The Bic-C Family of Developmental Translational Regulators

Regulation of mRNA translation is especially important during cellular and developmental processes. Many evolutionarily conserved proteins act in the context of multiprotein complexes and modulate protein translation both at the spatial and the temporal levels. Among these, Bicaudal C constitutes a family of RNA binding proteins whose founding member was first identified in Drosophila and contains orthologs in vertebrates. We discuss recent advances towards understanding the functions of these proteins in the context of the cellular and developmental biology of many model organisms and their connection to human disease.