The frequency and differential pleiotropy of phenotypic nonspecificity in Drosophila melanogaster.

The regulation of the initiation of transcription by transcription factors is often assumed to be dependent on specific recognition of DNA-binding sites and nonredundant. However, the redundant induction or rescue of a phenotype by transcription factors, phenotypic nonspecificity, challenges these assumptions. To assess the frequency of phenotypic nonspecificity in the rescue of transcription factor phenotypes, seven transcription factor phenotypes (labial, Deformed, Sex combs reduced, Ultrabithorax, fruitless, doublesex, and apterous) were screened for rescue by the expression of 12, or more, nonresident transcription factors.

Post-translational modifications of Drosophila melanogaster HOX protein, Sex combs reduced.

Homeotic selector (HOX) transcription factors (TFs) regulate gene expression that determines the identity of Drosophila segments along the anterior-posterior (A-P) axis. The current challenge with HOX proteins is understanding how they achieve their functional specificity while sharing a highly conserved homeodomain (HD) that recognize the same DNA binding sites. One mechanism proposed to regulate HOX activity is differential post-translational modification (PTM).

Phenotypic Nonspecificity as the Result of Limited Specificity of Transcription Factor Function.

Drosophila transcription factor (TF) function is phenotypically nonspecific. Phenotypic nonspecificity is defined as one phenotype being induced or rescued by multiple TFs. To explain this unexpected result, a hypothetical world of limited specificity is explored where all TFs have unique random distributions along the genome due to low information content of DNA sequence recognition and somewhat promiscuous cooperative interactions with other TFs.

Analysis of the Drosophila melanogaster anti-ovarian response to honey bee queen mandibular pheromone.

Queen mandibular pheromone (QMP) is a potent reproductive signal to which honey bee workers respond by suppressing their ovaries and adopting alloparental roles within the colony. This anti-ovarian effect of QMP on workers can, surprisingly, be induced in other insects, including fruit flies, in which females exposed to synthetic QMP develop smaller ovaries with fewer eggs. In this study, we use the Drosophila melanogaster model to identify the components of synthetic QMP required for the anti-ovarian effect.

CRISPR-induced null alleles show that protects reproduction after cold exposure.

The ability to survive and reproduce after cold exposure is important in all kingdoms of life. However, even in a sophisticated genetic model system like , few genes have been identified as functioning in cold tolerance. The accumulation of the () gene transcript increases after cold exposure, making it a good candidate for a gene that has a role in cold tolerance.