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Defective transfer of seminal-fluid materials during matings of semi-fertile fruitless mutants in Drosophila

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Abstract

In context of the semi-sterility exhibited by Drosophila males expressing certain mating-enabling fruitless (fru) mutant genotypes, we examined the transfer of seminal fluid using a transgene that encodes the Sex Peptide (SP) oligopeptide fused to Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP). We found that this fusion construct expresses SP-GFP in a valid manner within accessory glands of the male reproductive system in normal and fru-mutant males. Transfer of SP-GFP to live females was readily detectable during and after copulation. With respect to the pertinent combinations of fru mutations, we demonstrated that these abnormal genotypes cause males to transmit mating-related materials in two aberrant ways: one involving whether any seminal-fluid entities are transferred at all during a given mating; the other revealing an intriguing aspect of these fruitless effects, such that the mutations in question cause males to transfer female-affecting materials in a manner that varies among copulations. In this regard, certain mutant males that do not transfer SP nevertheless are able to transfer sperm: a fru-mated female possessing no GFP who was not fecund initially could produce progeny when seminal-fluid proteins were subsequently supplied by mating with a male that was spermless owing to the effects of a tudor mutation.

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Abbreviations

ACP26a:

A male accessory-gland seminal-fluid protein (encoded by a gene within 26a region of second chromosome)

ACP70a:

Synonymous with Sex Peptide, an accessory-gland seminal-fluid protein (encoded by a gene within 70a region of third chromosome)

ANOVA:

Analysis of variance

CI:

Courtship Index, proportion of an observation period during which male-female courtship interactions occur

CyO :

An inverted, dominantly marked balancer for the second chromosome

IPTG:

Isopropyl-β-d-1-thio-galactoside, an inducer of E. coli’s lactose-operon regulatory sequence

fru :

The fruitless gene, involved in male courtship and mating, or (for non + superscripted versions of the fru symbol) mutations of this gene

gal4/GAL4:

galactose-4 yeast gene and its transcription-factor product

MKRS :

An inverted, dominantly marked balancer for the third chromosome

PBS:

Phosphate-buffered saline

PBS-GFP-S65T:

A molecular vector containing DNA encoding modified form of Green Fluorescent Protein

pBSSP:

Vector containing part of Sex Peptide coding-sequence DNA

pBSSP-GFP:

Vector containing full Sex Peptide coding sequence and that encoding Green Fluorescent Protein

pCaSpeR4:

Vector used to generate germ-line transformants of Drosophila

pQE31:

Bacterial-expression plasmid

pQESP:

Derivative of pQE31 containing part of Sex Peptide coding sequence

pQESP-GFP:

Vector containing part of Sex Peptide coding sequence and that encoding Green Fluorescent Protein

PCR:

Polymerase chain reaction

Pdf-gal4 :

Transgene with Pigment dispersing factor gene regulatory sequence fused to one encoding yeast GAL4

SP:

Sex Peptide

SP-GFP :

Transgene with Sex Peptide gene regulatory sequence fused to one encoding Green Fluorescent Protein

TM3 :

An inverted, dominantly marked balancer for the third chromosome

tud :

The tudor gene, involved in germ-cell development, or (with superscripted tud symbol) a mutation of this gene

UAS-gfp :

Transgene with Upstream Activating Sequences (DNA targets of yeast GAL4) fused to a sequence encoding Green Fluorescent Protein

WT:

Wild type

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported by US NIH grants GM-21473 and NS-33352 to J.C. Hall; as well as by grants 12202002 and 17017032 from the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology to T. Aigaki. We thank Eric Kubli for donating a Sex Peptide genomic-DNA fragment; Sarah Ferri for contributing to behavioral and immunohistochemical data collection; Edward Dougherty for assisting in image production; and Mariana Wolfner for discussions, supplying a tudor-mutant stock, plus comments on the manuscript.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Biology, MS-008, Brandeis University, Waltham, MA, 02454-9110, USA

    Adriana Villella & Jeffrey C. Hall

  2. Department of Biological Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Tokyo, 192-0397, Japan

    Jean-Baptiste Peyre & Toshiro Aigaki

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  1. Adriana Villella
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  2. Jean-Baptiste Peyre
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  3. Toshiro Aigaki
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  4. Jeffrey C. Hall
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Correspondence to Adriana Villella.

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Villella, A., Peyre, JB., Aigaki, T. et al. Defective transfer of seminal-fluid materials during matings of semi-fertile fruitless mutants in Drosophila . J Comp Physiol A 192, 1253–1269 (2006). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00359-006-0154-1

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