The Drosophila cytokine Spätzle (Spz) triggers the Toll signalling cascade in flies upon infection with Gram-‐positive bacteria and fungi. It is an analogue to the mammalian IL-‐1 and is produced by the fat body as a precursor protein (Spz-‐ precursor). Active Spz is produced from its precursor by a tightly regulated cascade of serine proteases. However, the transcriptional regulation of Spz in Drosophila in response to bacterial or fungal infection is still poorly deciphered. Therefore, the aim of the project was to interrogate the regulation of Spz transcription, with specific interest in hemocytes, which are equivalent to mammalian monocytes/macrophages. For this purpose, we have generated and characterised a transgenic Spz-‐neGFP reporter that allows the visualisation of Spz transcription in individual cells and tissues during different stages of development. We have identified populations of cells that transcribe the Spz gene in the steady state throughout development. We have infected the transgenic reporter flies with the fungus Candida albicans and examined the transcription of Spz after immune challenge. In future, these strains and results will help develop an in vivo genome wide assay, employing Drosophila RNAi libraries, in order to gain more knowledge about the transcriptional regulation of Spz and to identify novel regulatory genes and pathways for Spz transcription.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:634171 |
| Date | January 2013 |
| Creators | Wong, Christine |
| Publisher | King's College London (University of London) |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | https://kclpure.kcl.ac.uk/portal/en/theses/regulation-of-inflammation-genetic-control-of-the-transcription-of-spatzle-in-drosophila-hemocytes(a29adfcc-f504-4a7a-8a1c-db74fe1a20df).html |
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