6533b871fe1ef96bd12d1101

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Analysis of neural elements in head-mutant Drosophila embryos suggests segmental origin of the optic lobes.

Urs Schmidt-ottGerhard M. TechnauMarcos González-gaitán

subject

Nervous systemSensory systemAnatomyBiologyPhenotypeengrailedmedicine.anatomical_structureSegment polarity geneStomatogastric nervous systemPeripheral nervous systemGeneticsmedicineDevelopmental biologyDevelopmental Biology

description

We describe the development of 20 sensory organs in the embryonic Drosophila head, which give rise to 7 sensory nerves of the peripheral nervous system (PNS), and 4 ganglia of the stomatogastric nervous system (SNS). Using these neural elements and the optic lobes as well as expression domains of the segment polarity gene engrailed in the wild-type head of Drosophila embryos as markers we examined the phenotype of different mutants which lack various and distinct portions of the embryonic head. In the mutants, distinct neural elements and engrailed expression domains, serving as segmental markers, are deleted. These mutants also affect the optic lobes to various degrees. Our results suggest that the optic lobes are of segmental origin and that they derive from the ocular segment anteriorly adjacent to the antennal segment of the developing head.

10.1007/bf00188841https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28306063