
DYF-4 regulates patched-related/DAF-6-mediated sensory compartment formation in C. elegans
Author(s) -
Hui Hong,
Huicheng Chen,
Yuxia Zhang,
Zhimao Wu,
Yingying Zhang,
Yingyi Zhang,
Hu Zeng,
Jian V. Zhang,
Kun Ling,
Jinghua Hu,
Qing Wei
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
plos genetics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.587
H-Index - 233
eISSN - 1553-7404
pISSN - 1553-7390
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009618
Subject(s) - ciliogenesis , biology , microbiology and biotechnology , mutant , patched , regulator , caenorhabditis elegans , neurite , mutagenesis , genetics , cilium , signal transduction , hedgehog signaling pathway , gene , in vitro
Coordination of neurite extension with surrounding glia development is critical for neuronal function, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain poorly understood. Through a genome-wide mutagenesis screen in C . elegans , we identified dyf-4 and daf-6 as two mutants sharing similar defects in dendrite extension. DAF-6 encodes a glia-specific patched-related membrane protein that plays vital roles in glial morphogenesis. We cloned dyf-4 and found that DYF-4 encodes a glia-secreted protein. Further investigations revealed that DYF-4 interacts with DAF-6 and functions in a same pathway as DAF-6 to regulate sensory compartment formation. Furthermore, we demonstrated that reported glial suppressors of daf-6 could also restore dendrite elongation and ciliogenesis in both dyf-4 and daf-6 mutants. Collectively, our data reveal that DYF-4 is a regulator for DAF-6 which promotes the proper formation of the glial channel and indirectly affects neurite extension and ciliogenesis.