Expression of and Regulation by Nanos in Drosophila Early Embryos

Three categories of cytoplasmic post-transcriptional regulation that modulate mRNA stability, subcellular localization, and translation are coordinated to precisely control when and where a protein is expressed. In Drosophila oocytes and early embryos, subcellular mRNA localization and local translation play fundamental roles in determining the body axes and specifying the germline. Nanos protein is one of the determinants whose subcellular localization is accomplished through local translation of its transcripts in the posterior germ plasm. I quantified Nanos protein in early embryos at closely spaced stages and revealed that nanos mRNA is indeed translated at the posterior pole of embryos. I then tested the role of an RNA-binding protein, Staufen, as a nos translational activator competitive binding with the RNA-binding protein Smaug. I further started to uncover the role of Nanos in target transcript regulation as a co-factor together with the RNA-binding proteins Pumilio and Brain Tumor.M.Sc.2017-12-22 00:00:0