CELL-PROLIFERATION CONTROL BY NOTCH SIGNALING IN DROSOPHILA DEVELOPMENT

The Notch receptor mediates cell interactions controlling the developm ental fate of a broad spectrum of undifferentiated cells. By modulatin g Notch signaling in specific precursor cells during Drosophila imagin al disc development, me demonstrate that Notch activity can influence cell proliferation. The activation of the Notch receptor in the wing d isc induces the expression of the wing margin patterning genes vestigi al and wingless, and strong mitotic activity: However, the effect of N otch signaling on cell proliferation is not the simple consequence of the upregulation of either vestigial or wingless. Vestigial and Wingle ss, on the contrary, display synergistic effects with Notch signaling, resulting in the stimulation of cell proliferation in imaginal discs.