pathway that converts POP-1 into an activator and controls the expression of several homeobox genes. Interestingly, these different Wnt pathways use distinct beta-catenins to control POP-1 function: the endoderm induction pathway requires the beta-catenin WRM-1 and parallel input from a mitogen-activated kinase (MAPK) pathway to downregulate POP-1, whereas the canonical Wnt pathway employs the beta-catenin BAR-1 to activate Wnt target gene expression.

Dynamics of a developmental switch: recursive intracellular and intranuclear redistribution of Caenorhabditis elegans POP-1 parallels Wnt-inhibited transcriptional repression

POP-1, a Tcf/Lef factor, functions throughout Caenorhabditis elegans development as a Wnt-dependent reiterative switch to generate nonequivalent sister cells that are born by anterior-posterior cell divisions. We have observed the interaction between POP-1 and a target gene that it represses as it responds to Wnt signaling. Dynamic observations in living embryos reveal that POP-1 undergoes Wnt-dependent nucleocytoplasmic redistribution immediately following cytokinesis, explaining the differential nuclear POP-1 levels in nonequivalent sister cells. In unsignaled (anterior) but not Wnt-signaled (posterior) sister cells, POP-1 progressively coalesces into subnuclear domains during interphase, coincident with its action as a repressor. While the asymmetric distribution of POP-1 in nonequivalent sisters apparently requires a 124-amino-acid internal domain, neither the HMG box nor beta-catenin interaction domains are required. We find that a transcriptional activator, MED-1, associates in vivo with the end-1 and end-3 target genes in the mesoderm (anterior sister) and in the endoderm (posterior sister) following the asymmetric cell division that subdivides the mesendoderm. However, in the anterior sister, binding of POP-1 to the end-1 and end-3 genes blocks their expression. In vivo, binding of POP-1 to the end-1 and end-3 targets (in the posterior sister) is blocked by Wnt/MAPK signaling. Thus, a Tcf/Lef factor represses transactivation of genes in an unsignaled daughter cell by abrogating the function of a bound activator.

Patterning the marginal zone of early ascidian embryos: localized maternal mRNA and inductive interactions

Early animal embryos are patterned by localized egg cytoplasmic factors and cell interactions. In invertebrate chordate ascidians, larval tail muscle originates from the posterior marginal zone of the early embryo. It has recently been demonstrated that maternal macho-1 mRNA encoding transcription factor acts as a localized muscle determinant. Other mesodermal tissues such as notochord and mesenchyme are also derived from the vegetal marginal zone. In contrast, formation of these tissues requires induction from endoderm precursors at the 32-cell stage. FGF-Ras-MAPK signaling is involved in the induction of both tissues. The responsiveness for induction to notochord or mesenchyme depends on the inheritance of localized egg cytoplasmic factors. Previous studies also point to critical roles of directed signaling in polarization of induced cells and in subsequent asymmetric divisions resulting in the formation of two daughter cells with distinct fates. One cell adopts an induced fate, while the other assumes a default fate. A simple model of mesoderm patterning in ascidian embryos is proposed in comparison with that of vertebrates.

Control of cell polarity by noncanonical Wnt signaling in C. elegans

The three Caenorhabditis elegans beta-catenin each function in distinct processes: BAR-1 in canonical Wnt signaling that controls cell fates and cell migrations, HMP-2 in cell adhesion and WRM-1 in Wnt signaling pathways that function in conjunction with a mitogen-activated kinase (MAPK) pathway to control the orientations, or cell polarities, of cells that undergo asymmetric cell divisions. In addition, WRM-1 does not interact with the canonical beta-catenin binding site in POP-1/Tcf. Thus, Wnt signaling through WRM-1 is noncanonical and, except for one division that might not include any of the three C. elegans beta-catenin, controls cell polarity in C. elegans.

Conserved regulation of the Caenorhabditis elegans labial/Hox1 gene ceh-13

Caenorhabditis elegans contains a set of six cluster-type homeobox (Hox) genes that are required during larval development. Some of them, but unlike in flies not all of them, are also required during embryogenesis. It has been suggested that the control of the embryonic expression of the worm Hox genes might differ from that of other species by being regulated in a lineal rather than a regional mode. Here, we present a trans-species analysis of the cis-regulatory region of ceh-13, the worm ortholog of the Drosophila labial and the vertebrate Hox1 genes, and find that the molecular mechanisms that regulate its expression may be similar to what has been found in species that follow a regulative, non-cell-autonomous mode of development. We have identified two enhancer fragments that are involved in different aspects of the embryonic ceh-13 expression pattern. We show that important features of comma-stage expression depend on an autoregulatory input that requires ceh-13 and ceh-20 functions. Our data show that the molecular nature of Hox1 class gene autoregulation has been conserved between worms, flies, and vertebrates. The second regulatory sequence is sufficient to drive correct early embryonic expression of ceh-13. Interestingly, this enhancer fragment acts as a response element of the Wnt/WG signaling pathway in Drosophila embryos.

POP-1 controls axis formation during early gonadogenesis inC. elegans

The shape and polarity of the C. elegans gonad is defined during early gonadogenesis by two somatic gonadal precursor cells, Z1 and Z4, and their descendants. Z1 and Z4 divide asymmetrically to establish the proximal-distal axes of the gonad and to generate regulatory leader cells that control organ shape. In this paper, we report that pop-1, the C. elegans TCF/LEF-1 transcription factor, controls the first Z1/Z4 asymmetric division and hence controls proximal-distal axis formation. We have identified two pop-1(Sys) alleles (for symmetrical sisters) that render the Z1/Z4 divisions symmetrical. The pop-1(q645) allele is fully penetrant for the Sys gonadogenesis defect in hermaphrodites, but affects male gonads weakly; pop-1(q645) alters a conserved amino acid in the β-catenin binding domain. The pop-1(q624) allele is weakly penetrant for multiple defects and appears to be a partial loss-of-function mutation; pop-1(q624) alters a conserved amino acid in the HMG-box DNA binding domain. Zygotic pop-1(RNAi) confirms the role of pop-1 in Z1/Z4 asymmetry and reveals additional roles of pop-1, including one in leader cell migration. Two other Wnt pathway regulators, wrm-1 and lit-1, have the same effect as pop-1 on Z1/Z4 asymmetry. Therefore, wrm-1 and lit-1 are required for pop-1 function, rather than opposing it as observed in the early embryo. We conclude that POP-1 controls the Z1/Z4 asymmetric division and thereby establishes the proximal-distal axes of the gonad. This control over proximal-distal polarity extends our view of Wnt signaling in C. elegans, which had previously been known to control anterior-posterior polarities.

Cell polarity and gastrulation inC. elegans

Gastrulation in C. elegans embryos involves formation of a blastocoel and the ingression of surface cells into the blastocoel. Mutations in the par-3 gene cause abnormal separations between embryonic cells, suggesting that the PAR-3 protein has a role in blastocoel formation. In normal development, PAR proteins localize to either the apical or basal surfaces of cells prior to blastocoel formation; we demonstrate that this localization is determined by cell contacts. Cells that ingress into the blastocoel undergo an apical flattening associated with an apical concentration of non-muscle myosin. We provide evidence that ingression times are determined by genes that control cell fate, though interactions with neighboring cells can prevent ingression.

The maternal genespn-4encodes a predicted RRM protein required for mitotic spindle orientation and cell fate patterning in earlyC. elegansembryos

C. elegans embryogenesis begins with a stereotyped sequence of asymmetric cell divisions that are largely responsible for establishing the nematode body plan. These early asymmetries are specified after fertilization by the widely conserved, cortically enriched PAR and PKC-3 proteins, which include three kinases and two PDZ domain proteins. During asymmetric cell divisions in the early embryo, centrosome pairs initially are positioned on transverse axes but then rotate to align with the anteroposterior embryonic axis. We show that rotation of the centrosomal/nuclear complex in an embryonic cell called P1 requires a maternally expressed gene we name spn-4. The predicted SPN-4 protein contains a single RNA recognition motif (RRM), and belongs to a small subfamily of RRM proteins that includes one Drosophila and two human family members. Remarkably, in mutant embryos lacking spn-4 function the transversely oriented ‘P1’ mitotic spindle appears to re-specify the axis of cell polarity, and the division remains asymmetric. spn-4 also is required for other developmental processes, including the specification of mesendoderm, the restriction of mesectoderm fate to P1 descendants, and germline quiescence during embryogenesis. We suggest that SPN-4 post-transcriptionally regulates the expression of multiple developmental regulators. Such SPN-4 targets might then act more specifically to generate a subset of the anterior-posterior asymmetries initially specified after fertilization by the more generally required PAR and PKC-3 proteins.

Epithelial biology: lessons from Caenorhabditis elegans

Epithelial cells are essential and abundant in all multicellular animals where their dynamic cell shape changes orchestrate morphogenesis of the embryo and individual organs. Genetic analysis in the simple nematode Caenorhabditis elegans provides some clues to the mechanisms that are involved in specifying epithelial cell fates and in controlling specific epithelial processes such as junction assembly, trafficking or cell fusion and cell adhesion. Here we review recent findings concerning C. elegans epithelial cells, focusing in particular on epithelial polarity, and transcriptional control.

ELT-5 and ELT-6 are required continuously to regulate epidermal seam cell differentiation and cell fusion inC. elegans

The C. elegans epidermis is a simple epithelium comprised of three major cell types, the seam, syncytial and P cells. While specification of all major epidermal cells is known to require the ELT-1 GATA transcription factor, little is known about how the individual epidermal cell types are specified. We report that elt-5 and -6, adjacent genes encoding GATA factors, are essential for the development of the lateral epidermal cells, the seam cells. Inhibition of elt-5 and -6 function by RNA-mediated interference results in penetrant late embryonic and early larval lethality. Seam cells in affected animals do not differentiate properly: the alae, seam-specific cuticular structures, are generally absent and expression of several seam-specific markers is blocked. In addition, elt-3, which encodes another GATA factor normally expressed in non-seam epidermis, is often ectopically expressed in the seam cells of affected animals, demonstrating that ELT-5 and -6 repress elt-3 expression in wild-type seam cells. Seam cells in affected animals often undergo inappropriate fusion with the epidermal syncytia. Interference of elt-5 and -6 function during larval development can cause fusion of all seam cells with the surrounding syncytia and pronounced defects in molting. elt-5 and -6 are both expressed in seam cells and many other cells, and are apparently functionally interchangeable. Their expression is controlled by separable tissue-specific regulatory elements and the apportionment of monocistronic versus dicistronic transcription of both genes appears to be subject to cell-type-specific regulation. Collectively, these findings indicate that elt-5 and -6 function continuously throughout C. elegans development to regulate seam cell differentiation and cell fusion.

Restriction of mesendoderm to a single blastomere by the combined action of SKN-1 and a GSK-3beta homolog is mediated by MED-1 and -2 in C. elegans

The endoderm and much of the mesoderm arise from the EMS cell in the four-cell C. elegans embryo. We report that the MED-1 and -2 GATA factors specify the entire fate of EMS, which otherwise produces two C-like mesectodermal progenitors. The meds are direct targets of the maternal SKN-1 transcription factor; however, their forced expression can direct SKN-1-independent reprogramming of non-EMS cells into mesendodermal progenitors. We find that SGG-1/GSK-3beta kinase acts both as a Wnt-dependent activator of endoderm in EMS and an apparently Wnt-independent repressor of the meds in the C lineage, indicating a dual role for this kinase in mesendoderm development. Our results suggest that a broad tissue territory, mesendoderm, in vertebrates has been confined to a single cell in nematodes through a common gene regulatory network.

Getting signals crossed in C. elegans

The induction of an appropriate cellular response to a stimulus often depends on the intricate interplay between multiple signaling pathways. Recent work utilizing Caenorhabditis elegans has enabled the identification of points of convergence between signaling pathways and permitted the elucidation of how multiple signals work in concert to ensure a proper response.

Cross-regulation of the Wnt signalling pathway: a role of MAP kinases

The Wnt signal transduction pathway regulates various aspects of embryonal development and is involved in cancer formation. Wnts induce the stabilisation of cytosolic (beta)-catenin, which then associates with TCF transcription factors to regulate expression of Wnt-target genes. At various levels the Wnt pathway is subject to cross-regulation by other components. Recent evidence suggests that a specific MAP kinase pathway involving the MAP kinase kinase kinase TAK1 and the MAP kinase NLK counteract Wnt signalling. In particular, homologues of TAK1 and NLK, MOM-4 and LIT-1, negatively regulate Wnt-controlled cell fate decision in the early Caenorhabditis elegans embryo. Moreover, TAK1 activates NLK, which phosphorylates TCFs bound to (beta)-catenin. This blocks nuclear localization and DNA binding of TCFs. Since TAK1 is activated by TGF-(beta) and various cytokines, it might provide an entry point for regulation of the Wnt system by other pathways. In addition, alterations in TAK1-NLK might play a role in cancer.

Wnt signalling in Caenorhabditis elegans: regulating repressors and polarizing the cytoskeleton

Wnt proteins are secreted, cysteine-rich glycoprotein ligands with numerous roles during animal development. Recent studies of endoderm induction during embryogenesis in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans challenge the prevailing view that Wnt signalling specifies cell fate by converting transcriptional repressors into activators. Instead, a mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-related pathway converges with Wnt signalling in C. elegans to relieve transcriptional repression. Furthermore, Wnt signalling induces endoderm in part by aligning the mitotic spindle in a responding cell along the anterior-posterior body axis. To orient mitotic spindles, Wnt signalling might directly target the cytoskeleton, prior to any regulation of gene transcription in responding cells.

Regulative development in a nematode embryo: a hierarchy of cell fate transformations

Cell specification during embryogenesis of the model system Caenorhabditis elegans involves a combination of inductive and autonomous mechanisms. We have begun to study the development of other nematodes to investigate how well cell-specification mechanisms are preserved among closely related species. Here we report that the embryo of the soil nematode Acrobeloides nanus expresses a so far undescribed regulative potential. When, for instance, the first somatic founder cell AB is eliminated it is replaced by its posterior neighbor EMS, which in turn is replaced by the C cell. This allows-different from C. elegans-the development of partial embryos up to hatching and sometimes to fertile adults. Thus, early somatic blastomeres in A. nanus are multipotent, each being capable of giving rise to more than one somatic founder cell. Lost germ-line cells, however, are not replaced. A model is presented, according to which in A. nanus cellular identities are assigned by specific reciprocal inhibitory cell-cell interactions absent in C. elegans. Differences and similarities in cell specification between the two species are discussed and related to different developmental strategies.

Wnt signalling: pathway or network?

Members of the Wnt family of secreted glycoproteins participate in many signalling events during development. Recent findings suggest that Wnt signals can sometimes play a permissive role during cell-fate assignment. Wnt proteins have been shown to interact with a number of extracellular and cell-surface proteins, whereas many intracellular components of the Wnt-signalling pathway are also involved in other cellular functions. The consequences of Wnt signalling can be affected by members of the MAP kinase family. These observations suggest that the future understanding of Wnt signalling may require models that are based on a signalling network rather than a single linear pathway.

Cell polarity in the early Caenorhabditis elegans embryo

Beginning with the first mitotic division in a Caenorhabditis elegans embryo, asymmetric cleavages establish much of the body plan. Although they share a common axis of polarity, at least three kinds of asymmetric cell division occur: two are under intrinsic control, while a third requires an inductive signal and may operate repeatedly throughout development.

MOM-4, a MAP kinase kinase kinase-related protein, activates WRM-1/LIT-1 kinase to transduce anterior/posterior polarity signals in C. elegans

In C. elegans, a Wnt/WG-like signaling pathway down-regulates the TCF/LEF-related protein, POP-1, to specify posterior cell fates. Effectors of this signaling pathway include a beta-catenin homolog, WRM-1, and a conserved protein kinase, LIT-1. WRM-1 and LIT-1 form a kinase complex that can directly phosphorylate POP-1, but how signaling activates WRM-1/LIT-1 kinase is not yet known. Here we show that mom-4, a genetically defined effector of polarity signaling, encodes a MAP kinase kinase kinase-related protein that stimulates the WRM-1/LIT-1-dependent phosphorylation of POP-1. LIT-1 kinase activity requires a conserved residue analogous to an activating phosphorylation site in other kinases, including MAP kinases. These findings suggest that anterior/posterior polarity signaling in C. elegans may involve a MAP kinase-like signaling mechanism.

Patterning the C. elegans embryo: moving beyond the cell lineage

The Caenorhabditis elegans embryo undergoes a series of stereotyped cell cleavages that generates the organs and tissues necessary for an animal to survive. Here we review two models of embryonic patterning, one that is lineage-based, and one that focuses on domains of organ and tissue precursors. Our evolving view of C. elegans embryogenesis suggests that this animal develops by mechanisms that are qualitatively similar to those used by other animals.

MAP kinase and Wnt pathways converge to downregulate an HMG-domain repressor in Caenorhabditis elegans

The signalling protein Wnt regulates transcription factors containing high-mobility-group (HMG) domains to direct decisions on cell fate during animal development. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the HMG-domain-containing repressor POP-1 distinguishes the fates of anterior daughter cells from their posterior sisters throughout development, and Wnt signalling downregulates POP-1 activity in one posterior daughter cell called E. Here we show that the genes mom-4 and lit-1 are also required to downregulate POP-1, not only in E but also in other posterior daughter cells. Consistent with action in a common pathway, mom-4 and lit-1 exhibit similar mutant phenotypes and encode components of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway that are homologous to vertebrate transforming-growth-factor-beta-activated kinase (TAK1) and NEMO-like kinase (NLK), respectively. Furthermore, MOM-4 and TAK1 bind related proteins that promote their kinase activities. We conclude that a MAPK-related pathway cooperates with Wnt signal transduction to downregulate POP-1 activity. These functions are likely to be conserved in vertebrates, as TAK1 and NLK can downregulate HMG-domain-containing proteins related to POP-1.

WRM-1 activates the LIT-1 protein kinase to transduce anterior/posterior polarity signals in C. elegans

During C. elegans development, Wnt/WG signaling is required for differences in cell fate between sister cells born from anterior/posterior divisions. A beta-catenin-related gene, wrm-1, and the lit-1 gene are effectors of this signaling pathway and appear to downregulate the activity of POP-1, a TCF/LEF-related protein, in posterior daughter cells. We show here that lit-1 encodes a serine/threonine protein kinase homolog related to the Drosophila tissue polarity protein Nemo. We demonstrate that the WRM-1 protein binds to LIT-1 in vivo and that WRM-1 can activate the LIT-1 protein kinase when coexpressed in vertebrate tissue culture cells. This activation leads to phosphorylation of POP-1 and to apparent changes in its subcellular localization. Our findings provide evidence for novel regulatory avenues for an evolutionarily conserved Wnt/WG signaling pathway.

Early patterning of the C. elegans embryo

Studies of about 20 maternally expressed genes are providing an understanding of mechanisms of patterning and cell-fate determination in the early Caenorhabditis elegans embryo. The analyses have revealed that fates of the early blastomeres are specified by a combination of intrinsically asymmetric cell divisions and two types of cell-cell interactions: inductions and polarizing interactions. In this review we summarize the current level of understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying these processes in the specification of cell fates in the pregastrulation embryo.

Complexity of developmental control: analysis of embryonic cell lineage specification in Caenorhabditis elegans using pes-1 as an early marker

In the early Caenorhabditis elegans embryo five somatic founder cells are born during the first cleavages. The first of these founder cells, named AB, gives rise to 389 of the 558 nuclei present in the hatching larva. Very few genes directly involved in the specification of the AB lineage have been identified so far. Here we describe a screen of a large collection of maternal-effect embryonic lethal mutations for their effect on the early expression of a pes-1::lacZ fusion gene. This fusion gene is expressed in a characteristic pattern in 14 of the 32 AB descendants present shortly after the initiation of gastrulation. Of the 37 mutations in 36 genes suspected to be required specifically during development, 12 alter the expression of the pes-1::lacZ marker construct. The gene expression pattern alterations are of four types: reduction of expression, variable expression, ectopic expression in addition to the normal pattern, and reduction of the normal pattern together with ectopic expression. We estimate that approximately 100 maternal functions are required to establish the pes-1 expression pattern in the early embryo.

Asymmetric cell division: lessons from flies and worms

Insights into the mechanisms of asymmetric cell division have recently been obtained from studies in genetically amenable systems such as Drosophila and Caenorhabditis elegans. These studies have emphasized the importance of cortically localized polarity organizing molecules, adapter molecules, and the actin cytoskeleton in controlling unequal segregation of cell-fate determinants and spindle orientation. The control of asymmetric cell divisions by Wnt signaling in C. elegans and Frizzled signaling in Drosophila reveals additional mechanisms for modulating cellular polarity and suggests that there are some similarities between the two systems.