Analysis of the transcriptional activation domain of the Drosophila tango bHLH-PAS transcription factor.

Basic-helix-loop-helix-PAS transcription factors play important roles in diverse biological processes including cellular differentiation and specification, oxygen tension regulation and dioxin metabolism. Drosophila tango is orthologous to mammalian Arnt and acts as a common dimerization partner for bHLH-PAS proteins during embryogenesis. A transient transfection assay using Drosophila S2 tissue culture cells and wild-type and mutant Drosophila tango cDNAs was used to localize the activation domain of the Tango protein.

The jing and ras1 pathways are functionally related during CNS midline and tracheal development.

The Drosophila jing gene encodes a zinc finger protein required for the differentiation and survival of embryonic CNS midline and tracheal cells. We show that there is a functional relationship between jing and the Egfr pathway in the developing CNS midline and trachea. jing function is required for Egfr pathway gene expression and MAPK activity in both the CNS midline and trachea.

The jing Zn-finger transcription factor is a mediator of cellular differentiation in the Drosophila CNS midline and trachea.

We establish that the jing zinc-finger transcription factor plays an essential role in controlling CNS midline and tracheal cell differentiation. jing transcripts and protein accumulate from stage 9 in the CNS midline, trachea and in segmental ectodermal stripes. JING protein localizes to the nuclei of CNS midline and tracheal cells implying a regulatory role during their development.