Summary
Five new mutants were isolated on the X-chromosome which prevent or substantially delay puparium formation and subsequent metamorphosis without affecting larval development. The mutant phenotype probably involves stage-specific gene functions unimportant for the larval development but vital for puparium formation and for the beginning of metamorphosis. Two mutants gave larval-puparial gynanders (LPG) and could not be induced to pupariate by the implanted wild type ring gland. The block in these is possibly in some ecdysone-inducible autonomous functions of the larval hypoderm. The other 3 mutants did not form LPG while the implanted wild type ring gland induced pupariation. These mutants presumably have a low, subthreshold amount of ecdysone which is not able to induce pupariation.
Article PDF
Similar content being viewed by others
Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.
References
Andersen, S.O.: Evidence of two mechanisms of sclerotization in insect cuticle. Nature (Lond) 251, 507–508 (1974)
Ashburner, M., Richards, G.: The role of ecdysone in the control of gene activity in the polytene chromosome of Drosophila. In: Insect development (R.E.S. Symposium 8) (P.A. Lawrence, ed.) Oxford-London-Edinburgh-Melbourne: Blackwell Scientific Publications 1976
Borst, D.W., Bollenbacher, W.E., O'Connor, J.D., King, D.S., Fristrom, J.W.: Ecdysone levels during metamorphosis of Drosophila melanogaster. Develop. Biol. 39, 308–316 (1974)
Bräuer, R., Gersch, M., Baumann, E.: Specific action of activation factor I on RNA synthesis in prothoracic glands in insects. J. Insect Physiol. 22, 147–151 (1976)
Brown, S.W., Hannah, a.: An induced maternal effect on the stability of the ring-X chromosome of Drosophila melanogaster. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 38, 687–693 (1952)
Bryant, P.J., Sang, J.H.: Drosophila: Lethal derangements of metamorphosis and modifications of gene expression caused by juvenile hormone mimics. Nature 220, 393–394 (1968)
Ephrussi, B., Beadle, G.W.: A technique of transplantation for Drosophila. Amer. Natur. 70, 218–225 (1936)
Garen, A., Kauvar, L., Lepesant, J.-A.: Roles of ecdysone in Drosophila development. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 74, 5099–5103 (1977)
Hadorn, E.: An accelerating effect of normal “ring glands” on puparium formation in lethal larvae of Drosophila melanogaster. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 23, 478–484 (1937)
Hodgetts, R.B., Sage, B., O'Connor, J.D. Ecdysone titers during post-embryonic development of Drosophila melanogaster. Develop. Biol., in press (1978)
Holden, J., Gausz, J., Maróy, P., Ashburner, M.: In preparation (1978)
Karlson, P., Sekeris, C.E.: Ecdysone, an insect steroid hormone and its mode of action. Recent Progr. Hormone Res. 22, 473–502 (1966)
Kiss, I.: A “split” vial specially used for collecting larval-prepupal gynander mosaics. Drosophila Inf. Service, 52, in press (1978)
Kiss, I., Bencze, G., Fekete, É., Fodor, A., Gausz, J., Maróy, P., Szabad, J., Szidonya, J.: Isolation and charaterization of X-linked lethal mutants affecting differentiation of the imaginal discs in Drosophila melanogaster. Theoret. appl. Genet. 48, 217–226 (1976a)
Kiss, I., Bencze, G., Fodor, A., Szabad, J., Fristrom, J.W.: Prepupal-larval mosaics in Drosophila melanogaster. Nature (Lond.) 262, 136–138 (1976b)
Kiss, I., Fekete, É., Koczka, K., Hules, H.: In preparation (1978)
Kiss, I., Molnár, I.: In preparation (1978)
Lifschytz, E., Falk, R.: The action of the gene prune (pn) in Drosophila melanogaster. Genet. Res. 14, 53–61 (1969)
Lindsley, D.L., Grell, E.H.: Genetic variations of Drosophila melanogaster. Carnegie Institution of Drosophila melanogaster. Carnegie Institution of Washington, Publ. No 627 (1968)
Michell, H.K., Weber-Tracy, U.M., Schaar, G.: Aspects of cuticle formation in Drosophila melanogaster. J. exp. Zool. 176, 429–444 (1971)
Ohtaki, T., Milkman, R.D., Williams, C.M.: Dynamics of ecdysone secretion and action in the flesh fly, Sarcophaga peregrina. Biol. Bull. 135, 322–334 (1968)
Postlethwait, J.H.: Juvenile hormone and the adult development of Drosophila. Biol. Bull. 147, 119–135 (1974)
Rayle, R.E.: A new mutant in Drosophila melanogaster causing an ecdysone-curable interruption of the prepual molt. Genetics 56, 583 (1967)
Reggie, M.L. De, Hirn, M.H., Delaage, M.A.: Radioimmunoassay of ecdysone. An application to Drosophila larvae and pupae. Biochem. biophys. Res. Commun. 66, 1307–1315 (1975)
Robb, J.A.: Maintenance of imaginal dises of Drosophila melanogaster in chemically defined media. J. Cell Biol. 41, 876–885 (1969)
Russell, B.G., Price, G.M.: Metabolism of β-ecdysone during the larval and white puparial stage of the blowfly, Calliphora erythrocephala. Insect Biochem. 7, 197–202 (1977)
Russell, E.S.: A comparison of benign and “malignant” tumours in Drosophila melanogaster. J. exp. Zool. 84, 363–386 (1940)
Shearn, A., Garen, A.: Genetic control of imaginal dise development in Drosophila. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 71, 1393–1397 (1974)
Shearn, A., Rice, T., Garen, A., Gehring, W.: Imaginal disc abnormalities in lethal mutants of Drosophila. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 68, 2594–2598 (1971)
Stern, C., Tokunaga, C.: Autonomous pleiotropy in Drosophila. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 60, 1252–1259 (1968)
Stewart, M., Murphy, C., Fristrom, J.W.: The recovery and preliminary characterization of X-chromosome mutants affecting imaginal dises of Drosophila melanogaster. Develop. Biol. 27, 71–83 (1972)
Szabad, J., Schüpbach, T., Wieschaus, E.: Gynandromorph analysis of the larval hypoderm in Drosophila. In preparation (1978)
Willig, A., Rees, H.H., Goodwin, T.W.: Biosynthesis of insect moulting hormones in isolated ring glands and whole larvae of Calliphora. J. Insect Physiol. 17, 2317–2326 (1971)
Young, N.L.: The metabolism of 3H-molting hormone in Calliphora erythrocephala at the mature larval and white puparial stages. Insect Biochem 6, 1–12 (1976)
Zdarek, J., Fraenkel, G.: Correlated effects of ecdysone and neurosecretion in puparium formation (pupariation) of flies. Proc. nat. Acad. Sci. (Wash.) 64, 565–572 (1969)
Zdarek, J., Fraenkel, G.: The mechanism of puparium formation in flies. J. exp. Zool. 179, 315–324 (1972)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Communicated by O. Siddiqi
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Kiss, I., Szabad, J. & Major, J. Genetic and developmental analysis of puparium formation in Drosophila . Molec. Gen. Genet. 164, 77–83 (1978). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00267601
Received:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00267601