Genetic and molecular study of chitin synthesis and assembly in the embryonic cuticle of Drosophila melanogaster

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Polysaccharide-containing extracellular matrices (pECMs) like cartilage and the cuticle of arthropods are abundant structures in nature that assist shaping cells, tissues and whole organisms. The ultra-structure and composition of such ECMs has been well described in the last decades; however, central aspects of molecular mechanisms that govern the organisation of pECMs have still to be investigated. An excellent model to study principles of pECM differentiation is the embryonic cuticle of the genetically and molecularly highly accessible fruitfly Drosophila melanogaster. The polysaccharide-containing layer of the cuticle is the lower procuticle that harbours the polysaccharide chitin in association with proteins, responsible for cuticle elasticity. Although many chitin-binding proteins have been isolated and characterised, the molecular pathways controlling procuticle organisation are largely unknown. The aim of this project is to elucidate the molecular roles of the chitin synthase as well as of two membranebound factors, Knickkopf (Knk) and Retroactive (Rtv), in the assembly of the protein-chitin complex in the procuticle to contribute to the understanding of pECM differentiation.