The Hippo signalling pathway coordinates organ growth and limits developmental variability by controlling dilp8 expression

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articlepeer-review

Coordination of organ growth during development is required to generate fit individuals with fixed proportions. We recently identified Drosophila Dilp8 as a key hormone in coupling organ growth with animal maturation. In addition, dilp8 mutant flies exhibit elevated fluctuating asymmetry (FA) demonstrating a function for Dilp8 in ensuring developmental stability. The signals regulating Dilp8 activity during normal development are not yet known. Here, we show that the transcriptional co-activators of the Hippo (Hpo) pathway, Yorkie (Yki, YAP/TAZ) and its DNA-binding partner Scalloped (Sd), directly regulate dilp8 expression through a Hpo-responsive element (HRE) in the dilp8 promoter. We further demonstrate that mutation of the HRE by genome-editing results in animals with increased FA, thereby mimicking full dilp8 loss of function. Therefore, our results indicate that growth coordination of organs is connected to their growth status through a feedback loop involving Hpo and Dilp8 signalling pathways.

Original languageEnglish
JournalNature Communications
Volume7
Pages (from-to)13505
ISSN2041-1723
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 22 Nov 2016
Externally publishedYes

    Research areas

  • Animals, Cell Line, Drosophila Proteins/genetics, Drosophila melanogaster/genetics, Gene Deletion, Gene Editing, Gene Expression Regulation/physiology, Genotype, Intercellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins/genetics, Intracellular Signaling Peptides and Proteins/genetics, Larva/genetics, Protein-Serine-Threonine Kinases/genetics, Signal Transduction

ID: 212683216