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Genetics, Vol. 173, 1287-1299, July 2006, Copyright © 2006
doi:10.1534/genetics.106.058750

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Noncell- and Cell-Autonomous G-Protein-Signaling Converges With Ca2+/Mitogen-Activated Protein Kinase Signaling to Regulate str-2 Receptor Gene Expression in Caenorhabditis elegans

Hannes Lans and Gert Jansen1

MGC Department of Cell Biology and Genetics, Center for Biomedical Genetics, Erasmus MC, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands

1 Corresponding author: Department of Cell Biology and Genetics, Erasmus MC, P.O. Box 1738, 3000 DR Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
E-mail: g.jansen{at}erasmusmc.nl

In the sensory system of C. elegans, the candidate odorant receptor gene str-2 is strongly expressed in one of the two AWC neurons and weakly in both ASI neurons. Asymmetric AWC expression results from suppression of str-2 expression by a Ca2+/MAPK signaling pathway in one of the AWC neurons early in development. Here we show that the same Ca2+/MAPK pathway promotes str-2 expression in the AWC and ASI neurons together with multiple cell-autonomous and noncell-autonomous G-protein-signaling pathways. In first-stage larvae and adult animals, signals mediated by the G{alpha} subunits ODR-3, GPA-2, GPA-5, and GPA-6 and a Ca2+/MAPK pathway involving the Ca2+ channel subunit UNC-36, the CaMKII UNC-43, and the MAPKK kinase NSY-1 induce strong str-2 expression. Cell-specific rescue experiments suggest that ODR-3 and the Ca2+/MAPK genes function in the AWC neurons, but that GPA-5 and GPA-6 function in the AWA and ADL neurons, respectively. In Dauer larvae, the same network of genes promotes strong str-2 expression in the ASI neurons, but ODR-3 functions in AWB and ASH and GPA-6 in AWB. Our results reveal a complex signaling network, encompassing signals from multiple cells, that controls the level of receptor gene expression at different developmental stages.






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Copyright © 2006 by the Genetics Society of America.