Genetic and molecular analyses of Drosophila contractile protein genes

✍ Scribed by Eric A. Fyrberg

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1985
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 583 KB
• Volume: 2
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0265-9247
• DOI: 10.1002/bies.950020604

✦ Synopsis

To further comprehend how synthesis and assembly of myofibrillar components is regulated, several laboratories have undertaken genetic studies of muscle development in

Drosophila melanogaster. This small fly lends itself well to classical and molecular genetic ap-

proaches, and possesses a set of muscle jibers, termed indirect flight muscles (IFM), which is particularly advantageous for such investigations. Structural and functional analyses of cloned Drosophila contractile protein genes have revealed 'that protein isoforms can be specEfied either by multigene families or by dixerentially splicing primary transcripts of a single gene. Characterization of mutations which disrupt flight muscle development has so far revealed that profound abnormalities are caused by defective alleles of actin, tropomyosin, and myosin heavy-chain genes. Muscle defects associated with particular alleles can be alleviated by integration of corresponding wild-type gene copies into germ-line chromosomes. Strategies for further applying genetic techniques to investigations of Drosophila muscle development are discussed.