TY - JOUR
T1 - Acting on identity
T2 - Myoblast fusion and the formation of the syncytial muscle fiber
AU - Deng, Su
AU - Azevedo, Mafalda
AU - Baylies, Mary
N1 - Funding Information:
We thank the members of the Baylies lab for helpful discussions, Iliona Wolfowicz for the fly drawing in Fig. 1, and our funding agencies SFRH/BD/52041/2012 to MA, NIH [GM078318, AR108981] to MKB, and National Cancer Institute [P30 CA 008748] core grant to MSKCC.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2017 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2017/12
Y1 - 2017/12
N2 - The study of Drosophila muscle development dates back to the middle of the last century. Since that time, Drosophila has proved to be an ideal system for studying muscle development, differentiation, function, and disease. As in humans, Drosophila muscle forms via a series of conserved steps, starting with muscle specification, myoblast fusion, attachment to tendon cells, interactions with motorneurons, and sarcomere and myofibril formation. The genes and mechanisms required for these processes share striking similarities to those found in humans. The highly tractable genetic system and imaging approaches available in Drosophila allow for an efficient interrogation of muscle biology and for application of what we learn to other systems. In this article, we review our current understanding of muscle development in Drosophila, with a focus on myoblast fusion, the process responsible for the generation of syncytial muscle cells. We also compare and contrast those genes required for fusion in Drosophila and vertebrates.
AB - The study of Drosophila muscle development dates back to the middle of the last century. Since that time, Drosophila has proved to be an ideal system for studying muscle development, differentiation, function, and disease. As in humans, Drosophila muscle forms via a series of conserved steps, starting with muscle specification, myoblast fusion, attachment to tendon cells, interactions with motorneurons, and sarcomere and myofibril formation. The genes and mechanisms required for these processes share striking similarities to those found in humans. The highly tractable genetic system and imaging approaches available in Drosophila allow for an efficient interrogation of muscle biology and for application of what we learn to other systems. In this article, we review our current understanding of muscle development in Drosophila, with a focus on myoblast fusion, the process responsible for the generation of syncytial muscle cells. We also compare and contrast those genes required for fusion in Drosophila and vertebrates.
KW - Actin cytoskeleton
KW - Drosophila
KW - Membrane fusion
KW - Muscle development
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U2 - 10.1016/j.semcdb.2017.10.033
DO - 10.1016/j.semcdb.2017.10.033
M3 - Review article
C2 - 29101004
AN - SCOPUS:85033227434
SN - 1084-9521
VL - 72
SP - 45
EP - 55
JO - Seminars in Cell and Developmental Biology
JF - Seminars in Cell and Developmental Biology
ER -