High impact information on puc

• puckered encodes a phosphatase that mediates a feedback loop regulating JNK activity during dorsal closure in Drosophila [1].
• Appropriate dpp and puc expression in the leading edge also depends on the inhibitory function of the puc gene [2].
• Strikingly, decreased or increased puc function leads to a corresponding increase or decrease, respectively, of Fos and Jun protein levels [3].
• Phenotypes associated with puc mutant follicle cells include altered DE-cadherin expression in the follicle cells and a failure of nurse cell dumping to coordinate with dorsal appendage elongation, leading to the formation of cup-shaped egg chambers [3].
• Taken together, these data indicate that puc modulates gene expression responses by antagonizing a Rho GTPase signal transduction pathway that stabilizes the AP-1 transcription factor [3].

Biological context of puc

• We show that puckered mutations result in the hyperactivation of DJNK, and that overexpression of puc mimics basket mutant phenotypes [1].
• We report a role for puc in follicle cell morphogenesis during oogenesis. puc mRNA accumulates preferentially in the centripetally migrating follicle cells and cells of the elongating dorsal appendages [3].
• As puckered (puc) gene is a target of the JUN N-terminal kinase signaling pathway during dorsal closure, we investigated puc gene expression during wound healing in Drosophila [4].

Anatomical context of puc

• We show that hep controls the expression of puckered (puc) in the follicular epithelium in a cell-autonomous manner [5].
• In thorax closure a special row of margin cells express puc and accumulate prominent actin fibres during midline attachment [6].
• We showed that puc gene expression is induced at the edge of the wound in epithelial cells and Jun kinase is phosphorylated in wounded epidermal tissues, suggesting that the JUN N-terminal kinase signaling pathway is activated by a signal produced by an epidermal wound [4].

Other interactions of puc

• Since puc overexpression in the egg follicular epithelium mimics JNK appendages and micropyle phenotypes, it indicates a negative role of puc in their morphogenesis [5].
• Furthermore, we show that the small GTPase Dcdc42, but not Drac1, is an activator of puc expression in a hep-dependent manner in imaginal discs [7].

References