Mecanismos de morfogénesis y organogénesis

Drosophila epithelial cells organise into different organs and tissues that accomplish basic functions and subdivide the body into physiologically distinct compartments. The available data indicate that many of the molecular, genetic and cellular mechanisms of epithelial morphogenesis have been highly conserved during evolution. Thus, the development of Drosophila epithelial tissues and organs appears nowadays as an ideal and amenable model to study the basis of morphogenesis. The tracheal (respiratory) system of Drosophila consists of a network of interconnected epithelial tubes that represents an excellent paradigm for the analysis of tubulogenesis, that is, the morphogenesis of branched tubular structures. The branched tubular network is the most common structural design in the formation of vital organs (e.g. lungs, vascular system, mammary glands,...), which carry out major functions like the transport of gases or liquids within the body.