title: Drosophila nonsense suppressors: functional analysis in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, Drosophila tissue culture cells and Drosophila melanogaster.
abstract: Amber (UAG) and opal (UGA) nonsense suppressors were constructed by oligonucleotide site-directed mutagenesis of two Drosophila melanogaster leucine-tRNA genes and tested in yeast, Drosophila tissue culture cells and transformed flies. Suppression of a variety of amber and opal alleles occurs in yeast. In Drosophila tissue culture cells, the mutant tRNAs suppress hsp70:Adh (alcohol dehydrogenase) amber and opal alleles as well as an hsp70:beta-gal (beta-galactosidase) amber allele. The mutant tRNAs were also introduced into the Drosophila genome by P element-mediated transformation. No measurable suppression was seen in histochemical assays for Adhn4 (amber), AdhnB (opal), or an amber allele of beta-galactosidase. Low levels of suppression (approximately 0.1-0.5% of wild type) were detected using an hsp70:cat (chloramphenicol acetyltransferase) amber mutation. Dominant male sterility was consistently associated with the presence of the amber suppressors.
authors.affiliation: Department of Genetics, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, Missouri 63110-1095.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Garza
authors.forename: M M
authors.initials: MM
authors.lastname: Medhora
authors.forename: D L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Hartl
mesh_terms: D000426:Alcohol Dehydrogenase / Q000037:antagonists & inhibitors / Q000235:genetics; D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D015153:Blotting, Western; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D012356:RNA, Transfer, Leu / Q000235:genetics; D012098:Reproduction / Q000235:genetics; D012441:Saccharomyces cerevisiae / Q000235:genetics*; D013489:Suppression, Genetic; D014170:Transformation, Genetic
chemical_list: D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D012356:RNA, Transfer, Leu; D000426:Alcohol Dehydrogenase