Eyes absent mediates cross-talk between retinal determination genes and the receptor tyrosine kinase signaling pathway.

Eyes absent (eya) encodes a member of a network of nuclear transcription factors that promotes eye development in both vertebrates and invertebrates. Despite extensive studies, the molecular mechanisms whereby cell-cell signaling pathways coordinate the function of this retinal determination gene network remain unknown. Here, we report that Drosophila Eya function ...
is positively regulated by mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK)-mediated phosphorylation and that this regulation extends to developmental contexts independent of eye determination. In vivo genetic analyses, together with in vitro kinase assay results, demonstrate that Eya is a substrate for extracellular signal-regulated kinase, the MAPK acting downstream in the receptor tyrosine kinase (RTK) signaling pathway. Thus, phosphorylation of Eya appears to provide a direct regulatory link between the RTK/Ras/MAPK signaling cascade and the retinal determination gene network.
Mesh Terms:
Animals, Calcium-Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinases, Drosophila, Drosophila Proteins, Extracellular Signal-Regulated MAP Kinases, Eye Proteins, Gene Expression Regulation, Developmental, JNK Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases, MAP Kinase Kinase 4, MAP Kinase Signaling System, Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Kinases, Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases, Molecular Sequence Data, Phosphorylation, Receptor Cross-Talk, Retina, p38 Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinases
Dev. Cell
Date: Jul. 01, 2001
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