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GENETIC AND MOLECULAR ANALYSES OF UV RADIATION‐INDUCED MUTATIONS IN THE FEM‐3 GENE OF CAENORHABDITIS ELEGANS
Author(s) -
Hartman Phil S.,
De Wilde Daniel,
Dwarakanath Vangipuram N.
Publication year - 1995
Publication title -
photochemistry and photobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.818
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1751-1097
pISSN - 0031-8655
DOI - 10.1111/j.1751-1097.1995.tb09876.x
Subject(s) - biology , genetics , caenorhabditis elegans , gene , mutant , mutagenesis , mutation , genetic analysis
The utility of a new target gene ( fem‐3 ) is described for investigating the molecular nature of mutagenesis in the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans. As a principal attribute, this system allows for the selection, maintenance and molecular analysis of any type of mutation that disrupts the gene, including deletions. In this study, 86 mutant strains were isolated, of which 79 proved to have mutations in fem‐3. Twenty of these originally tested as homozygous inviable. Homozygous inviability was expected, as Stewart and coworkers had previously observed that, unlike in other organisms, most UV radiation‐induced mutations in C. elegans are chromosomal rearrangements of deficiencies ( Mutat. Res. 249 , 37–54, 1991). However, additional data, including Southern blot analyses on 48 of the strains, indicated that most of the UV radiation‐induced fem‐3 mutations were not deficiencies, as originally inferred from their homozygous inviability. Instead, the lethals were most likely “coincident mutations” in linked, essential genes that were concomitantly induced. As such, they were lost owing to genetic recombination during stock maintenance. As in mammalian cells, yeast and bacteria, the frequency of coincident mutations was much higher than would be predicted by chance.