A DPP-mediated feed-forward loop canalizes morphogenesis during Drosophila dorsal closure

During Drosophila dorsal closure, DPP and JNK signaling form a feed-forward loop that controls the specification and differentiation of leading edge cells to ensure robust morphogenesis.

Development is robust because nature has selected various mechanisms to buffer the deleterious effects of environmental and genetic variations to deliver phenotypic stability. Robustness relies on smart network motifs such as feed-forward loops (FFLs) that ensure the reliable interpretation of developmental signals. In this paper, we show that Decapentaplegic (DPP) and JNK form a coherent FFL that controls the specification and differentiation of leading edge cells during Drosophila melanogaster dorsal closure (DC). We provide molecular evidence that through repression by Brinker (Brk), the DPP branch of the FFL filters unwanted JNK activity. High-throughput live imaging revealed that this DPP/Brk branch is dispensable for DC under normal conditions but is required when embryos are subjected to thermal stress. Our results indicate that the wiring of DPP signaling buffers against environmental challenges and canalizes cell identity. We propose that the main function of DPP pathway during Drosophila DC is to ensure robust morphogenesis, a distinct function from its well-established ability to spread spatial information.

Cholesterol-free and cholesterol-bound Hedgehog: Two sparring-partners working hand in hand in the Drosophila wing disc?

Hedgehog (Hh) is a signaling ligand conserved from flies to humans that is covalently bound to both palmitate and cholesterol moieties. These lipid modifications are crucial for Hh signaling. A recent article reports that in both flies and human-cultured cells a cholesterol-free form of Hh (SHh-N*/Hh-N*) is produced and secreted. In the Drosophila wing disc, Hh associated with Lipoproteins-lipophorin complexes (Lpp) would lead to the accumulation of Cubitus interruptus (Ci), the transcription factor in the Hh pathway but this would be insufficient to activate Hh target genes. On the other hand, Lpp-free Hh-N* would act in synergy with Lpp-associated Hh to eventually activate target gene expression. This suggests that Hh can be secreted in 2 different forms that would have distinct and synergic functions.

Absolute requirement of cholesterol binding for Hedgehog gradient formation in Drosophila

How morphogen gradients are shaped is a major question in developmental biology, but remains poorly understood. Hedgehog (Hh) is a locally secreted ligand that reaches cells at a distance and acts as a morphogen to pattern the Drosophila wing and the vertebrate neural tube. The proper patterning of both structures relies on the precise control over the slope of Hh activity gradient. A number of hypotheses have been proposed to explain Hh movement and hence graded activity of Hh. A crux to all these models is that the covalent binding of cholesterol to Hh N-terminus is essential to achieve the correct slope of the activity gradient. Still, the behavior of cholesterol-free Hh (Hh-N) remains controversial: cholesterol has been shown to either increase or restrict Hh range depending on the experimental setting. Here, in fly embryos and wing imaginal discs, we show that cholesterol-free Hh diffuses at a long-range. This unrestricted diffusion of cholesterol-free Hh leads to an absence of gradient while Hh signaling strength remains uncompromised. These data support a model where cholesterol addition restricts Hh diffusion and can transform a leveled signaling activity into a gradient. In addition, our data indicate that the receptor Patched is not able to sequester cholesterol-free Hh. We propose that a morphogen gradient does not necessarily stem from the active transfer of a poorly diffusing molecule, but can be achieved by the restriction of a highly diffusible ligand.

[Human retrovirus XMRV: The end of an exciting story?]

Viruses represent an important cause of cancer in humans: infections are estimated to account for close to one cancer case out of five.With the ongoing discovery of new infectious agents, this number should be raising in the near future. In 2006, the discovery of a new _-retrovirus in prostate cancer biopsies launched an intense research activity: could this new xenotropic MLV-related virus (XMRV) be the cause of prostate cancer? Five years later, the initial enthusiasm of retrovirologists has dramatically diminished. One by one, arguments favouring the hypothesis of human infection with XMRV are being refuted. The aim of this review article is to present the discovery of XMRV and to analyze recent data arguing against its existence in humans. A synthetic interpretation of XMRV literature will then be suggested.