NDLI: Evolution of the Sex-lethal Gene in Insects and Origin of the Sex-Determination System in Drosophila

Content Provider	Springer Nature Link
Author	Zhang, Zhenguo Klein, Jan Nei, Masatoshi
Copyright Year	2013
Abstract	Sex-lethal (Sxl) functions as the switch gene for sex-determination in Drosophila melanogaster by engaging a regulatory cascade. Thus far the origin and evolution of both the regulatory system and SXL protein’s sex-determination function have remained largely unknown. In this study, we explore systematically the Sxl homologs in a wide range of insects, including the 12 sequenced Drosophila species, medfly, blowflies, housefly, Megaselia scalaris, mosquitoes, butterfly, beetle, honeybee, ant, and aphid. We find that both the male-specific and embryo-specific exons exist in all Drosophila species. The homologous male-specific exon is also present in Scaptodrosophila lebanonensis, but it does not have in-frame stop codons, suggesting the exon’s functional divergence between Drosophila and Scaptodrosophila after acquiring it in their common ancestor. Two motifs closely related to the exons’ functions, the SXL binding site poly(U) and the transcription-activating motif TAGteam, surprisingly exhibit broader phylogenetic distributions than the exons. Some previously unknown motifs that are restricted to or more abundant in Drosophila and S. lebanonensis than in other insects are also identified. Finally, phylogenetic analysis suggests that the SXL’s novel sex-determination function in Drosophila is more likely attributed to the changes in the N- and C-termini rather than in the RNA-binding region. Thus, our results provide a clearer picture of the phylogeny of the Sxl’s cis-regulatory elements and protein sequence changes, and so lead to a better understanding of the origin of sex-determination in Drosophila and also raise some new questions regarding the evolution of Sxl.
Starting Page	50
Ending Page	65
Page Count	16
File Format	PDF
ISSN	00222844
Journal	Journal of Molecular Evolution
Volume Number	78
Issue Number	1
e-ISSN	14321432
Language	English
Publisher	Springer US
Publisher Date	2013-11-24
Publisher Place	New York
Access Restriction	One Nation One Subscription (ONOS)
Subject Keyword	Sex-lethal Sex-determination Drosophila Regulatory elements Evolutionary Biology Microbiology Plant Sciences Plant Genetics & Genomics Animal Genetics and Genomics Cell Biology
Content Type	Text
Resource Type	Article
Subject	Genetics Molecular Biology Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics

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