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Chemical and gamma‐ray mutagenesis of the white gene in Aedes aegypti
Author(s) -
Wendell M. D.,
Wilson T. G.,
Higgs S.,
Black W. C.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
insect molecular biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.955
H-Index - 93
eISSN - 1365-2583
pISSN - 0962-1075
DOI - 10.1046/j.1365-2583.2000.00166.x
Subject(s) - aedes aegypti , biology , white (mutation) , mutagenesis , gene , aedes , genetics , computational biology , mutation , botany , virology , dengue fever , larva
A molecular understanding of an insect gene can be facilitated by analysing the phenotypes of mutants for that gene. Protocols were developed for both chemical and gamma‐ray mutagenesis in Aedes aegypti using the white ( w ) gene as an assay. Wild‐type adult males were subjected to varying doses of either ethyl methanesulphonate (0.1%, 0.5% or 1%) or gamma rays (1500 R or 3000 R), mated to females homozygous for the recessive w mutation, and progeny screened for the w phenotype, indicating non‐complementation. The expression of newly induced w alleles was either complete or mosaic. Gamma‐ray mutagenesis resulted in high (1.65 or 6.39%, depending on dose) induction of mutant alleles for the w gene, but not for a different gene, red‐eye (0.15%). Gamma‐ray‐induced w alleles did not revert at a reasonable frequency following additional irradiation, suggesting that the high rate of gamma‐ray‐induced w mutagenesis is not due to a transposon insertion event.