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Lineage-specific cell death in postembryonic brain development of Drosophila

Kumar, Abhilasha and Bello, Bruno and Reichert, Heinrich. (2009) Lineage-specific cell death in postembryonic brain development of Drosophila. Development, Vol. 136, H. 20. pp. 3433-3442.

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Official URL: http://edoc.unibas.ch/dok/A5250918

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Abstract

The Drosophila central brain is composed of thousands of neurons that derive from approximately 100 neuroblasts per hemisphere. Functional circuits in the brain require precise neuronal wiring and tight control of neuronal numbers. How this accurate control of neuronal numbers is achieved during neural development is largely unclear. Specifically, the role of programmed cell death in control of cell numbers has not been studied in the central brain neuroblast lineages. Here, we focus on four postembryonic neuroblast lineages in the central brain identified on the basis that they express the homeobox gene engrailed (en). For each lineage, we determine the total number of adult-specific neurons generated as well as number and pattern of en-expressing cells. We then demonstrate that programmed cell death has a pronounced effect on the number of cells in the four lineages; approximately half of the immature adult-specific neurons in three of the four lineages are eliminated by cell death during postembryonic development. Moreover, we show that programmed cell death selectively affects en-positive versus en-negative cells in a lineage-specific manner and, thus, controls the relative number of en-expressing neurons in each lineage. Furthermore, we provide evidence that Notch signaling is involved in the regulation of en expression. Based on our findings, we conclude that lineage-specific programmed cell death plays a prominent role in the generation of neuronal number and lineage diversity in the Drosophila brain.
Faculties and Departments:05 Faculty of Science > Departement Biozentrum > Former Organization Units Biozentrum > Molecular Zoology (Reichert)
UniBasel Contributors:Reichert, Heinrich
Item Type:Article, refereed
Article Subtype:Research Article
Publisher:Company of Biologists
ISSN:0950-1991
Note:Publication type according to Uni Basel Research Database: Journal article
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Last Modified:22 Mar 2012 14:19
Deposited On:22 Mar 2012 13:16

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