Drosophila long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase acts like a gap gene in embryonic segmentation

► dAcsl (Long-chain acyl-CoA synthetases) is required for embryonic segmentation. ► The defects of dAcsl mutants resemble those of gap gene knirps (kni). ► The changes of dAcsl shifts the anteroposterior boundaries of two gap genes.