Protein determinants of insertional specificity for the Drosophila gypsy retrovirus.

The gypsy retrovirus invades the germ line of Drosophila females, inserting with a high frequency into the ovo locus. Gypsy insertion sites in ovo are clustered within a region in the promoter of the ovo gene that contains multiple binding sites for the OvoA and OvoB proteins. We found that a 1.3-kb DNA fragment containing this region is able to confer gypsy insertional specificity independent of its genomic location. The frequency of gypsy insertions into the ovo gene is significantly lower in wild-type females than in ovoD1 females. In addition, gypsy insertions in ovoD1 females occur during most stages of germ-line development whereas insertions in wild-type females occur only in late stages. This pattern of temporally specific insertions, as well as the higher frequency of insertion in ovoD1 females, correlates with the presence of the OvoA or OvoD1 proteins. The results suggest that gypsy insertional specificity might be determined by the binding of the OvoA repressor isoform to the promoter region of the gene.     

Male reproductive behavior in Drosophila melanogaster strains with different alleles of the flamenco gene

The allelic state of gene flamenco has been determined in a number of Drosophila melanogaster strains using the ovoD test. The presence of an active copy of gypsy in these strains was detected by restriction analysis. Then male reproduction behavior was studied in the strains carrying a mutation in gene flamenco. In these experiments mating success has been experimentally estimated in groups of flies. It has been demonstrated that the presence of mutant allele flamMS decreases male mating activity irrespective of the presence or absence of mutation white. The active copy of gypsy does not affect mating activity in the absence of the mutation in gene flamenco. Individual analysis has demonstrated that that mutation flamMS results in characteristic changes in courtship: flamMS males exhibit a delay in the transition from the orientation stage to the vibration stage (the so-called vibration delay). The role of locus flamenco in the formation of male mating behavior in Drosophila is discussed.     

Genetic Evidence That the Ovo Locus Is Involved in Drosophila Germ Line Sex Determination

Zygotically contributed ovo gene product is required for the survival of female germ cells in Drosophila melanogaster. Trans-allelic combinations of weak and dominant ovo mutations (ovoD) result in viable germ cells that appear to be partially transformed from female to male sexual identity. The ovoD2 mutation is partially suppressed by many Sex-lethal alleles that affect the soma, while those that affect only the germ line fail to interact with ovoD2. One of two loss-of-function ovo alleles is suppressed by a loss-of-function Sex-lethal allele. Because ovo mutations are germ line dependent, it is likely that ovo is suppressed by way of communication between the somatic and germ lines. A loss-of-function allele of ovo is epistatic to germ line dependent mutations in Sex-lethal. The germ line dependent sex determination mutation, sans fille, and ovoD mutations show a dominant synergistic interaction resulting in partial transformation of germ line sexual identity. The ovo locus appears to be involved in germ line sex determination and is linked in some manner to sex determination in the soma.     

Identification of Regions Interacting with Ovo(d) Mutations: Potential New Genes Involved in Germline Sex Determination or Differentiation in Drosophila Melanogaster

Only a few Drosophila melanogaster germline sex determination genes are known, and there have been no systematic screens to identify new genes involved in this important biological process. The ovarian phenotypes produced by females mutant for dominant alleles of the ovo gene are modified in flies with altered doses of other loci involved in germline sex determination in Drosophila (Sex-lethal(+), sans fille(+) and ovarian tumor(+)). This observation constitutes the basis for a screen to identify additional genes required for proper establishment of germline sexual identity. We tested 300 deletions, which together cover ~58% of the euchromatic portion of the genome, for genetic interactions with ovo(D). Hemizygosity for more than a dozen small regions show interactions that either partially suppress or enhance the ovarian phenotypes of females mutant for one or more of the three dominant ovo mutations. These regions probably contain genes whose products act in developmental hierarchies that include ovo(+) protein.     

Study of male mating behavior in some Drosophila melanogaster strains in experiments with fertilized females

Male courtship ritual is among the main behavioral characteristics of Drosophila. This is a complex, genetically determined process consisting of four general stages: orientation, vibration, licking, and attempts at copulation (or successful copulation). Several genes are known that control some stages of this behavior. Most of them have pleiotropic effects and are involved in other biological processes. Earlier, we have shown that a mutation in locus flamenco (20A1-3), which controls transposition and infectivity of retrotransposon gypsy (MDG4), is involved in the genetic control of behavior. In strains mutant for this locus, the male mating activity is decreased and the structure of courtship ritual is changed. To understand the mechanisms of these changes, it is important to study all behavioral stages in genetically identical strains. For this purpose, the normal allele of gene flamenco from the X chromosome of the wild-type strain (stock) Canton S was introduced into strain SS carrying flamMS. This offers new opportunities in studying the role of gene flamenco in the control of mating behavior in Drosophila.     

Coupled Instability of Two X-Linked Genes in DROSOPHILA MAURITIANA: Germinal and Somatic Mutability

A highly unstable allele has been isolated at the white locus of Drosophila mauritiana, a sibling species of D. melanogaster. This allele, white-peach (wpch), mutates spontaneously in males and females to give both wild-type and bleached-white derivatives. The mutation frequency is about 10(-3) mutations/generation. There is no evidence for clustering among mutant progeny, and phenotypically wpch flies with mosaic patches of wild-type tissue in the eyes are frequently recovered. Another X-linked locus, plum, is destabilized when wpch is on the same X chromosome.     

Clonal Analysis of Dominant Female-Sterile, Germline-Dependent Mutations in DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER

Three allelic, dominant and germline-dependent female-sterile mutations (ovo(D) mutations) can be classified according to the severity of the ovarian abnormalities that they produce. The size and frequency of +/+ germline clones, induced in ovo(D)/+ females, were compared with K10/K10 germline clones induced in K10/+ control females. The frequency of germline clones induced by irradiation of first instar larvae is similar for the three dominant alleles and K10 ; however, the clone size increased with the strength of the allele tested, compared with K10 clones. When clones were induced later in development, the clone frequencies decreased with the strength of the alleles. These results are discussed in the context of the antimorphic nature of these mutations and the characteristics of germline development. The use of these alleles as tools in the genetic analysis of development is discussed.     

应用果蝇yellow基因的分子模式分析基因转应作用(英文)

基因转应作用（ｔｒａｎｓｖｅｃｔｉｏｎ）是基因表达的一种方式,这种方式是由等位基因配对及其相互作用所介导的。基因转应作用的现象已在果蝇的多种基因中发现。这种作用可产生正负两种效应。而且,在其它物种中,也逐渐发现了类似的现象。例如,在植物中的基因沉默现象（ｇｅｎｅｓｉｌｅｎｃｉｎｇ）以及在小鼠中的基因转激活作用（ｔｒａｎｓａｃｔｉｖａｔｉｏｎ）等。因此,阐明基因转应作用的机理,将有助于了解基因表达调节及增强子调控活动的分子基础。本文应用果蝇ｙｅｌｏｗ基因为模式来探讨基因转应作用的分子机制。前期研究表明,ｙｅｌｏｗ基因转应作用发生于ｇｙｐｓｙ诱导的ｙ２突变种和ｙｅｌｏｗ亚等位基因（ｙｈ）之间。为了证实是否ｇｙｐｓｙ是基因转应作用所必需的ＤＮＡ元件,我们鉴定了一种新的ｙｅｌｏｗ突变种,称为ｙ２３７４。ｙ２３７４突变是一种基因表达的组织特异性改变,这一改变使ｙ２３７４果蝇在翅和身体部位表皮着色呈突变型。通过遗传分析表明,ｙ２３７４也可与ｙｈ（如ｙ１＃８）产生基因转应作用。ｙ１＃８是一种无效的ｙｅｌｏｗ等位基因,它包含一个启动子和部分编码区序列的缺失。然而,当ｙ２３７４与ｙ１＃８杂交后,其杂交后代的表现型可由ｙ２３７     

Comparative and functional studies of Drosophila species invasion by the gypsy endogenous retrovirus.

Gypsy is an endogenous retrovirus of Drosophila melanogaster. Phylogenetic studies suggest that occasional horizontal transfer events of gypsy occur between Drosophila species. gypsy possesses infective properties associated with the products of the envelope gene that might be at the origin of these interspecies transfers. We report here the existence of DNA sequences putatively encoding full-length Env proteins in the genomes of Drosophila species other than D. melanogaster, suggesting that potentially infective gypsy copies able to spread between sexually isolated species can occur. The ability of gypsy to invade the genome of a new species is conditioned by its capacity to be expressed in the naive genome. The genetic basis for the regulation of gypsy activity in D. melanogaster is now well known, and it has been assigned to an X-linked gene called flamenco. We established an experimental simulation of the invasion of the D. melanogaster genome by gypsy elements derived from other Drosophila species, which demonstrates that these non- D. melanogaster gypsy elements escape the repression exerted by the D. melanogaster flamenco gene.     

Gonadal Dysgenesis Reveals Sexual Dimorphism in the Embryonic Germline of Drosophila

In hybrid dysgenesis, sterility can occur in both males and females. At 27.5 degrees, however, we found that P element-induced germline death was restricted to females. This sex-specific gonadal dysgenesis (GD) is complete by the first larval instar stage. As such, GD at 27.5 degrees reveals the sexually dimorphic character of the embryonic germline. The only other known dimorphic trait of the embryonic germline is the requirement for ovo. ovo is required for germline development in females only and has been implicated in germline sex determination. Dominant mutations of ovo partially suppressed female GD. Although embryonic germ cells are undifferentiated and morphologically indistinguishable between males and females, the functional dimorphism seen in ovo requirement and GD at 27.5 degrees indicates that sexual identity in Drosophila germ cells is established in embryogenesis.     

Phenotypic plasticity of abdominal pigmentation in Drosophila kikkawai: multiple interactions between a major gene, sex, abdomen segment and growth temperature

Drosophila kikkawai is known to be polymorphic for a single autosomal locus controlling abdomen pigmentation in females. Two strains homozygous at this locus (Abdomen pigmentation, Abp) were established from a polymorphic Indian population: one was homozygous (DD) for the dark allele, the other (LL) for the light allele. A Mendelian analysis of crosses at 25°C confirmed the occurrence of a major locus, with dominance of the D allele. Phenotypic variation of pigmentation according to growth temperature was then analyzed in DD and LL male and female flies, and in reciprocal F1. A slight difference was found between reciprocal F1 females from a dark mother were darker but not at all temperatures. In females, the D allele exhibited an antero‐posterior gradient of increasing expression from segment 27, with dominance over L and an increased expression at low temperatures. In males, abdomen pigmentation was uniformly light in segments 25, the D allele being repressed by the sex genotype. In segment 6, the D allele was expressed but only at low temperatures, and was either recessive to L or codominant. Phenotypic plasticity that is, amount of change induced by different growth temperatures, was variable according to genotype and segment. It always corresponded to a darkening of the fly at lower temperatures, but was generally much less than in D. melanogaster. In D. kikkawai, climatic adaptation might occur more by changing the frequency of the D allele than by phenotypic plasticity. This revised version was published online in July 2006 with corrections to the Cover Date.     

Cytotype regulation by telomeric P elements in Drosophila melanogaster: evidence for involvement of an RNA interference gene

P elements inserted at the left telomere of the X chromosome evoke the P cytotype, a maternally inherited condition that regulates the P-element family in the Drosophila germline. This regulation is completely disrupted in stocks heterozygous for mutations in aubergine, a gene whose protein product is involved in RNA interference. However, cytotype is not disrupted in stocks heterozygous for mutations in two other RNAi genes, piwi and homeless (spindle-E), or in a stock heterozygous for a mutation in the chromatin protein gene Enhancer of zeste. aubergine mutations exert their effects in the female germline, where the P cytotype is normally established and through which it is maintained. These effects are transmitted maternally to offspring of both sexes independently of the mutations themselves. Lines derived from mutant aubergine stocks reestablish the P cytotype quickly, unlike lines derived from stocks heterozygous for a mutation in Suppressor of variegation 205, the gene that encodes the telomere-capping protein HP1. Cytotype regulation by telomeric P elements may be tied to a system that uses RNAi to regulate the activities of telomeric retrotransposons in Drosophila.     

The impact of shared ancestral variation on hybrid male lethality--a 16 codon indel in the Drosophila simulans Lhr gene

The Lethal hybrid rescue (Lhr) gene causes hybrid male lethality in crosses between Drosophila simulans and D. melanogaster. Lhr(2) is a D. simulans allele, which rescues hybrid males. It has been recently proposed that a 16 codon insertion, which distinguishes the D. melanogaster and the canonical D. simulans allele, and is lacking in Lhr(2), may be responsible for the functional divergence of D. melanogaster and D. simulans Lhr alleles. Here, we show that the Lhr(2) allele lacking the insertion represents an ancestral polymorphism segregating at a moderate frequency in D. simulans. Crosses of D. melanogaster females to males from two D. simulans strains carrying this deletion showed a severe deficiency of viable hybrid males. Our results suggest that the absence of this insertion alone is not sufficient to explain functional differences between D. melanogaster and D. simulans Lhr alleles.     

Some behavioral features in Drosophila melanogaster lines carrying a flamenco gene mutation]

Olfactory sensitivity and locomotor activity was assayed in Drosophila melanogaster strains carrying a mutation of the flamenco gene, which controls transposition of the mobile genetic element 4 (MGE4) retrotransposon the gypsy mobile element. A change in olfactory sensitivity was detected. The reaction to the odor of acetic acid was inverted in flies of the mutator strain (MS), which carried the flam mutation and active MGE4 copies and were characterized by genetic instability. Flies of the genetically unstable strains displayed a lower locomotor activity. The behavioral changes in MS flies can be explained by the pleiotropic effect of the flam mutation or by insertion mutations which arise in behavior genes as a result of genome destabilization by MGE4.     

Cloning sequences from the hairy gene of Drosophila.

A series of mutations that alter the pattern of segmentation in Drosophila embryos has been identified. Mutations in one of these loci, hairy, delete the posterior part of each odd-numbered segment and the anterior part of each even-numbered segment; although the amount deleted depends on the allele. Weak alleles delete less than an entire segment and do not always eliminate structures in every other segment. Strong alleles show the same periodicity in the pattern defect, but delete regions greater than one segment. In such cases the remaining parts of the pattern duplicate with mirror-image symmetry. To study the function of this gene at a molecular level, sequences from the hairy locus were cloned. This was facilitated by the hairy1 (h1) mutation, which is caused by the insertion of the transposable element, gypsy.