Open AccessORGANIZATION OF THE ROSY LOCUS IN DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER: EVIDENCE FOR A CONTROL ELEMENT ADJACENT TO THE XANTHINE DEHYDROGENASE STRUCTURAL ELEMENT
Author(s) -
Arthur Chovnick,
William M. Gelbart,
Margaret McCarron,
Barbara C. Osmond
Publication year - 1976
Publication title -
genetics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.792
H-Index - 246
eISSN - 1943-2631
pISSN - 0016-6731
DOI - 10.1093/genetics/84.2.233
Subject(s) - xanthine dehydrogenase , biology , genetics , drosophila melanogaster , locus (genetics) , structural gene , phenotype , allele , regulator , gene duplication , gene , biochemistry , enzyme , mutant , xanthine oxidase
From a collection of electrophoretic variants of XDH obtained from laboratory strains and natural populations, a stock was isolated that was associated with much greater than normal levels of XDH activity. Preliminary recombination experiments demonstrated that this character maps to the rosy locus. While a series of observations failed to relate this phenotype to alteration in the structure of the XDH polypeptide, kinetic and immunological experiments did succeed in associating this character with variation in number of molecules of XDH/fly. Large scale fine structure recombination experiments locate the genetic basis for this variation in number of molecules of XDH/fly to a site very close to, but definitely outside of, the genetic boundaries of the XDH structural information. Observations are described which eliminate the possibility that we are dealing with a tandem duplication of the XDH structural element. Turning to a regulatory role for this genetic element located adjacent to the XDH structural information, a simple experiment is described which demonstrates that it functions as a "cis-acting" regulator of the XDH structural element.