Franc, N.C., Heitzler, P., Ezekowitz, R.A.B., White, K. (1999). Requirement for croquemort in phagocytosis of apoptotic cells in Drosophila. Science 284(5422): 1991--1993.
FlyBase ID
FBrf0108751
Publication Type
Research paper
Abstract
Macrophages in the Drosophila embryo are responsible for the phagocytosis of apoptotic cells and are competent to engulf bacteria. Croquemort (CRQ) is a CD36-related receptor expressed exclusively on these macrophages. Genetic evidence showed that crq was essential for efficient phagocytosis of apoptotic corpses but was not required for the engulfment of bacteria. The expression of CRQ was regulated by the amount of apoptosis. These data define distinct pathways for the phagocytosis of corpses and bacteria in Drosophila.
