Drosophila Lab 3 + Lab 4 Flashcards
Why Drosophila?
They are small in size and easily handled.
They have short generation time (around 2 week).
It is easy to breed and cheap to maintain them in lab.
They have large number of offsprings.
Their entire genome is sequenced and relatively small.
Embryos grows outside the body and every stage can be studied easily.
What is the life cycle of Drosophila?
Day 0: Females lay eggs, and embryonic development begins immediately after fertilization.
Day 1: Eggs hatch
Day 2: First instar
Day 3: Second instar
Day 4: Third and final instar
Day 7: Larvae enter the roaming stage and pupariation occurs.
Day 11: Eclosion occurs and adult flies emerge from the pupa case.
Other than the formation of sex cells, no further development occurs in the adult stage.
How do we identify the sexes?
SIZE
Females are bigger than males.
SEX COMBS
They are present in males but not in females.
TIP OF THE ABDOMEN
It is more rounded in males than in females.
ABDOMEN COLOR
It is quite darker in males and lighter in females.
How to identify virgins?
Meconium is contained in the gut.
It is seen as dark green or black area.
It consists of undigested materials (embryonic fluids, remains of larval food etc.).
They become sexually mature 8–10 hours after eclosion.
Why do we collect the virgins?
Female Drosophila store sperm after mating and they can fertilize multiple batches of eggs over time.If females have already mated, it becomes impossible to determine whether the offspring result from the intended cross or from earlier, unintended fertilization by another male.
What are some of the important gene classes in Drosophila?
Maternal Effect Genes: Set up the initial body axes (e.g., bicoid, nanos, Toll).
Gap Genes: Divide the embryo into broad regions (e.g., hunchback, krüppel, giant).
Pair-Rule Genes: Establish alternating segments (e.g., even-skipped, fushi tarazu).
Segment Polarity Genes: Refine segmentation and polarity (e.g., engrailed, wingless).
Homeotic Genes: Specify the identity of segments (e.g., Antennapedia, Bithorax).
What are the maternal effect genes?
Maternal effect genes called bicoid (bcd), dorsal (dl), and oskar (osk) provide a gradient of transcription factors that collectively activate gap genes. They establish initial body axes, such as anterior-posterior gradients (e.g., bicoid, nanos)
What are the gap genes
Gap Genes refine the broad regions into more specific areas of the embryo.
Krüppel (kr)
Giant (gt)
Hunchback (hb)
Knirps (kni)
What are the pair-rule genes?
Pair-rule Genes create alternating patterns for the development of parasegments.
Even-skipped (eve)
Fushi tarazu (ftz)
Hairy (h)
Odd-paired (opa)
Runt (run)
Twist (twi)
What are the differences between pair-rule genes and gap genes?
Gap genes define broad regions along the anterior-posterior axis.
Mutations in gap genes result in the loss of large contiguous segments, creating gaps in the body plan.
Pair-rule genes divide the embryo into alternating segments.
Mutations in pair-rule genes lead to the loss of specific alternating segments, resulting in a striped pattern of missing segments.
What are the dark staining in the in situ images of the wild type?
Bicoid mRNA
What is the duration of Drosophila’s life cycle?
A: Approximately 11 days from egg to adult emergence
How do mutations in gap genes affect Drosophila development?
They result in the loss of large contiguous segments, creating gaps in the body plan
Provide examples of pair-rule and gap genes.
Pair-rule: even-skipped (eve), fushi tarazu (ftz). Gap: krüppel (kr), hunchback (hb)
What is observed in in situ hybridization of wild-type Drosophila embryos?
Localization of bicoid mRNA at the anterior end
How can phenotypic differences be studied in Drosophila mutants?
By observing cuticle slides under a light microscope to identify segmental or structural differences
What are the main stages of the Drosophila life cycle?
Egg, larva (3 instars), pupa, and adult
What happens during the larval roaming stage?
Larvae prepare for pupariation by wandering and stopping eating