title: Mutation rates in hybrids between sibling species of Drosophila.
abstract: It has recently been suggested that sterility or inviability in species hybrids might result from the movement of transposable elements. Because such movement is often detectable by an increased mutation rate, I studied the effect of interspecific hybridization in the Drosophila melanogaster group on the mutation rate of X-linked visibles. This rate did not differ between hybrids and intraspecific controls. This was also true for the germ-line excision rate of a transposable element, although the rate of somatic excision was two to sixfold higher in hybrids than in pure species. Combined with previous work, these results do not support a role for transposable elements in speciation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of Chicago, Illinois 60637.
authors.forename: J A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Coyne
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D004251:DNA Transposable Elements; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics*; D005260:Female; D005787:Gene Frequency; D008040:Genetic Linkage; D005854:Germ Cells; D006824:Hybridization, Genetic; D008297:Male; D009154:Mutation; D014960:X Chromosome
chemical_list: D004251:DNA Transposable Elements