Apical junctions and growth control in Drosophila

Recent studies have revealed unexpected links between cell polarity and proliferation, suggesting that the polarized organization of cells is necessary to regulate growth. Drosophila melanogaster is a genetically simple model that is especially suited for the study of polarity and growth control, as polarized tissues undergo a well-defined pattern of proliferation and differentiation during the development. In addition, genetic studies have identified a number of tumor suppressor genes, which later studies have shown to be associated with junctions, or in the regulation of junctional proteins. We will explore in this review the links between growth and apical junction proteins in the regulation of growth control in Drosophila. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.