The homeotic gene Sex Combs Reduced of Drosophila: gene structure and embryonic expression

• Published in: The EMBO journal Vol. 8; no. 1; pp. 219 - 227
• Main Authors: LeMotte, P. K., Kuroiwa, A., Fessler, L. I., Gehring, W. J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group 01.01.1989
• Subjects: Amino Acid Sequence; Animals; Base Sequence; Biological and medical sciences; Drosophila; Drosophila melanogaster - embryology; Drosophila melanogaster - genetics; Drosophila Proteins; Drosophilidae; Embryo, Nonmammalian - anatomy & histology; Epidermis - analysis; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Gene Expression Regulation; Genes, Homeobox; Genes. Genome; Insect Hormones - genetics; Insect Hormones - physiology; Mesoderm - analysis; Molecular and cellular biology; Molecular genetics; Molecular Sequence Data; Nervous System - analysis; Nervous System - embryology; Recombinant Fusion Proteins - immunology; Transcription Factors; Genetic mapping; Embryonic development; Translation; Nucleotide sequence; Immunocytochemistry; Insecta; Tissue specificity; Gene expression; Drosophilidae; Proteins; Gene; Arthropoda; Immunoblotting assay; Invertebrata; Molecular cloning; Localization; Drosophila melanogaster; Diptera; Nucleic acid
• ISSN: 0261-4189; 1460-2075
• DOI: 10.1002/j.1460-2075.1989.tb03367.x

The homeotic gene Sex Combs Reduced (Scr) of Drosophila is required during embryogenesis for labial and first thoracic segment development. We define the Scr gene structure, showing that the major embryonic transcript is proximal to the fushi tarazu gene, and report the sequence of the transcript, which encodes a 413‐amino acid, homeodomain‐containing protein. We describe Scr protein distribution throughout embryogenesis. Expression begins at gastrulation and is eventually apparent in three tissues, epidermis, nervous system and visceral mesoderm, though there are clear contrasts in the domains of expression in these three tissues.