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Published January 31, 2006 | Published
Journal Article Open

Intercellular coupling amplifies fate segregation during Caenorhabditis elegans vulval development

Abstract

During vulval development in Caenorhabditis elegans, six precursor cells acquire a spatial pattern of distinct cell fates. This process is guided by a gradient in the soluble factor, LIN-3, and by direct interactions between neighboring cells mediated by the Notch-like receptor, LIN-12. Genetic evidence has revealed that these two extracellular signals are coupled: lateral cell-cell interactions inhibit LIN-3-mediated signaling, whereas LIN-3 regulates the extent of lateral signaling. To elucidate the quantitative implications of this coupled network topology for cell patterning during vulval development, we developed a mathematical model of LIN-3/LIN12-mediated signaling in the vulval precursor cell array. Our analysis reveals that coupling LIN-3 and LIN-12 amplifies cellular perception of the LIN-3 gradient and polarizes lateral signaling, both of which enhance fate segregation beyond that achievable by an uncoupled system.

Additional Information

© 2006 by The National Academy of Sciences of the USA. Published online before print January 23, 2006, 10.1073/pnas.0506476103. Edited by Scott W. Emmons, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY, and accepted by the Editorial Board December 19, 2005 (received for review July 28, 2005). This paper was submitted directly (Track II) to the PNAS office. S.W.E. is a guest editor invited by the Editorial Board. This work was supported by Institute for Collaborative Biotechnologies Grant DAAD 19-03-D-0004 from the U.S. Army Research Office (to A.R.A.) and a start-up grant from the California Institute of Technology (to A.R.A.). P.W.S. is an investigator with the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

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August 22, 2023
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