
The epidermis is the largest organ of the body for most animals, and the first line of defense against invading pathogens. A breach in the epidermal cell layer triggers a variety of localized responses that in favorable circumstances result in the repair of the wound. Many cellular and genetic responses must be limited to epidermal cells that are close to wounds, but how this is regulated is still poorly understood. The order and hierarchy of epidermal wound signaling factors are also still obscure. The Drosophila embryonic epidermis provides an excellent system to study genes that regulate wound healing processes. We have developed a variety of fluorescent reporters that provide a visible readout of wound-dependent transcriptional activation near epidermal wound sites. A large screen for mutants that alter the activity of these wound reporters has identified seven new genes required to activate or delimit wound-induced transcriptional responses to a narrow zone of cells surrounding wound sites. Among the genes required to delimit the spread of wound responses are Drosophila Flotillin-2 and Src42A, both of which are transcriptionally activated around wound sites. Flotillin-2 and constitutively active Src42A are also sufficient, when overexpressed at high levels, to inhibit wound-induced transcription in epidermal cells. One gene required to activate epidermal wound reporters encodes Dual oxidase, an enzyme that produces hydrogen peroxide. We also find that four biochemical treatments (a serine protease, a Src kinase inhibitor, methyl-ß-cyclodextrin, and hydrogen peroxide) are sufficient to globally activate epidermal wound response genes in Drosophila embryos. We explore the epistatic relationships among the factors that induce or delimit the spread of epidermal wound signals. Our results define new genetic functions that interact to instruct only a limited number of cells around puncture wounds to mount a transcriptional response, mediating local repair and regeneration.
Wound Healing, Proto-Oncogene Proteins pp60(c-src), beta-Cyclodextrins, Membrane Proteins, NADPH Oxidases, Hydrogen Peroxide, QH426-470, Drosophila melanogaster, Gene Expression Regulation, Mutation, Genetics, Animals, Drosophila Proteins, Epidermis, Research Article, Signal Transduction, Transcription Factors
Wound Healing, Proto-Oncogene Proteins pp60(c-src), beta-Cyclodextrins, Membrane Proteins, NADPH Oxidases, Hydrogen Peroxide, QH426-470, Drosophila melanogaster, Gene Expression Regulation, Mutation, Genetics, Animals, Drosophila Proteins, Epidermis, Research Article, Signal Transduction, Transcription Factors
| citations This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically). | 67 | |
| popularity This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network. | Top 10% | |
| influence This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically). | Top 10% | |
| impulse This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network. | Top 10% |
