Published in Cell
Proper spatial and temporal localization of specific mRNAs is pivotal in the early stages of development. To dissect the mechanisms of localization, several groups are employing advanced fluorescence microscopy to track RNA movements in live oocytes and embryos.
Published in Cell
The in vivo function of the microtubule motor protein kinesin was examined in Drosophila using genetics and immunolocalization. Kinesin heavy chain mutations (khc) cause abnormal behavior and lethality. Mutant larvae exhibit loss of mobility and tactile responsiveness in the most posterior segments, followed by general paralysis and death during la...
Published in Cell
Germ-line granules in C. elegans embryos (P granules) can be visualized by immunofluorescence microscopy using a monoclonal antibody. In mutant zygotes with abnormal spindle orientations and in wild-type zygotes treated with the microtubule inhibitors nocodazole, colcemid, vinblastine, and griseofulvin, both P-granule segregation to the posterior p...
Published in Cell
The guidance of developing axons in the nervous system is mediated partly by diffusible chemoattractants secreted by axonal target cells. Netrins are chemoattractants for commissural axons in the vertebrate spinal cord, but the mechanisms through which they produce their effects are unknown. We show that Deleted in Colorectal Cancer (DCC), a transm...
Published in Cell
Germ cells are distinct from somatic cells in their immortality, totipotency, and ability to undergo meiosis. Candidates for components that guide the unique germline program are the distinctive granules observed in germ cells of many species. We show that a component of germ granules is essential for fertility in C. elegans and that its primary fu...
Published in Cell
The him-8 gene is essential for proper meiotic segregation of the X chromosomes in C. elegans. Here we show that loss of him-8 function causes profound X chromosome-specific defects in homolog pairing and synapsis. him-8 encodes a C2H2 zinc-finger protein that is expressed during meiosis and concentrates at a site on the X chromosome known as the m...
Published in Cell
Xenopus oocytes injected with human U2 snRNA genes synthesize mature U2 as well as a U2 precursor with about 10 extra 3 nucleotides (human pre-U2 RNA). Formation of the pre-U2 3 end requires a downstream element located between position +16 and +37 in the U2 3 -flanking sequence. The distance between this element and the U2 coding region can be i...
Published in Cell
Germ-line granules in C. elegans embryos (P granules) can be visualized by immunofluorescence microscopy using a monoclonal antibody. In mutant zygotes with abnormal spindle orientations and in wild-type zygotes treated with the microtubule inhibitors nocodazole, colcemid, vinblastine, and griseofulvin, both P-granule segregation to the posterior p...
Published in Cell
During development, the formation of mature neural circuits requires the selective elimination of inappropriate synaptic connections. Here we show that C1q, the initiating protein in the classical complement cascade, is expressed by postnatal neurons in response to immature astrocytes and is localized to synapses throughout the postnatal CNS and re...
Published in Cell
The nucleotide sequences of two major alanine tRNAs from the Bombyx mori posterior silk gland have been determined. One of these tRNAs appears to be specific to the silk gland, where its accumulation is associated with the rapid production of fibroin. Both sequences are identical, with the exception of a single nucleotide in the anticodon stem. A s...
