EGFR-dependent actomyosin patterning coordinates morphogenetic movements between tissues in Drosophila melanogaster

D Nathaniel Clarke; Pearson W Miller; Adam C Martin

doi:10.1016/j.devcel.2024.10.002

EGFR-dependent actomyosin patterning coordinates morphogenetic movements between tissues in Drosophila melanogaster

Dev Cell. 2024 Oct 21:S1534-5807(24)00602-6. doi: 10.1016/j.devcel.2024.10.002. Online ahead of print.

Authors

D Nathaniel Clarke¹, Pearson W Miller², Adam C Martin³

Affiliations

¹ Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA.
² Department of Mathematics, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA, USA. Electronic address: pwmiller@ucsd.edu.
³ Department of Biology, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA, USA. Electronic address: acmartin@mit.edu.

PMID: 39461341
DOI: 10.1016/j.devcel.2024.10.002

Abstract

The movements that give rise to the body's structure are powered by cell shape changes and rearrangements that are coordinated at supracellular scales. How such cellular coordination arises and integrates different morphogenetic programs is unclear. Using quantitative imaging, we found a complex pattern of adherens junction (AJ) levels in the ectoderm prior to gastrulation onset in Drosophila. AJ intensity exhibited a double-sided gradient, with peaks at the dorsal midline and ventral neuroectoderm. We show that this dorsal-ventral AJ pattern is regulated by epidermal growth factor (EGF) signaling and that this signal is required for ectoderm cell movement during mesoderm invagination and axis extension. We identify AJ levels and junctional actomyosin as downstream effectors of EGFR signaling. Overall, our study demonstrates an EGF-patterned mechanical feedback mechanism that coordinates tissue folding and convergent extension to facilitate embryo-wide gastrulation movements.

Keywords: Drosophila melanogaster; EGFR signaling; actomyosin; adherens junction; cell adhesion; gastrulation; morphogenesis.