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Genetic factors affecting normal growth of testes inDrosophila hydei

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Summary

A marked growth in the length of testes ofDrosophila hydei males occurred during pupal development. This growth continued over the first 8 days of adult life and in the young adults sperm were not produced until the testes increased approximately threefold in length to about 28 mm. The length of testes is correlated with genetic factors on the X and Y chromosomes. In males lacking a Y chromosome (X/O) or the short arm (YS) of the Y chromosome (X/YL) the testes were about half the length of testes of control males (X/Y) or double Y males (X/Y/Y). Males with deletions of the distal YL chromosome arm had testicular lengths equivalent to the controls. Males with short testes (X/O and X/YL) showed disruptions to spermatogenesis at meiosis and an absence of normal spermatid elongation. Reduction of active ribosomal RNA genes on the X chromosome in X/O caused an increased expression ofbobbed (bb) and a corresponding reduction in length of testes. Severelybobbed X/O males had very few cysts of spermatogonia and these cysts did not develop into primary spermatocytes.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Biological and Health Sciences, Deakin University, 3217, Victoria, Australia

    Peter John Hanna

  2. Institut für Genetik, Universität Düsseldorf, Universitätsstraße 1, D-4000, Düsseldorf, Federal Republic of Germany

    Karl Heinz Glätzer, Winfrid Liebrich & Oswald Hess

Authors
  1. Peter John Hanna
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  2. Karl Heinz Glätzer
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  3. Winfrid Liebrich
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  4. Oswald Hess
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Hanna, P.J., Glätzer, K.H., Liebrich, W. et al. Genetic factors affecting normal growth of testes inDrosophila hydei . Wilhelm Roux' Archiv 194, 131–139 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00848313

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00848313

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