Cell
Volume 80, Issue 6, 24 March 1995, Pages 909-917
Journal home page for Cell

Article
Jagged: A mammalian ligand that activates notch1

https://doi.org/10.1016/0092-8674(95)90294-5Get rights and content
Under an Elsevier user license
open archive

Abstract

Here we report the isolation of a rat cDNA clone, Jagged, which we show encodes a ligand for vertebrate Notch. Our conclusion is based on three observations. First, sequence analysis reveals substantial homology between Jagged and invertebrate ligands for the LIN-12/Notch proteins. Second, in situ hybridization of rat embryos identifies both distinct and overlapping patterns of gene expression for Jagged with those for Notch1, Notch2, and Notch3. Finally, the biological activity of Jagged was tested using a cell culture assay in which Jagged activates rat Notch1 expressed in myoblasts and prevents muscle cell differentiation. Our data support the hypothesis that Notch-ligand interactions function in maintaining mammalian cells in an undifferentiated state.

Cited by (0)