Fushi tarazu

Definition
noun
(1) A pair-rule gene which, together with even-skipped, plays a crucial role in the activation of the segment polarity genes. Its expression also results in a series of vertical stripes that alternate with the stripes of even-skipped along the body of the fruit fly embryo.
(2) The gene product of fushi tarazu.
Supplement
In Drosophila larva, the series of alternating stripes of Fushi tarazu and Even-skipped set the boundaries between the future body segments in the adult fly.
Word origin: from Japanese, which literally means too few segments.
Symbol: ftz (gene) and Ftz or FTZ (gene product).
See also: pair-rule gene.