The Caenorhabditis elegans Dispatched ortholog, CHE-14, is dispensable for apical secretion of the Hedgehog-related proteins GRL-2 and WRT-10

<i>C. elegans</i> nematodes possess expanded families of Hedgehog related (Hh-r) and Patched/Dispatched-related (PTR) proteins but their functional relationship remains unclear. Here we investigated whether CHE-14 , the closest <i>C. elegans</i> ortholog for the Hedgehog transporter Dispatched, was necessary for the secretion of two tagged Hh-r proteins: WRT-10 and GRL-2 . We report that CHE-14 is dispensable for the apical localization of GRL-2 and WRT-10 . We also show that animals lacking CHE-14 and another redundant PTR protein DAF-6 also secrete WRT-10 , suggesting neither are required for secretion of these specific Hh-r proteins.