Hippo signaling in organ size control

Abstract

The control of organ (or organism) size is a fundamental aspect of life that has long captured human imagination. What makes an elephant grow a million times larger than a mouse? How do our two hands develop independently of each other yet reach very similar size? How does a liver precisely regenerate its original mass when two-thirds of it is removed? The recent discovery of a novel signaling network in Drosophila, known as the Hippo (Hpo) pathway, might provide an important entry point to these fascinating questions. The Hpo pathway consists of several negative growth regulators acting in a kinase cascade that ultimately phosphorylates and inactivates Yorkie (Yki), a transcriptional coactivator that positively regulates cell growth, survival, and proliferation. Components of the Hpo pathway are highly conserved throughout evolution, suggesting that this pathway may function as a global regulator of tissue homeostasis in all metazoan animals. Here, I provide a historical review of this potent growth-regulatory pathway and highlight outstanding questions that will likely be the focus of future investigation.