Interspecific comparison of the period gene of Drosophila reveals large blocks of non-conserved coding DNA.
We have cloned and sequenced the coding region of the period (per) gene from Drosophila pseudoobscura and D. virilis. A comparison with that of D. melanogaster reveals that the conceptual translation products consist of interspersed blocks of conserved and non-conserved amino acid sequence. The non-conserved portion, comprising approximately 33% of the protein sequence, includes the perfect Thr-Gly repeat of D. melanogaster, which is absent from the D. pseudoobscura and D. virilis proteins. Based on these observations and cross-species transformation experiments, we suggest that the interspecific variability in the per primary amino acid sequence contributes to the control of species-specific behaviors.
Colot
H V
HV
Department of Biology, Brandels University, Waltham, MA 02254.
Hall
J C
JC
Rosbash
M
M
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D005075:Biological Evolution; D015139:Blotting, Southern; D003001:Cloning, Molecular; D004330:Drosophila / Q000235:genetics*; D005796:Genes; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000235:genetics; D012689:Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; D013045:Species Specificity
D012333:RNA, Messenger