Multiple interacting elements delineate an ecdysone-dependent regulatory region with secondary responsive character

Characterization of the shsp genes in Drosophila buzzatii and association between the frequency of Valine mutations in hsp23 and climatic variables along a longitudinal gradient in Australia

The small heat shock gene (shsp) cluster of Drosophila buzzatii was sequenced and the gene order and DNA sequence were compared with those of the shsps in Drosophila melanogaster. The D. buzzatii shsp cluster contains an inversion and a duplication of hsp26. A phylogenetic tree was constructed based on hsp26 genes from several Drosophila species of the Sophophora and Drosophila subgenera. The tree shows first a separation of the Sophophora and the Drosophila subgenera and then the Drosophila subgenus is divided into the Hawaiian Drosophila and the repleta/virilis groups. Only the latter contain a duplicated hsp26. Comparing the gene organisation of the shsp cluster shows that all the Drosophila subgenus species contain the inversion. Putative heat shock elements (HSE) were found in the promoters of all the shsp and putative regulator elements for tissue specific expression were found in the promoter of hsp23, hsp27 and one of the hsp26 genes. hsp23 was found to be polymorphic for four non-synonymous changes that all lead to exchange of a Valine. The duplicated hsp26 gene in D. buzzatii (phsp26) was polymorphic for two non-synonymous changes. The allele frequencies of these variants were determined in nine D. buzzatii populations covering most of its distribution in Australia using high-resolution melting curves. The allele frequencies of one of the hsp23 variants showed a significant linear regression with longitude and the pooled frequency of the four Valine changes of hsp23 in the nine populations showed a significant linear regression with longitude and with a composite measure of climatic variables.

Microarray analysis of Drosophila development during metamorphosis

Metamorphosis is an integrated set of developmental processes controlled by a transcriptional hierarchy that coordinates the action of hundreds of genes. In order to identify and analyze the expression of these genes, high-density DNA microarrays containing several thousand Drosophila melanogaster gene sequences were constructed. Many differentially expressed genes can be assigned to developmental pathways known to be active during metamorphosis, whereas others can be assigned to pathways not previously associated with metamorphosis. Additionally, many genes of unknown function were identified that may be involved in the control and execution of metamorphosis. The utility of this genome-based approach is demonstrated for studying a set of complex biological processes in a multicellular organism.

Drosophila melanogaster is polymorphic for a specific repeated (CATA) sequence in the regulatory region of hsp23

To identify sequence variation associated with a selection response for heat tolerance in Drosophila melanogaster, we sequenced 1400bp of the heat shock protein 23 gene (hsp23) promoter region in four heat-selected and two control lines. The region was found to be variable for a specific (CATA) repeated sequence, and the sequence CTT seems to be a hot spot for mutation. The repeated tetranucleotide sequence was located in several short repeats scattered throughout the entire region. Similar variable repeats are also located downstream the of hsp23 gene in the intergenic region between hsp23 and hsp27. We detected nine different hsp23 alleles. Their frequencies in the selection and control lines seemed to be mainly determined by genetic drift. The function of the CATA repeats is not yet known, though these regions have homology to SAR elements located in the intergenic region between two hsp70 genes, suggesting a similar function.

DNA binding and transcriptional activation by the Ski oncoprotein mediated by interaction with NFI

The Ski oncoprotein has been found to bind non-specifically to DNA in association with unindentified nuclear factors. In addition, Ski has been shown to activate transcription of muscle-specific and viral promoters/enhancers. The present study was undertaken to identify Ski's DNA binding and transcriptional activation partners by identifying specific DNA binding sites. We used nuclear extracts from a v-Ski-transduced mouse L-cell line and selected Ski-bound sequences from a pool of degenerate oligonucleotides with anti-Ski monoclonal antibodies. Two sequences were identified by this technique. The first (TGGC/ANNNNNT/GCCAA) is the previously identified binding site of the nuclear factor I (NFI) family of transcription factors. The second (TCCCNNGGGA) is the binding site of Olf-1/EBF. By electophoretic mobility shift assays we find that Ski is a component of one or more NFI complexes but we fail to detect Ski in Olf-1/EBF complexes. We show that Ski binds NFI proteins and activates transcription of NFI reporters, but only in the presence of NFI. We also find that homodimerization of Ski is essential for co-activation with NFI. However, the C-terminal dimerization domain of c-Ski, which is missing in v-Ski, can be substituted by the leucine zipper domain of GCN4.

Two new regulatory elements controlling the Drosophila Sgs-3 gene are potential ecdysone receptor and fork head binding sites

We identified two regulatory elements in the upstream region of the Drosophila Sgs-3 gene which are both able to bind the ecdysone receptor (EcR/USP) and the product of the fork head gene. Interestingly, only one of the EcR/USP binding sites is able to recognize in vitro-translated EcR/USP, which provides evidence for the existence of different receptor forms having different DNA binding specificities. Deletions of the elements lead to a reduced accumulation of Sgs-3 mRNA without altering the temporal expression profile of the gene. The data are consistent with the hypothesis that the ecdysone receptor directly contributes to the transcriptional activation of Sgs-3 by binding to at least one of the two elements. Since also the Sgs-4 gene is controlled by a functional EcR/USP binding site, a direct participation of EcR/USP in the formation of regulatory complexes may be of general importance for the hormonal control of Sgs genes.

The Broad-Complex gene is a tissue-specific modulator of the ecdysone response of the Drosophila hsp23 gene

The steroid hormone ecdysone causes dramatic changes in the genetic programs leading to the pupariation of Drosophila melanogaster, and the Broad-Complex (BR-C) gene is known to play a key role in this process. Previously we showed that BR-C regulates developmental changes in transcription and chromatin structure of the 67B heat shock gene cluster, which contains four small hsp genes. Importantly, the downregulation of the hsp23 gene in the BR-C mutants correlates with the absence of a DNase I-hypersensitive site (DHS) at position -1400. To study the functional importance of the DHS-1400, we have introduced genomic fragments containing a modified hsp23 gene into the Drosophila germ line. Our analysis shows that the ecdysone response element is necessary but not sufficient for full developmental expression of hsp23 in the late third instar and that there is, indeed, another regulatory element, in the vicinity of DHS-1400. We also show that hsp23 developmental expression is not tissue specific. A construct lacking the ecdysone response element is unable to direct normal hsp23 expression in all tissues except the brain. Similarly, brain-specific expression is BR-C independent, although in the other tissues we find different requirements for BR-C genetic functions. The effect of the br mutations is restricted to wing imaginal discs and midgut tissue, while that of 2Bc is restricted to the fat body and Malpighian tubules, and mutations in the rbp group have no effect in any of the tissues studied. Thus, BR-C regulatory action is mediated through different genetic functions in a tissue-specific manner.