Open AccessEvolution of gene position: chromosomal arrangement and sequence comparison of the Drosophila melanogaster and Drosophila virilis sina and Rh4 genes.
Author(s) -
Thomas P. Neufeld,
Richard W. Carthew,
Gerald M. Rubin
Publication year - 1991
Publication title -
proceedings of the national academy of sciences of the united states of america
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 5.011
H-Index - 771
eISSN - 1091-6490
pISSN - 0027-8424
DOI - 10.1073/pnas.88.22.10203
Subject(s) - drosophila virilis , biology , gene , genetics , drosophila melanogaster , intron , melanogaster
The seven in absentia (sina) gene of Drosophila encodes a nuclear protein required for normal eye development. In Drosophila melanogaster, the sina gene is located within an intron of the Rh4 opsin gene. We examine here the nucleotide sequences and chromosomal arrangements of these genes in Drosophila virilis. An interspecies comparison between D. melanogaster and D. virilis reveals that the protein-coding sequences of the sina and Rh4 genes are highly conserved, but the relative chromosomal position and structural arrangement of these genes differ between the two species. In particular, the sina and Rh4 genes are widely separated in D. virilis, and there is no intron in the Rh4 gene. Our results suggest that the Rh4 gene was translocated to another chromosomal location by a retrotransposition event.