The LIN-1 ETS transcription factor plays a pivotal role in controlling cell fate decisions during development of the Caenorhabditis elegans vulva. Prior to activation of the RTK/Ras/ERK-signaling pathway, LIN-1 functions as a SUMOylated transcriptional repressor that inhibits vulval cell fate. Here we demonstrate using the yeast two-hybrid system that SUMOylation of LIN-1 mediates interactions ...

Ras-mediated signaling is necessary for the induction of vulval cell fates during Caenorhabditis elegans development. We identified cgr-1 by screening for suppressors of the ectopic vulval cell fates caused by a gain-of-function mutation of the let-60 ras gene. Analysis of two cgr-1 loss-of-function mutations indicates that cgr-1 positively regulates induction of vulval cell fates. cgr-1 is lik...

Development of the vulva in C. elegans is mediated by the combinatorial action of several convergent regulatory inputs, three of which, the Ras, Wnt and Rb-related pathways, act by regulating expression of the lin-39 Hox gene. LIN-39 specifies cell fates and regulates cell fusion in the mid-body region, leading to formation of the vulva. In the lateral seam epidermis, differentiation and cell f...

Lymphedema is a condition caused by extra-cellular fluids accumulating in subcutaneous compartments as a result of lymphatic obstruction. Etiologically it can be classified as primary (congenital) and secondary (acquired). Primary lymphedema can be seen to be associated with congenital lymphatic hypoplasia, as a component of a genetic syndrome such as Milroy’s disease or Meigs syndrome.1 Second...

Chromatin modification genes play crucial roles in development and disease. In Caenorhabditis elegans, the class I histone deacetylase family member hda-1, a component of the nucleosome remodeling and deacetylation complex, has been shown to control cell proliferation. We recovered hda-1 in an RNA interference screen for genes involved in the morphogenesis of the egg-laying system. We found tha...