Dual role for Hox genes and Hox co-factors in conferring leg motoneuron survival and identity in Drosophila

Adult Drosophila walk using six multi-jointed legs, each controlled by ∼50 leg motoneurons (MNs). Although MNs have stereotyped morphologies, little is known about how they are specified. Here, we describe the function of Hox genes and homothorax (hth), which encodes a Hox co-factor, in Drosophila leg MN development. Removing either Hox or Hth function from a single neuroblast (NB) lineage results in MN apoptosis. A single Hox gene, Antennapedia (Antp), is primarily responsible for MN survival in all three thoracic segments. When cell death is blocked, partially penetrant axon branching errors are observed in Hox mutant MNs. When single MNs are mutant, errors in both dendritic and axon arborizations are observed. Our data also suggest that Antp levels in post-mitotic MNs are important for specifying their identities. Thus, in addition to being essential for survival, Hox and hth are required to specify accurate MN morphologies in a level-dependent manner.