Mathematical modeling of Notch dynamics in Drosophila neural development

Fly (Austin). 2022 Dec;16(1):24-36. doi: 10.1080/19336934.2021.1953363.

Abstract

Notch signalling is a well-conserved signalling pathway that regulates cell fate through cell-cell communication. A typical feature of Notch signalling is 'lateral inhibition', whereby two neighbouring cells of equivalent state of differentiation acquire different cell fates. Recently, mathematical and computational approaches have addressed the Notch dynamics in Drosophila neural development. Typical examples of lateral inhibition are observed in the specification of neural stem cells in the embryo and sensory organ precursors in the thorax. In eye disc development, Notch signalling cooperates with other signalling pathways to define the evenly spaced positioning of the photoreceptor cells. The interplay between Notch and epidermal growth factor receptor signalling regulates the timing of neural stem cell differentiation in the optic lobe. In this review, we summarize the theoretical studies that have been conducted to elucidate the Notch dynamics in these systems and discuss the advantages of combining mathematical models with biological experiments.

Keywords: Notch signalling; eye development; lateral inhibition; mathematical modelling; neuroblasts; proneural wave; sensory organ precursors.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Review

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Cell Differentiation
  • Drosophila Proteins* / genetics
  • Drosophila*
  • Membrane Proteins
  • Models, Theoretical
  • Receptors, Notch

Substances

  • Drosophila Proteins
  • Membrane Proteins
  • Receptors, Notch

Grants and funding

This work was supported by Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research on Innovative Areas (17H05739, 17H05761, and 19H04771 to M.S. and 19H04956 and 20H05030 to T.Y.), Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B) (17H03542 to M.S.), and Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C) (19K06674 to T.Y.) from MEXT, CREST from JST (JPMJCR14D3 to M.S.), Takeda Science Foundation (to T.Y. and M.S.), and the Uehara Memorial Foundation (to T.Y. and M.S.).