title: 1.688 g/cm(3) satellite-related repeats: a missing link to dosage compensation and speciation.
abstract: Despite the important progress that has been made on dosage compensation (DC), a critical link in our understanding of the X chromosome recognition mechanisms is still missing. Recent studies in Drosophila indicate that the missing link could be a family of DNA repeats populating the euchromatin of the X chromosome. In this opinion article, I discuss how these findings add a new fresh twist on the DC problem. In the following sections, I first summarize our understanding of DC in Drosophila and integrate these recent discoveries into our knowledge of the X chromosome recognition problem. Next, I introduce a model according to which, 1.688 g/cm(3) satellite-related (SR) repeats would be the primary recognition elements for the dosage compensation complex. Contrary to the current belief, I suggest that the DC system in Drosophila is not conserved and static, but it is continuously co-evolving with the target SR repeats. The potential role of the SR repeats in hybrid incompatibilities and speciation is also discussed.
authors.affiliation: Center for Integrative Bioinformatics Vienna (CIBIV), Max F Perutz Laboratories, University of Vienna and Medical University of Vienna, Campus Vienna Biocenter 5, A-1030, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Gallach
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002843:Chromatin; D004276:DNA, Satellite / Q000235:genetics*; D004303:Dosage Compensation, Genetic; D004330:Drosophila / Q000235:genetics*; D019143:Evolution, Molecular; D005260:Female; D049810:Genetic Speciation; D008297:Male; D008957:Models, Genetic; D012091:Repetitive Sequences, Nucleic Acid; D014960:X Chromosome / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D002843:Chromatin; D004276:DNA, Satellite
keywords: DNA repeats; Drosophila; X chromosome; dosage compensation; speciation