[Regulatory functions of Pax gene family in Drosophila development]

Abstract

The Pax gene family encodes a group of important transcription factors that have been evolutionary conserved from Drosophila to human. Pax genes play pivotal roles in regulating diverse signal transduction pathways and organogenesis during embryonic development through modulating cell proliferation and self-renewal, embryonic precursor cell migration, and the coordination of specific differentiation programs. Ten members of the Pax gene family, which perform crucial regulatory functions during embryonic and postembryonic development, have been identified in Drosophila. In this report, we described the protein structures, expression patterns, and main functions of Drosophila Pax genes.