Genetic architecture of natural variation in cuticular hydrocarbon composition in Drosophila melanogaster

Dembeck, Lauren M.; Böröczky, Katalin; Huang, Wen; Schal, Coby; Anholt, Robert R. H.; Mackay, Trudy F. C.

doi:10.7554/elife.09861

Cited by 135 publications

(181 citation statements)

References 62 publications

(85 reference statements)

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“…Thus, individuals of different species have characteristic HCs profiles, even in eggs and immature stages. This feature extends the range of resources to streamline forensic investigations . However, it should be noted that HCs might vary according to genetic, but also environmental factors .…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Hydrocarbon and Fatty Acid Composition from Blowfly Eggs Represents a Potential Complementary Taxonomic Tool of Forensic Importance,

Lunas

Paula

Michelutti

et al. 2019

Journal of Forensic Sciences

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One of the most important contributions of forensic entomology is to assist criminal expertise to determine the postmortem interval, which depends on the duration of the immature stages of insects of forensic interest. On the other hand, the time of development of the different stages varies according to the species; therefore, its identification is essential. Currently, few studies have investigated the use of cuticular hydrocarbons, and none regarding fatty acids, as complementary taxonomic tools to expedite species identification. Therefore, we evaluated whether cuticular hydrocarbons together with fatty acids of eggs of flies of the family Calliphoridae, main group of forensic interest, can be used to distinguish species. The analyses were performed by chromatographic techniques. The results show that there are significant differences between the composition of cuticular hydrocarbons and fatty acids between species and, therefore, they can be used to provide a complementary taxonomic tool to expedite the forensic expertise.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 91%

Hydrocarbon and Fatty Acid Composition from Blowfly Eggs Represents a Potential Complementary Taxonomic Tool of Forensic Importance,

Lunas

Paula

Michelutti

et al. 2019

Journal of Forensic Sciences

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“…; Dembeck et al. ,b). Quantitative changes in the phenotype in question would suggest that the affected gene contributes to trait expression.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The genetics of egg retention and fertilization success inDrosophila: One step closer to understanding the transition from facultative to obligate viviparity

Hórvath

Kalinka

2018

Evolution

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Oviparous, facultative egg retention enables Drosophila females to withhold fertilized eggs in their reproductive tracts until circumstances favor oviposition. The propensity to retain fertilized eggs varies greatly between species, and is correlated with other reproductive traits, such as egg size and ovariole number. While previous studies have described the phenomenon, no study to date has characterized within-species variation or the genetic basis of the trait. Here, we develop a novel microscope-based method for measuring egg retention in Drosophila females and determine the range of phenotypic variation in mated female egg retention in a subset of 91 Drosophila Genetic Reference Panel (DGRP) lines. We inferred the genetic basis of egg retention using a genome-wide association study (GWAS). Further, the scoring of more than 95,000 stained, staged eggs enabled estimates of fertilization success for each line. We found evidence that ovary- and spermathecae-related genes as well as genes affecting olfactory behavior, male mating behavior, male-female attraction and sperm motility may play a crucial role in post-mating physiology. Based on our findings we also propose potential evolutionary routes toward obligate viviparity. In particular, we propose that the loss of fecundity incurred by viviparity could be offset by benefits arising from enhanced mate discrimination, resource specialization, or modified egg morphology.

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“…Differences in the hydrocarbon profiles between sibling species or geographical populations of Drosophila are also associated with key biosynthetic enzyme genes (Fang et al ., ; Dembeck et al ., ). The components of the female sex pheromones in S. litura from the different geographical populations studied here were varied.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Key genes of the sex pheromone biosynthesis pathway in female moths are required for pheromone quality and possibly mediate olfactory plasticity in conspecific male moths in Spodoptera litura

Lin

Wang

2017

Insect Molecular Biology

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Ninety sex pheromone biosynthesis genes in Spodoptera litura were identified in transcriptome data and were investigated and classified into the following five groups: fatty acid synthase, beta oxidase, fatty acyl-coenzyme A (CoA) reductase, desaturase and acetyl-CoA acetyltransferase. Fourteen femalespecific genes were identified through semiquantitative PCR, and 15 additional genes had expression levels that were 3-to 10-fold higher in females than in males. The majority of the genes had higher expression levels in the sex pheromone glands. Injection of double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) against nine selected genes showed that downregulation of Desaturase 3 (Des3), Des5 or fatty acyl coenzyme A reductase 17 (FAR17) significantly changed the ratio of the four sex pheromone components (Z,E) -9,11-tetradecadienyl acetate (Z9E11-14:Ac), (Z,E)-9,12-Tetradecadienyl acetate(Z9E12-14:Ac), (Z)-9-tetradecenyl acetate (Z9-14:Ac), (E)-11-Tetradecenyl acetate(E11-14:Ac). These key genes were differentially expressed in female moths collected from different geographical regions. Furthermore, field bioassays demonstrated geographical variation in the olfactory profile of male moths in response to the different sex pheromone mixtures, which therefore indicates that a significant variation in the sex pheromone components exists in the natural population. Our results suggest that a change in the expression of these key genes, Des3, Des5 and FAR17, in the sex pheromone biosynthesis pathway could change the ratio of the sex pheromone components. We surmise that the differential expression levels of the key genes of the sex pheromone biosynthesis pathway may lead to differential ratios of the sex pheromones in the field. Our field trapping experiment suggested that the change of the ratio of the sex pheromone components may have been adapted by the olfactory system and possibly mediate olfactory plasticity in conspecific male moths.

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Genetic architecture of natural variation in cuticular hydrocarbon composition in Drosophila melanogaster

Cited by 135 publications

References 62 publications

Hydrocarbon and Fatty Acid Composition from Blowfly Eggs Represents a Potential Complementary Taxonomic Tool of Forensic Importance,

Hydrocarbon and Fatty Acid Composition from Blowfly Eggs Represents a Potential Complementary Taxonomic Tool of Forensic Importance,

The genetics of egg retention and fertilization success inDrosophila: One step closer to understanding the transition from facultative to obligate viviparity

Key genes of the sex pheromone biosynthesis pathway in female moths are required for pheromone quality and possibly mediate olfactory plasticity in conspecific male moths in Spodoptera litura

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