Mutations induced in Drosophila during space flight

To examine the possible effects of space radiation on living organisms, fruit flies Drosophila melanogaster were loaded on the US Space Shuttle Endeavour, and after the flight we have analyzed two types of mutations, sex-linked recessive lethal mutations induced in male reproductive cells and somati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Biological Sciences in Space 1997, Vol.11(4), pp.346-350
Main Authors: Ikenaga, Mituo, Yoshikawa, Isao, Kojo, Moto, Ayaki, Toshikazu, Ryo, Haruko, Ishizaki, Kanji, Kato, Tomohisa, Yamamoto, Hanako, Hara, Ryujiro
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Chromosome Aberrations
Chromosome Disorders
Cosmic Radiation
Drosophila melanogaster - genetics
Drosophila melanogaster - growth & development
Drosophila melanogaster - radiation effects
Female
Genes, Insect
Genes, Lethal
Genes, Recessive
Male
Mutation
Sex Chromosome Aberrations
Space Flight
Space life sciences
Weightlessness
Wings, Animal - growth & development
Wings, Animal - physiology
Wings, Animal - radiation effects
X Chromosome - radiation effects
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Summary:To examine the possible effects of space radiation on living organisms, fruit flies Drosophila melanogaster were loaded on the US Space Shuttle Endeavour, and after the flight we have analyzed two types of mutations, sex-linked recessive lethal mutations induced in male reproductive cells and somatic mutations which give rise to morphological changes in hairs growing on the surface of wing epidermal cells. Wild type strains and a radiation-sensitive strain mei-41 were used. The frequencies of sex-linked recessive lethal mutations in flight groups were 2 and 3 times higher for wild type Canton-S and mei-41 strains, respectively, than those in ground control groups. By contrast, the frequencies of wing-hair somatic mutations differed little between flight and control groups. The possibility that the space environment causes mutations in certain types of cells such as male reproductive cells, is discussed.
ISSN:0914-9201
1349-967X
DOI:10.2187/bss.11.346