A role for the chaperone Hsp70 in the regulation of border cell migration in the Drosophila ovary

Unravelling the molecular mechanisms that govern cell migration is of great importance towards understanding both normal embryogenesis and physiological and pathological processes occurring in the adult. Migration of border cells (BCs) during Drosophila oogenesis provides a simple and attractive model in which to address this problem. Here, we show that the molecular chaperone Hsp70 is required for BC migration. Thus, BCs lacking all Hsp70 genes present in the fly genome fail to reorganize their actin cytoskeleton, resulting in migration defects. Similar defects are found when the Hsp70 co-chaperone DnaJ-1, the Drosophila homolog of the human Hsp40, is overexpressed specifically in BCs. In addition, we provide biochemical and genetic evidence for an interaction between DnaJ-1 and PDGF/VEGF receptor (PVR), which is also required for actin-mediated BC migration. Furthermore, our results showing that PVR also interacts genetically with Hsp70 suggest that a mechanism by which the DnaJ-1/Hsp70 chaperone complex regulates BC migration is by modulating PVR function.