Kinetics of morphogen gradient formation

Science. 2007 Jan 26;315(5811):521-5. doi: 10.1126/science.1135774.

Abstract

In the developing fly wing, secreted morphogens such as Decapentaplegic (Dpp) and Wingless (Wg) form gradients of concentration providing positional information. Dpp forms a longer-range gradient than Wg. To understand how the range is controlled, we measured the four key kinetic parameters governing morphogen spreading: the production rate, the effective diffusion coefficient, the degradation rate, and the immobile fraction. The four parameters had different values for Dpp versus Wg. In addition, Dynamin-dependent endocytosis was required for spreading of Dpp, but not Wg. Thus, the cellular mechanisms of Dpp and Wingless spreading are different: Dpp spreading requires endocytic, intracellular trafficking.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Animals, Genetically Modified
  • Diffusion
  • Drosophila Proteins / metabolism*
  • Drosophila melanogaster / growth & development
  • Drosophila melanogaster / metabolism*
  • Endocytosis
  • Fluorescence Recovery After Photobleaching
  • Kinetics
  • Mathematics
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins / metabolism*
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins / metabolism
  • Temperature
  • Wings, Animal / growth & development*
  • Wings, Animal / metabolism*
  • Wnt1 Protein

Substances

  • Drosophila Proteins
  • Proto-Oncogene Proteins
  • Recombinant Fusion Proteins
  • Wnt1 Protein
  • dpp protein, Drosophila
  • wg protein, Drosophila