Y. Nakano et al., Mutations in the novel membrane protein spinster interfere with programmedcell death and cause neural degeneration in Drosophila melanogaster, MOL CELL B, 21(11), 2001, pp. 3775-3788
Mutations in the spin gene are characterized by an extraordinarily strong r
ejection behavior of female dies in response to male courtship. They are al
so accompanied by decreases in the viability, adult life span, and oviposit
ion rate of the flies. In spin mutants, some oocytes and adult neural cells
undergo degeneration, which is preceded by reductions in programmed cell d
eath of nurse cells in ovaries and of neurons in the pupal nervous system,
respectively. The central nervous system (CNS) of spin mutant flies accumul
ates autofluorescent lipopigments with characteristics similar to those of
lipofuscin, The spin locus generates at least five different transcripts, w
ith only two of these being able to rescue the spin behavioral phenotype; e
ach encodes a protein with multiple membrane-spanning domains that are expr
essed in both the surface glial cells in the CNS and the follicle cells in
the ovaries. Orthologs of the spin gene have also been identified in a numb
er of species from nematodes to humans. Analysis of the spin mutant will gi
ve us new insights into neurodegenerative diseases and aging.