Multipotent versus differentiated cell fate selection in the developing Drosophila airways

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Abstract

Developmental potentials of cells are tightly controlled at multiple levels. The embryonic Drosophila airway tree is roughly subdivided into 2 types of cells with distinct developmental potentials: A proximally located group of multipotent adult precursor cells (P-fate) and a distally located population of more differentiated cells (D-fate). We show that the GATA-family transcription factor (TF) Grain promotes the P-fate and the POU-homeobox TF Ventral veinless (Vvl/Drifter/U-turned) stimulates the D-fate. Hedgehog and receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) signaling cooperate with Vvl to drive the D-fate at the expense of the P-fate while negative regulators of either of these signaling pathways ensure P-fate specification. Local concentrations of Decapentaplegic/BMP, Wingless/Wnt and Hedgehog signals differentially regulate the expression of D-factors and P-factors to transform an equipotent primordial field into a concentric pattern of radially different morphogenetic potentials, which gradually gives rise to the distal-proximal organization of distinct cell types in the mature airway.

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Ryo Matsuda

Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden

Competing interests
The authors declare that no competing interests exist.
Chie Hosono

Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden

Competing interests
The authors declare that no competing interests exist.
Christos Samakovlis

Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden

For correspondence
Christos.Samakovlis@su.se

Competing interests
The authors declare that no competing interests exist.
Kaoru Saigo

Department of Biophysics and Biochemistry, Graduate School of Science, University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan

Competing interests
The authors declare that no competing interests exist.

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