A pupal lethal mutation with a paternally influenced maternal effect on embryonic development in Drosophila melanogaster

The maternal effect and zygotic phenotype of l(1)pole hole (l(1)ph) is described. l(1)ph is a zygotic lethal mutation which affects cell division of adult precursor cells in Drosophila larvae. The locus is located in 2F6 on the salivary gland chromosome map and four alleles have been characterized. Germ-line clonal analysis of amorphic alleles indicates that l(1)ph has a maternal effect lethal phenotype. Two lethal phenotypes are observed among embryos derived from female germ-line clones homozygous for amorphic alleles dependent upon the zygotic activity of l(1)ph⁺ introduced via the sperm. Class 1: If no wild-type dose of the gene is introduced, embryos form abnormal blastoderms in which nuclear migration and cell formation is disrupted leading to an ill-defined cuticular pattern. Class 2: If a wild-type copy of the gene is introduced, blastoderm cells do not form beneath the pole cells (the pole hole phenotype); subsequently such embryos are missing cuticular structures posterior to the seventh abdominal segment (the torso phenotype). When the zygotic activity l(1)ph⁺ is modulated using position effect variegation a new phenotype is observed among class 2 embryos in which torso embryos are twisted along their longitudinal axis.