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The Jun N-terminal kinase (JNK) is a member of the mitogen-activated protein kinase family. It appears to be conserved in all animal species where it regulates important physiological functions involved in apoptosis, cell migration, cell proliferation and regeneration. In this review, we focus on the functions of JNK in Drosophila imaginal discs, where it has been reported that it can induce both cell death and cell proliferation. We discuss this apparent paradox in the light of recent findings and propose that the pro-apoptotic and the pro-proliferative functions are intrinsic properties of JNK activity. Whether one function or another is predominant depends on the cellular context.

We show the physiological effects and molecular characterization of overexpression of the catalytic core of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) polymerase (pol γ-α) in muscle of Drosophila melanogaster. Muscle-specific overexpression of pol γ-α using the UAS/GAL4 (where UAS is upstream activation sequence) system produced more than 90% of lethality at the end of pupal stage at 25°C, and the survivor adult flies showed a significant reduction in life span. The survivor flies displayed a decreased mtDNA level that is accompanied by a corresponding decrease in the levels of the nucleoid-binding protein mitochondrial transcription factor A (mtTFA). Furthermore, an increase in apoptosis is detected in larvae and adults overexpressing pol γ-α. We suggest that the pupal lethality and reduced life span of survivor adult flies are both caused mainly by massive apoptosis of muscle cells induced by mtDNA depletion., (© 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

The human gene C10orf2 encodes the mitochondrial replicative DNA helicase Twinkle, mutations of which are responsible for a significant fraction of cases of autosomal dominant progressive external ophthalmoplegia (adPEO), a human mitochondrial disease caused by defects in intergenomic communication. We report the analysis of orthologous mutations in the Drosophila melanogaster mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) helicase gene, d-mtDNA helicase. Increased expression of wild type d-mtDNA helicase using the UAS-GAL4 system leads to an increase in mtDNA copy number throughout adult life without any noteworthy phenotype, whereas overexpression of d-mtDNA helicase containing the K388A mutation in the helicase active site results in a severe depletion of mtDNA and a lethal phenotype. Overexpression of two d-mtDNA helicase variants equivalent to two human adPEO mutations shows differential effects. The A442P mutation exhibits a dominant negative effect similar to that of the active site mutant. In contrast, overexpression of d-mtDNA helicase containing the W441C mutation results in a slight decrease in mtDNA copy number during the third instar larval stage, and a moderate decrease in life span in the adult population. Overexpression of d-mtDNA helicase containing either the K388A or A442P mutations causes a mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) defect that significantly reduces cell proliferation. The mitochondrial impairment caused by these mutations promotes apoptosis, arguing that mitochondria regulate programmed cell death in Drosophila. Our study of d-mtDNA helicase overexpression provides a tractable Drosophila model for understanding the cellular and molecular effects of human adPEO mutations.

Mutant larvae for the Drosophila gene lethal giant larva (lgl) develop neoplastic tumors in imaginal discs. However, lgl mutant clones do not form tumors when surrounded by wild-type tissue, suggesting the existence of a tumor-suppressing mechanism. We have investigated the tumorigenic potential of lgl mutant cells by generating wing compartments that are entirely mutant for lgl and also inducing clones of various genetic combinations of lgl(-) cells. We find that lgl(-) compartments can grow indefinitely but lgl(-) clones are eliminated by cell competition. lgl mutant cells may form tumors if they acquire constitutive activity of the Ras pathway (lgl(-) UAS-ras(V12)), which confers proliferation advantage through inhibition of the Hippo pathway. Yet, the majority of lgl(-) UAS-ras(V12) clones are eliminated in spite of their high proliferation rate. The formation of a tumor requires in addition the formation of a microenvironment that allows mutant cells to evade cell competition.

Characterization of the basal transcription machinery of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is critical to understand mitochondrial pathophysiology. In mammalian in vitro systems, mtDNA transcription requires mtRNA polymerase, transcription factor A (TFAM), and either transcription factor B1 (TFB1M) or B2 (TFB2M). We have silenced the expression of TFB2M by RNA interference in Drosophila melanogaster. RNA interference knockdown of TF2BM causes lethality by arrest of larval development. Molecular analysis demonstrates that TF2BM is essential for mtDNA transcription during Drosophila development and is not redundant with TFB1M. The impairment of mtDNA transcription causes a dramatic decrease in oxidative phosphorylation and mitochondrial ATP synthesis in the long-lived larvae, and a metabolic shift to glycolysis, which partially restores ATP levels and elicits a compensatory response at the nuclear level that increases mitochondrial mass. At the cellular level, the mitochondrial dysfunction induced by TFB2M knockdown causes a severe reduction in cell proliferation without affecting cell growth, and increases the level of apoptosis. In contrast, cell differentiation and morphogenesis are largely unaffected. Our data demonstrate the essential role of TFB2M in mtDNA transcription in a multicellular organism, and reveal the complex cellular, biochemical, and molecular responses induced by impairment of oxidative phosphorylation during Drosophila development.

The related genes buttonhead (btd) and Drosophila Sp1 (the Drosophila homologue of the human SP1 gene) encode zinc-finger transcription factors known to play a developmental role in the formation of the Drosophila head segments and the mechanosensory larval organs. We report a novel function of btd and Sp1: they induce the formation and are required for the growth of the ventral imaginal discs. They act as activators of the headcase (hdc) and Distal-less (Dll) genes, which allocate the cells of the disc primordia. The requirement for btd and Sp1 persists during the development of ventral discs: inactivation by RNA interference results in a strong reduction of the size of legs and antennae. Ectopic expression of btd in the dorsal imaginal discs (eyes, wings and halteres) results in the formation of the corresponding ventral structures (antennae and legs). However, these structures are not patterned by the morphogenetic signals present in the dorsal discs; the cells expressing btd generate their own signalling system, including the establishment of a sharp boundary of engrailed expression, and the local activation of the wingless and decapentaplegic genes. Thus, the Btd product has the capacity to induce the activity of the entire genetic network necessary for ventral imaginal discs development. We propose that this property is a reflection of the initial function of the btd/Sp1 genes that consists of establishing the fate of the ventral disc primordia and determining their pattern and growth.

The mechanisms involved in the regulation of mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) replication, a process that is crucial for mitochondrial biogenesis, are not well understood. In this study, we evaluate the role of DNA polymerase gamma (pol gamma), the key enzyme in mtDNA replication, in both Drosophila cell culture and in developing flies. We report that overexpression of the pol gamma catalytic subunit (pol gamma-alpha) in cultured Schneider cells does not alter either the amount of mtDNA or the growth rate of the culture. The polypeptide is properly targeted to mitochondria, yet the large excess of pol gamma-alpha does not interfere with mtDNA replication under these conditions where the endogenous polypeptide is apparently present in amounts that exceed of the demand for its function in the cell. In striking contrast, overexpression of pol gamma-alpha at the same level in transgenic flies interferes with the mtDNA replication process, presumably by altering the mechanism of DNA synthesis, suggesting differential requirements for, and/or regulation of, mtDNA replication in Drosophila cell culture versus the developing organism. Overexpression of pol gamma-alpha in transgenic flies produces a significant depletion of mtDNA that causes a broad variety of phenotypic effects. These alterations range from pupal lethality to moderate morphological abnormalities in adults. depending on the level and temporal pattern of overexpression. Our results demonstrate that although cells may tolerate a variable amount of the pol gamma catalytic subunit under some conditions, its level may be critical in the context of the whole organism.

The pannier (pnr) gene encodes a GATA transcription factor and acts in several developmental processes in Drosophila, including embryonic dorsal closure, specification of cardiac cells and bristle determination. We show that pnr is expressed in the mediodorsal parts of thoracic and abdominal segments of embryos, larvae and adult flies. Its activity confers cells with specific adhesion properties that make them immiscible with non-expressing cells. Thus there are two genetic domains in the dorsal region of each segment: a medial (MED) region where pnr is expressed and a lateral (LAT) region where it is not. The homeobox gene iroquois (iro) is expressed in the LAT region. These regions are not formed by separate polyclones of cells, but are defined topographically. We show that ectopic pnr in the wing induces MED thoracic development, indicating that pnr specifies the identity of the MED regions. Correspondingly, when pnr is removed from clones of cells in the MED domain, they sort out and apparently adopt the LAT fate. We propose that (1) the subdivision into MED and LAT regions is a general feature of the Drosophila body plan and (2) pnr is the principal gene responsible for this subdivision. We argue that pnr acts like a classical selector gene but differs in that its expression is not propagated through cell divisions.

We have cloned and determined the structure of the gene encoding the H(+)-ATP synthase beta subunit in two distantly related Drosophila species, D. melanogaster and D. virilis. The gene contains three exons that are extremely well conserved at the amino acid level, not only in the region encoding the mature protein but also in that encoding the leader peptide. Primer extension analysis indicates that the 5' untranslated region is extremely short, and reveals the presence of multiple initiation sites of transcription in both Drosophila species. The promoters of D. melanogaster and D. virilis H(+)-ATP synthase beta-subunit genes contain a conserved region surrounding the initiation transcription sites. Nucleotide sequence analysis has revealed the absence of canonical TATA and CCAAT boxes and the presence of several putative regulatory elements in both promoter regions, including GAGA, GATA and Ets binding sites. We have analysed the pattern of gene expression during D. melanogaster development. The mRNA is stored in oocytes, and activation of transcription takes place after 10 h of development. The expression of the nuclear-encoded H(+)-ATP synthase beta subunit is strictly coordinated with the expression of subunits 6 and 8 of the same complex that are encoded in the mitochondrial genome.

It has been suggested that mutations accumulated in mitochondrial DNA during the aging process may be causally related to the decreased physiological response of the senescent organisms. We have quantified and evaluated the integrity of the mitochondrial genome during the life span of Drosophila melanogaster. Its amount remains fairly constant representing roughly 1% of the total DNA at all ages. Southern experiments have also revealed a high stability and integrity of the mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA). However, we have detected an important decrease in the steady-state levels of all mitochondrial transcripts investigated: 16 S ribosomal RNA (16SrRNA), cytochrome c oxidase, cytochrome b, and beta H(+)-ATP synthase subunit. These changes correlate with the shape of the life span curve, preceding the decrease in survival of the male flies used in the study, and at least in the case of 16SrRNA, is tissue-specific. Although mitochondrial DNA remains unchanged in heads, thoraces, and abdomens, 16SrRNA levels decrease more severely in heads and thoraces and much less conspicuously in abdomens. On the other hand, control non-mitochondrial transcripts investigated remain essentially unaffected. These results suggest that in Drosophila the main effect of aging on the mitochondrial genetic system is downstream from mtDNA itself. The decline in the levels of beta H(+)-ATPase transcript, nuclear-encoded, suggests that not only the mitochondrial machinery, but also the nuclear one involved in mitochondrial biogenesis, is affected during aging.

The results are presented of the exposure of Drosophila melanogaster to microgravity conditions during a 15-day biosatellite flight, Biokosmos 9, in a joint ESA-URSS project. The experimental containers were loaded before launch with a set of Drosophila melanogaster Oregon R larvae so that imagoes were due to emerge half-way through the flight. A large number of normally developed larvae were recovered from the space-flown containers. These larvae were able to develop into normal adults confirming earlier results that Drosophila melanogaster of a wild-type constitution can develop normally in the absence of gravity. However, microgravity exposure clearly enhances the number of growing embryos laid by the flies and possibly slows down the developmental pace of the microgravity-exposed animals. Due to some problems in the experimental set-up, this slowing down needs to be verified in future experiments. No live adult that had been exposed to microgravity was recovered from the experiment, so that no life span studies could be carried out, but adult males emerged from the recovered embyros showed a slight shortening in life span and a lower performance in other experimental tests of aging. This agrees with the results of previous experiments performed by our groups.

The results obtained during the last successful flight of the Challenger Shuttle, in early November 1985, indicate that oogenesis and embryonic development of Drosophila melanogaster are altered in the absence of gravity. Two hundred forty females and ninety males, wild type Oregon R Drosophila melanogaster flies were flown in the Spaceshuttle during the 7-day D-1 mission and the embryos laid during the spaceflight were recovered and studied. Although some eggs developed into normal 1st instar larvae and many into late embryos in the 23 +/- 2 h collection periods throughout the flight, several interesting differences from the parallel ground and in-flight centrifuge controls were observed: 1) There was an increase in oocyte production and size. 2) There was a significant decrease in the number of larvae hatched from the embryonic cuticles in microgravity. 3) The majority of embryos were normally fertilized and at late stages of development, except in the space-flown containers in microgravity where a percentage of earlier stage embryos were recovered showing alterations in the deposition of yolk. 4) In correspondence with these results, at least 25% of the living embryos recovered from space failed to develop into adults. 5) Studies of the larval cuticles and those of the late embryos indicate the existence of alterations in the anterior, head and thoracic regions of the animals. 6) There was a delay in the development into adults of the embryos and larvae that had been subjected to microgravity and recovered from the space shuttle at the end of the flight. No significant accumulation of lethal mutations in any of the experimental conditions was detected as measured through the male to female ratio in the descendant generation. It seems that Drosophila melanogaster flies are able to sense and respond to the absence of gravity, changing several developmental processes even in very short space flights. The results suggest an interference with the distribution and/or deposition of the maternal components involved in the specification of the anterioposterior axis of the embryo.