Homeotic gene

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Homeotic genes can, when modified, cause homeotic mutations or bizarre and fundamental developmental reorganizations of the body. An example would be the Antennapedia mutant in Drosophila, in which legs are found sprouting where antennae would normally be. Inappropriate expression of homeotic genes will, in general, transform parts of the body into structures appropriate to other positions.

Homeotic genes are evolutionarily highly conserved and generally encode transcription factors involved in the fate of developing regions of the body. Groups of homeotic selector genes determine how different regions of an organism develop. Homeotic genes are often homologous between different species; these genes are present in essentially all animals, humans included.

[edit] See also

• Homeobox
• Morphogenesis

[edit] References

• Alberts et al, The Cell, 2002

[edit] External links

• The Homeotic Selector Genes in Developmental Biology, 6th Edition by Scott F. Gilbert (2000) Published by Sinauer Associates, Inc. ISBN 0-87893-243-7.