Germany: Notch Signalling Pathway

Hairless-binding deficient Suppressor of Hairless alleles reveal Su(H) protein levels are dependent on complex formation with HairlessHairless-binding deficient Suppressor of Hairless alleles reveal Su(H) protein levels are dependent on complex formation with Hairless

Heiko Praxenthaler, Anja C. Nagel, Adriana Schulz, Mirjam Zimmermann, Markus Meier, Hannes Schmid, Anette Preiss, Dieter Maier | Institute of Genetics (240), University of Hohenheim, Stuttgart, Germany | 2017 | PLOS Genetics 13(5): e1006774.

The Notch signalling pathway is involved in the development of higher animals by directing the lineage of cells in different tissues. The pathway involves the assembly of a transcriptional activator with a DNA binding protein when the Notch receptor is activated. Conversely, repressor complexes interact with the Notch pathway to silence Notch gene targets.

The authors set out to determine how a particular repressor, Su(H), interacts within this pathway using mutant versions of that protein. The expression of Su(H) from each genotype was quantified using RT-qPCR on the Mic. The results demonstrated that in vivo, the amount of Su(H) protein is stabilised by interactions with transcription regulator complexes.