Finally, worm polycomb-like genes meet Hox regulation

Abstract

Polycomb and Trithorax group proteins have been shown to regulate Hox gene expression in flies and mammals, but not in worms. Two reports in this issue of Developmental Cell establish a first link between Polycomb-like genes and Hox gene regulation in C. elegans. However, sequence comparison indicates that these genes may not be homologous to the fly Polycomb genes, suggesting that independent gene recruitment occurred during nematode evolution.