di Pietro, F., Herszterg, S., Huang, A., Bosveld, F., Alexandre, C., Sancéré, L., Pelletier, S., Joudat, A., Kapoor, V., Vincent, J.P., Bellaïche, Y. (2021). Rapid and robust optogenetic control of gene expression in Drosophila.  Dev. Cell 56(24): 3393--3404.e7.

FBrf0252177

Research paper

Deciphering gene function requires the ability to control gene expression in space and time. Binary systems such as the Gal4/UAS provide a powerful means to modulate gene expression and to induce loss or gain of function. This is best exemplified in Drosophila, where the Gal4/UAS system has been critical to discover conserved mechanisms in development, physiology, neurobiology, and metabolism, to cite a few. Here we describe a transgenic light-inducible Gal4/UAS system (ShineGal4/UAS) based on Magnet photoswitches. We show that it allows efficient, rapid, and robust activation of UAS-driven transgenes in different tissues and at various developmental stages in Drosophila. Furthermore, we illustrate how ShineGal4 enables the generation of gain and loss-of-function phenotypes at animal, organ, and cellular levels. Thanks to the large repertoire of UAS-driven transgenes, ShineGal4 enriches the Drosophila genetic toolkit by allowing in vivo control of gene expression with high temporal and spatial resolutions.

PMC8693864 (PMC) (EuropePMC)