High impact information on unc-89

• The Caenorhabditis elegans gene unc-89, required fpr muscle M-line assembly, encodes a giant modular protein composed of Ig and signal transduction domains [1].
• Knockouts of putative regulatory elements in the promoter of the mlc-2 and unc-89 genes show that they significantly contribute to muscle expression and act in a synergistic manner [2].
• In Caenorhabditis elegans, the gene unc-89 is required for A-band organization of striated muscle [3].
• Isoform-specific RNA interference resulted in a muscle structural phenotype similar to a typical unc-89 mutant, but with varying degrees of severity [3].
• The unc-89 complex transcription unit contains at least three promoters: one directing UNC-89-A and -B primarily in body-wall and pharyngeal muscle, one internal promoter directing expression of UNC-89-C primarily in body-wall muscle, and one internal promoter directing expression of UNC-89-D primarily in a few muscle cells of the tail [3].

References