This Article Full Text (PDF) Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Services Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Reprints and Permissions Copyright Information Books from ASM Press MicrobeWorld Citing Articles Citing Articles via HighWire Citing Articles via Google Scholar Google Scholar Articles by Chandler, D. Articles by Mattox, W. Search for Related Content PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Chandler, D. Articles by Mattox, W.

 Previous Article  |  Next Article 

Mol. Cell. Biol., 05 1997, 2908-2919, Vol 17, No. 5
Copyright © 1997, American Society for Microbiology

Evolutionary conservation of regulatory strategies for the sex determination factor transformer-2

D Chandler, ME McGuffin, J Piskur, J Yao, BS Baker and W Mattox
Department of Molecular Genetics, M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, University of Texas, Houston 77030, USA.

Sex determination in Drosophila melanogaster is regulated by a cascade of splicing factors which direct the sex-specific expression of gene products needed for male and female differentiation. The splicing factor TRA-2 affects sex-specific splicing of multiple pre-mRNAs involved in sexual differentiation. The tra-2 gene itself expresses a complex set of mRNAs generated through alternative processing that collectively encode three distinct protein isoforms. The expression of these isoforms differs in the soma and germ line. In the male germ line the ratio of two isoforms present is governed by autoregulation of splicing. However, the functional significance of multiple TRA-2 isoforms has remained uncertain. Here we have examined whether the structure, function, and regulation of tra-2 are conserved in Drosophila virilis, a species diverged from D. melanogaster by over 60 million years. We find that the D. virilis homolog of tra-2 produces alternatively spliced RNAs encoding a set of protein isoforms analogous to those found in D. melanogaster. When introduced into the genome of D. melanogaster, this homolog can functionally replace the endogenous tra-2 gene for both normal female sexual differentiation and spermatogenesis. Examination of alternative mRNAs produced in D. virilis testes suggests that germ line-specific autoregulation of tra-2 function is accomplished by a strategy similar to that used in D. melanogaster. The similarity in structure and function of the tra-2 genes in these divergent Drosophila species supports the idea that sexual differentiation in D. melanogaster and D. virilis is accomplished under the control of similar regulatory pathways.

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Qi, J., Su, S., Mattox, W. (2007). The doublesex Splicing Enhancer Components Tra2 and Rbp1 Also Repress Splicing through an Intronic Silencer. Mol. Cell. Biol. 27: 699-708 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Scali, C., Catteruccia, F., Li, Q., Crisanti, A. (2005). Identification of sex-specific transcripts of the Anopheles gambiae doublesex gene. J. Exp. Biol. 208: 3701-3709 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Chandler, D. S., McGuffin, M. E., Mattox, W. (2001). Functionally antagonistic sequences are required for normal autoregulation of Drosophila tra-2 pre-mRNA splicing. Nucleic Acids Res 29: 3012-3019 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Lou, H., Gagel, R. F. (2001). Alternative Ribonucleic Acid Processing in Endocrine Systems. Endocr. Rev. 22: 205-225 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• McAllister, B. F., McVean, G. A. T. (2000). Neutral Evolution of the Sex-Determining Gene transformer in Drosophila. Genetics 154: 1711-1720 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Schutt, C, Nothiger, R (2000). Structure, function and evolution of sex-determining systems in Dipteran insects. Development 127: 667-677 [Abstract]  
• Marín, I., Baker, B. S. (1998). The Evolutionary Dynamics of Sex Determination. Science 281: 1990-1994 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• McGuffin, M. E., Chandler, D., Somaiya, D., Dauwalder, B., Mattox, W. (1998). Autoregulation of transformer-2 Alternative Splicing Is Necessary for Normal Male Fertility in Drosophila. Genetics 149: 1477-1486 [Abstract] [Full Text]  
• Erickson, J., Cline, T. (1998). Key aspects of the primary sex determination mechanism are conserved across the genus Drosophila. Development 125: 3259-3268 [Abstract]