title: Molecular analysis of cis-regulatory sequences at the alpha-amylase locus in Drosophila melanogaster.
abstract: The Amylase locus in Drosophila melanogaster contains duplicate, divergently transcribed structural genes for alpha-amylase, AmyA and AmyB. A sensitive and reliable transient expression assay was developed for testing amylase activities produced by exogenous Amy genes in somatically transformed larvae of an amylase-null strain of flies. Alleles tested, AmyA and AmyB, came from recombinant clone lambda Dm65, which contains genomic DNA from a Canton-S strain. The transient assay was used in a deletion analysis aimed at locating cis-regulatory sequences within the 5' region of AmyB. Results suggest that upstream regulatory sequences for correct spatial expression of AmyA and AmyB in third-instar larvae are located within 446 and 430 bp of their respective starts for transcription. A sequence required for high levels of AmyB expression was located within its 5' upstream region between the base pairs at -332 and -219. AmyA does not appear to have a comparable regulatory element in its 5'-flanking sequence. Barely detectable expression of AmyB was observed when it was flanked by only 92 bp of upstream sequence. A model is proposed for incomplete coordinate control of the duplicate Amy genes.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, Arizona State University, Tempe 85287-1501.
authors.forename: S A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Hawley
authors.forename: W W
authors.initials: WW
authors.lastname: Doane
authors.forename: R A
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Norman
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002872:Chromosome Deletion; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000201:enzymology* / Q000235:genetics; D015971:Gene Expression Regulation, Enzymologic; D005796:Genes; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D010957:Plasmids; D012045:Regulatory Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D015183:Restriction Mapping; D013379:Substrate Specificity; D000516:alpha-Amylases / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D000516:alpha-Amylases