A mutant dec-1 transgene induces dominant female sterility in Drosophila melanogaster.
The Drosophila dec-1 gene produces three proproteins required for female fertility and eggshell assembly. The three proproteins are distinguished by their C termini. Fc106, the most abundant proprotein, is cleaved within the vitelline membrane to three mature derivatives in a developmentally regulated manner. To define sequences within fc106 that are critical for its function, we created wild-type and mutant versions of an fc106 cDNA transgene. The functional consequences of the mutations were assessed in dec-14, a female-sterile splicing mutant that does not produce the fc106 isoform. The fertility of dec-14 females was restored by the introduction of either a wild-type transgene or a transgene bearing a C-terminal deletion that included fc106-specific sequences. Surprisingly, the removal of internal coding sequences created an aberrant DEC-1 proprotein that induced female sterility when introduced into wild-type flies. Dominant female sterility was not associated with larger deletions that included the fc106 N terminus, suggesting that abnormal juxtaposition of N- and C-terminal sequences in the aberrant proprotein interfered with endogenous DEC-1 proteins. Changes in the fractionation behavior of the endogenous fc106 C-terminal derivative, s60, and morphological changes in the endochorion in response to expression of the aberrant proprotein support this interpretation.
Spangenberg
Daniel K
DK
Department of Biological Sciences, Marquette University, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53233, USA.
Waring
Gail L
GL
D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D000818:Animals; D030801:Animals, Genetically Modified; D001483:Base Sequence; D017931:DNA Primers / Q000235:genetics; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D004527:Egg Proteins / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D005260:Female; D005799:Genes, Dominant; D017344:Genes, Insect; D007247:Infertility, Female / Q000235:genetics; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009154:Mutation; D010063:Ovum / Q000378:metabolism; D011994:Recombinant Proteins / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism; D017384:Sequence Deletion
D017931:DNA Primers; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D004527:Egg Proteins; D011994:Recombinant Proteins; C066329:dec-1 protein, Drosophila