TY - JOUR
T1 - Mutations in the novel membrane protein spinster interfere with programmed cell death and cause neural degeneration in Drosophila melanogaster
AU - Nakano, Yoshiro
AU - Fujitani, Kazuko
AU - Kurihara, Joyce
AU - Ragan, Janet
AU - Usui-Aoki, Kazue
AU - Shimoda, Lori
AU - Lukacsovich, Tamas
AU - Suzuki, Keiko
AU - Sezaki, Mariko
AU - Sano, Yumiko
AU - Ueda, Ryu
AU - Awano, Wakae
AU - Kaneda, Mizuho
AU - Umeda, Masato
AU - Yamamoto, Daisuke
PY - 2001/6
Y1 - 2001/6
N2 - Mutations in the spin gene are characterized by an extraordinarily strong rejection behavior of female flies in response to male courtship. They are also accompanied by decreases in the viability, adult life span, and oviposition rate of the flies. In spin mutants, some oocytes and adult neural cells undergo degeneration, which is preceded by reductions in programmed cell death of nurse cells in ovaries and of neurons in the pupal nervous system, respectively. The central nervous system (CNS) of spin mutant flies accumulates autofluorescent lipopigments with characteristics similar to those of lipofuscin. The spin locus generates at least five different transcripts, with only two of these being able to rescue the spin behavioral phenotype; each encodes a protein with multiple membrane-spanning domains that are expressed in both the surface glial cells in the CNS and the follicle cells in the ovaries. Orthologs of the spin gene have also been identified in a number of species from nematodes to humans. Analysis of the spin mutant will give us new insights into neurodegenerative diseases and aging.
AB - Mutations in the spin gene are characterized by an extraordinarily strong rejection behavior of female flies in response to male courtship. They are also accompanied by decreases in the viability, adult life span, and oviposition rate of the flies. In spin mutants, some oocytes and adult neural cells undergo degeneration, which is preceded by reductions in programmed cell death of nurse cells in ovaries and of neurons in the pupal nervous system, respectively. The central nervous system (CNS) of spin mutant flies accumulates autofluorescent lipopigments with characteristics similar to those of lipofuscin. The spin locus generates at least five different transcripts, with only two of these being able to rescue the spin behavioral phenotype; each encodes a protein with multiple membrane-spanning domains that are expressed in both the surface glial cells in the CNS and the follicle cells in the ovaries. Orthologs of the spin gene have also been identified in a number of species from nematodes to humans. Analysis of the spin mutant will give us new insights into neurodegenerative diseases and aging.
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0035023142&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0035023142&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1128/MCB.21.11.3775-3788.2001
DO - 10.1128/MCB.21.11.3775-3788.2001
M3 - Article
C2 - 11340170
AN - SCOPUS:0035023142
VL - 21
SP - 3775
EP - 3788
JO - Molecular and Cellular Biology
JF - Molecular and Cellular Biology
SN - 0270-7306
IS - 11
ER -