Antibodies to the period gene product of Drosophila reveal diverse tissue distribution and rhythmic changes in the visual system.
Polyclonal antibodies were prepared against the period gene product, which influences biological rhythms in D. melanogaster, by using small synthetic peptides from the per sequence as immunogens. The peptide that elicited the best antibody reagent was a small domain near the site of the pers (short period) mutation. Specific immunohistochemical staining was detected in a variety of tissue types: the embryonic CNS; a few cell bodies in the central brain of pupae; these and other cells in the central brain of adults, as well as imaginal cells in the eyes, optic lobes, and the gut. The intensity of per-specific staining in the visual system was found to oscillate, defining a free-running circadian rhythm with a peak in the middle of the night.
Siwicki
K K
KK
Department of Biology, Brandeis University, Waltham, Massachusetts 02254.
Eastman
C
C
Petersen
G
G
Rosbash
M
M
Hall
J C
JC
D000818:Animals; D002940:Circadian Rhythm; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development / Q000502:physiology; D005786:Gene Expression Regulation; D005796:Genes; D007106:Immune Sera; D009420:Nervous System / Q000378:metabolism*; D009424:Nervous System Physiological Phenomena; D014795:Visual Pathways / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology
D007106:Immune Sera