Genetic Variation for Dispersal by DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA and DROSOPHILA PERSIMILIS

Release-recapture experiments using Drosophila pseudoobscura and D. persimilis strains of different karyotypes were performed in a heterogeneous environment. The heterogeneity was due to both spatial variation and the species of yeast used to attract the released flies. No karyotypic-specific habitat preferences were detected. However, in all releases, different strains did behave differently with respect to one or both of the heterogeneous factors. These results indicate there is variation for dispersal behavior in these species that is most likely based on genotype-dependent habitat preferences.     

Genic Heterogeneity at Two Alcohol Dehydrogenase Loci in DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA and DROSOPHILA PERSIMILIS

A sequential electrophoretic survey of the second chromosome loci, alcohol dehydrogenase-6 (Adh-6) and octanol dehydrogenase ( Odh), was performed on 147 isochromosomal lines of Drosophila pseudoobscura and 60 lines of its sibling species, D. persimilis. Gels run with a variety of acrylamide concentrations and buffer pH's revealed the presence of 18 alleles of Adh-6 in the two species, where only eight had been previously detected by conventional electrophoretic methods. Only two alleles were added with our techniques to the previous total of nine in both species at the largely monomorphic Odh locus. Both enzymes show a predominance of one allele, with the other variants being fairly rare. There was no evidence of increased genetic divergence between the two species, but we found a striking increase in differentiation of Adh-6 alleles between the main body of D. pseudoobscura populations and the conspecific isolate from Bogotá, Colombia. These results are compared with our previous surveys of xanthine dehydrogenase in these species and discussed in reference to theories of genic polymorphism.     

Distinctions among Allelic Variants Associated with Chromosome 3 Inversions in DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA and DROSOPHILA PERSIMILIS

Efforts were made to discriminate new genetic variants among electrophoretic alleles that are associated with chromosome 3 inversions of Drosophila pseudoobscura and D. persimilis. Apparent genetic similarities for electrophoretic alleles between these two species and among the common inversions they carry were reexamined by altering gel concentration and buffer pH. At the amylase locus, the 1.09 electrophoretic allele could be further separated into two allelic classes that differentiated the WT and KL arrangements. Similarly, the 0.84 electrophoretic allele was divided into two allelic classes, one characteristic of the Santa Cruz phylad arrangements, TL and SC, and the other found in strains of the Standard phylad arrangements and CH. Uncommon amylase alleles proved to be different alleles in the two species. No new allelic variants, however, could be found among strains with the amylase 1.00 allele, the commonest allele in the Standard phylad of both species. No major new allelic variation was detected for acid phosphatase-3 and larval protein-10 that revealed any further differentiation among species or inversions. Variation at all three loci in strains of the Bogota population remained genetically similar to variation in strains of mainland D. pseudoobscura.     

GENETICS OF SEXUAL ISOLATION AND COURTSHIP DYSFUNCTION IN MALE HYBRIDS OF DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA AND DROSOPHILA PERSIMILIS

Despite the importance of sexual isolation to speciation, few studies have analyzed the genetic basis of interspecific mating discrimination, particularly using hybrid males. In this study, I investigated the genetic basis of sexual isolation using male hybrids of Drosophila pseudoobscura and D. persimilis. Hybrid male mating success was caused by interactions between the X-chromosome and autosomes (or Y-chromosome), and different arms of the X-chromosome contributed to mating success with females of each species. Further, although there was an X-chromosome component to mating success, its magnitude was not disproportionately large when compared with the proportion of the genome contained on this chromosome. Some hybrid males courted with an anomalously low intensity, so I simultaneously mapped the genetic basis of this “courtship dysfunction.” The courtship dysfunction was caused by an interaction between the left arm of the X-chromosome in D. persimilis with the autosomes or Y-chromosome from D. pseudoobscura. Anomalous courtship behavior in interspecific hybrids can obscure the conclusions of studies of the genetics of sexual isolation, so courtship intensity should be evaluated in all such investigations.     

Examination of Allelic Variation at the Hexokinase Loci of DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA and D. PERSIMILIS by Different Methods

Recently a number of electrophoretic techniques have been applied to reveal the presence of additional genetic variation among the electrophoretic mobility classes of the highly polymorphic xanthine dehydrogenase (XDH ) and esterase-5 (est-5) loci. We examined the hexokinase loci of Drosophila pseudoobscura and D. persimilis using a variety of techniques to determine whether further allelic variation could be revealed for these much less polymorphic loci and to analyze the nature of the known variation at the hexokinase-1 (hex-1) locus. The following studies were conducted: 135 strains of the two species from six localities were examined with buffer pH ranging from 5.5 to 10.0; 40 strains of D. pseudoobscura and 9 strains of D. persimilis from Mather were studied using starch gel concentrations ranging from 8.5 to 15.5% and were examined for differences in heat stability and reactivity to the thiol reagent pCMSA; strains were also tested for susceptibility to urea denaturation and differences in relative activities. Major findings of the work are: (1) No additional allelic variation could be detected at any of the hexokinase loci by applying these techniques. The finding of abundant hidden genetic variation in XDH and est-5 does not extend to all enzyme loci. (2) Evidence from studies using pCMSA indicates that the hex-1 alleles 0.6, 0.8, 1.0 and 1.2 of the two species form a series of unit charge steps. Since the 0.94 allele of D. persimilis has mobility intermediate between 0.8 and 1.0, it is argued that routine electrophoretic techniques are sensitive to at least some conservative amino acid substitutions. (3) Strong correlations were found at the hex-1 locus between low allelic frequency, reduced relative activity and reduced stability to heat and urea denaturation. Since the three sibling species, D. pseudoobscura, D. persimilis and D. miranda, all appear to share a common high frequency allele (1.0) at that locus, these findings are taken as evidence that the observed allelic frequencies are a result of directional selection and mutation, rather than any form of balancing selection.     

Gene Differences between Third-Chromosome Inversions of DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA

Associations of alleles of the acid phosphatase-3 locus with the different third-chromosome inversions from different populations of D. pseudoobscura are described. We observe only the allele AP-3 ^1.0 in the Standard and Arrow-head inversions and the allele AP-3^.98 in the Santa Cruz, Treeline, Cuernavaca and the Pikes Peak arrangements. The Chiricahua gene arrangement is polymorphic.     

A Comparative Study of the Esterase-5 Locus in DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA,D. PERSIMILIS and D. MIRANDA

Electrophoretic phenotypes of the esterase-5 locus were examined in the sibling species D. pseudoobscura, D. persimilis and D. miranda. D. persimilis alleles were found to have uniformly higher charge on monomers than corresponding alleles of either D. pseudoobscura or D. miranda. Consequently, D. persimilis shares no alleles in common with either D. pseudoobscura or D. miranda, while the latter two species share a number of alleles. It was discovered that by increasing the concentration of acrylamide gel and increasing the length of migration, more allelic differences could be distinguished. Also more alleles were discovered by examining monomer mobility in addition to dimer mobility. In D. persimilis and D. miranda it was found that the previously known high frequency allelic classes broke down into several allelic classes. A test of goodness-of-fit to the infinite alleles model was done and a rough agreement with the model was found.     

An Experimental Investigation of the Unit Charge Model of Protein Polymorphism and Its Relation to the Esterase-5 Locus of DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA, DROSOPHILA PERSIMILIS, and DROSOPHILA MIRANDA

The relationship between charge changes and electrophoretic mobility changes is investigated experimentally. The charge of several proteins is altered by reaction with small molecules of known structure and the change in electrophoretic mobility is measured. The method of Ferguson plots is used to separate charge and shape components of mobility differences. The average effect of an amino acid charge change on the mobility of the esterase-5( 1.00) allele of Drosophila pseudoobscura is estimated to be 0.046. This estimate is then used to apply the step model of Ohta and Kimura (1973) to electrophoretic mobility data for the esterase-5 locus of D. pseudoobscura and D. miranda. The variation in electrophoretic mobility at this locus was found to be in agreement with the predictions of the step model.     

Evidence for Extensive Genetic Differentiation between the Sex-Ratio and the Standard Arrangement of DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA and D. PERSIMILIS and Identification of Hybrid Sterility Factors

This study deals with sex-ratio genes tightly linked within the Sex-Ratio inversion. By taking advantage of the fact that the Sex-Ratio chromosome of Drosophila persimilis [SR(B)] is homosequential to the Standard chromosome of D. pseudoobscura [ST(A)], we carried out two reciprocal introgression experiments. Individual segments of SR(B) or ST(A) were introgressed into the genome of D. pseudoobscura or D. persimilis, respectively. Males possessing a hybrid SR(B)-ST(A) X chromosome and a genetic background derived from either of the two species were tested for fertility and sex-ratio expression.—It was found that, in terms of the meiotic drive genes, the Sex-Ratio chromosome differs extensively from the Standard chromosome. Because recombinations of these genes result in a complete loss of sex-ratio expression, this finding lends strong support to the hypothesis of gene coadaptation. Coadaptation, in this context, is the advantage of being transmitted preferentially. In light of this finding, the evolution of the sex-ratio system in these two sibling species is discussed.—Introgression experiments also yielded information about hybrid sterility. With reciprocal introgression, sterility interactions were found to be "asymmetric." The asymmetry is fully expected from the viewpoint of evolution of postmating reproductive isolation.     

An Investigation of the Genetics of "Male Sex-Ratio" Phenotype in DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA

A laboratory strain of Drosophila pseudoobscura (L116) is studied that, when crossed to sex-ratio homozygous females, produces sons that exhibit varying levels of the male sex-ratio (msr) phenotype. The msr phenotype occurs only in sex-ratio males and is due to the production of a high frequency of nullo-XY sperm. The level of the msr phenotype is variable, and new variability is generated in one father-son transmission. Pedigree studies indicate the genes for msr reside on the Y chromosome or the autosomes of the L116 stock.     

Variation in Activities of Amylase Allozymes Associated with Chromosome Inversions in DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA, D. PERSIMILIS and D. MIRANDA

Different electrophoretic alleles of amylase show associations with particular chromosome 3 inversions in D. pseudoobscura and D. persimilis. Relative adult amylase activities were compared in 37, 37 and 10 strains of D. pseudoobscura, D. persimilis and D. miranda, respectively. Strains carrying the same electrophoretic allele were compared by crossing these lines individually to a reference strain carrying a different electrophoretic mobility allele. This procedure allows comparisons among species, inversions, electromorphs and strains for genetic variation in amylase activity. F2 analysis established that the activity variation co-segregates with the structural amylase locus. This type of variation could be due to either structural gene differences or differences in closely linked, cis-acting regulatory regions. Variation has been detected among and within electrophoretic mobility classes. Moreover, this variation is clearly nonrandom and reveals more of the genetic structure associated with the chromosomal inversion phylogeny of D. pseudoobscura and D. persimilis. ----Some of the findings are: (1) Similar electromorphs in D. pseudoobscura and D. persimilis usually show different activities. These species show nearly complete differentiation of amylase alleles, based on activities. (2) D. persimilis has the broadest range of variation in amylase activity, about four-fold between the highest and lowest alleles. D. pseudoobscura and D. miranda are also polymorphic for activity, but have more constrained ranges of variation. D. miranda alleles show on the average about four times the activity of D. pseudoobscura alleles. (3) Some association of electrophoretic mobility and activity has been found. Alleles 1.09 of D. persimilis, as well as 1.43 and 1.55 of D. miranda, have relatively high activity. It may be that these high activity alleles are part of an adaptation to cooler habitats. (4) Within electrophoretic classes, associations of activities with inversions have been found. These are especially strong in D. persimilis. The 1.00 alleles in the ST, KL, MD and WT inversions, the 0.92 allele in the ST and MD inversions and the 1.09 allele in the WT and KL inversions have levels of activities that depend upon the arrangement in which they are located. These results demonstrate that suppression of recombination in inversion heterokaryotypes can result in extensive genic divergence between inversions.     

Fitness of Karyotypes in DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA

In the dynamics of the survival of chromosomal polymorphism selection may be operating at the genic level, at the chromosomal level or at the supergene level. Tests designed to distinguish between these levels were run on Drosophila pseudoobscura. There was no evidence for heterosis, a necessary requirement for gene-determined chromosomal polymorphism. A strong chromosmal selection was observed. No evidence was found for the presence within one locality of more than a single superallele for each supergene (= gene order). These results are compared to those found by others.     

Selection by Fertility in DROSOPHILA PSEUDOOBSCURA

Fertility, the component of selection due to female fecundity and male mating success, differed significantly among the ST/ST, ST/AR, and AR/AR karyotypes in experimental populations and varied with karyotypic frequency. In relation to ST/AR, ST/ST females and males had higher fertilities at low frequency; AR/AR males and females were at a significant fertility disadvantage at intermediate frequency, while at low and at high frequencies their fertilities matched or exceeded that of the heterokaryotype. These fertility differences were comparable in size to viability differences previously reported for D. pseudoobscura karyotypes. Differential fertility seems likely to be an important element, perhaps just as important as differential viability, in the balancing selection that maintains the chromosomal polymorphism in this species.     

Gene Polymorphism in Natural Populations of DROSOPHILA PERSIMILIS

Genetic variation at 43 loci has been studied in six different populations of Drosophila persimilis by electrophoresis of enzymes and proteins. In D. persimilis the mean proportion of polymorphic loci is 0.362, the mean proportion of heterozygous loci per individual is 0.100 and the average number of alleles per locus is 1.651. In all populations, the loci coding for the hydrolytic and other nonspecific enzymes are much more variable than the loci coding for the enzymes of the glycolytic pathway, Kreb's cycle, other specific enzymes and larval proteins. Most loci have similar allele frequency in all populations except the two loci, Amylase and Pt-12, which show a pattern of associations of different alleles with different third chromosome inversions.