InsP(3) receptor is essential for growth and differentiation but not for vision in Drosophila

Phospholipase C (PLC) is the focal point for two major signal transduction pathways: one initiated by G protein-coupled receptors and the other by tyrosine kinase receptors. Active PLC hydrolyzes phosphatidylinositol bisphosphate (PIP2) into the two second messengers inositol 1,4,5-trisphosphate (InsP(3)) and diacyl glycerol (DAG). DAG activates protein kinase C, and InsP(3) mobilizes calcium from intracellular stores via the InsP(3) receptor. Changes in [Ca2+](i) regulate the function of a wide range of target proteins, including ion channels, kinases, phosphatases, proteases, and transcription factors (Berridge, 1993). In the mouse, there are three InsP(3)R genes, and type 1 InsP(3)R mutants display ataxia and epileptic seizures (Matsumoto et al., 1996). In Drosophila, only one InsP(3) receptor (InsP(3)R) gene is known, and it is expressed ubiquitously throughout development (Hasan and Rosbash, 1992; Yoshikawa et al., 1992; Raghu and Hasan, 1995). Here, we characterize Drosophila InsP(3)R mutants and demonstrate that the InsP(3)R is essential for embryonic and larval development. Interestingly, maternal InsP(3)R mRNA is sufficient for progression through the embryonic stages, but larval organs show asynchronous and defective cell divisions, and imaginal discs arrest early and fail to differentiate. We also generated adult mosaic animals and demonstrate that phototransduction, a model PLC pathway thought to require InsP(3)R, does not require InsP(3)R for signaling.