Y Chromosomal Fertility Factors kl-2 and kl-3 of Drosophila melanogaster Encode Dynein Heavy Chain Polypeptides

The molecular identity and function of the Drosophila melanogaster Y-linked fertility factors have long eluded researchers. Although the D. melanogaster genome sequence was recently completed, the fertility factors still were not identified, in part because of low cloning efficiency of heterochromat...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 2000-11, Vol.97 (24), p.13239-13244
Main Authors: Carvalho, Antonio Bernardo, Lazzaro, Brian P., Clark, Andrew G.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal reproduction
Animals
Biological Sciences
Chromosome Mapping
Complementary DNA
Crosses, Genetic
Drosophila
Drosophila melanogaster
Drosophila melanogaster - genetics
Drosophila melanogaster - physiology
Dyneins - genetics
Evolution, Molecular
Evolutionary genetics
Exons
Female
Fertility
Gene Deletion
Genes
Genetic Linkage
Genetics
Genomes
Insects
Introns
kl-2 gene
kl-3 gene
Male
Peptides
Phylogeny
Polymerase Chain Reaction
Protein Subunits
PRY gene
Scaffolds
Sex chromosomes
Translocation, Genetic
X Chromosome
Y Chromosome
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Summary:The molecular identity and function of the Drosophila melanogaster Y-linked fertility factors have long eluded researchers. Although the D. melanogaster genome sequence was recently completed, the fertility factors still were not identified, in part because of low cloning efficiency of heterochromatic Y sequences. Here we report a method for iterative BLAST searching to assemble heterochromatic genes from shotgun assemblies, and we successfully identify kl-2 and kl-3 as 1β - and γ -dynein heavy chains, respectively. Our conclusions are supported by formal genetics with X-Y translocation lines. Reverse transcription-PCR was successful in linking together unmapped sequence fragments from the whole-genome shotgun assembly, although some sequences were missing altogether from the shotgun effort and had to be generated de novo. We also found a previously undescribed Y gene, polycystine-related (PRY). The closest paralogs of kl-2, kl-3, and PRY (and also of kl-5) are autosomal and not X-linked, suggesting that the evolution of the Drosophila Y chromosome has been driven by an accumulation of male-related genes arising de novo from the autosomes.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.230438397