Genome-Wide Association Study of Circadian Behavior in Drosophila melanogaster.

Circadian rhythms influence physiological processes from sleep-wake cycles to body temperature and are controlled by highly conserved cycling molecules. Although the mechanistic basis of the circadian clock has been known for decades, the extent to which circadian rhythms vary in nature and the underlying genetic basis for that variation is not well understood. We measured circadian period (Ʈ) and rhythmicity index in the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel (DGRP) and observed extensive genetic variation in both.

A Centered Genetic Network Contributes to Alcohol-Induced Variation in Drosophila Development.

Prenatal exposure to ethanol causes a wide range of adverse physiological, behavioral and cognitive consequences. However, identifying allelic variants and genetic networks associated with variation in susceptibility to prenatal alcohol exposure is challenging in human populations, since time and frequency of exposure and effective dose cannot be determined quantitatively and phenotypic manifestations are diverse. Here, we harnessed the power of natural variation in the Genetic Reference Panel (DGRP) to identify genes and genetic networks associated with variation in sensitivity to developmental alcohol exposure.

Heritable variation in courtship patterns in Drosophila melanogaster.

Little is known about the genetic basis of naturally occurring variation for sexually selected behavioral traits. Drosophila melanogaster, with its rich repertoire of courtship behavior and genomic and genetic resources, is an excellent model organism for addressing this question. We assayed a genetically diverse panel of lines with full genome sequences, the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel, to assess the heritability of variation in courtship behavior and mating progression.

Genome-wide association study of sleep in Drosophila melanogaster.

Background: Sleep is a highly conserved behavior, yet its duration and pattern vary extensively among species and between individuals within species. The genetic basis of natural variation in sleep remains unknown.

Results: We used the Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel (DGRP) to perform a genome-wide association (GWA) study of sleep in D.