Name: Beatriz Brun Drawer/Group #: 37
PS ID #: 1396854 Three digit mutant code: 848
BIOL 3311 Spring 2015 Lab Section: 14704
Date: 02/23/2015 TA Instructor Name: Eric Pham
Writing Assignment 3: Review of a D. melanogaster gene
Characteristics of the Drop gene
Introduction The fly Drosophila melanogaster has been widely utilized in the field of genetics, since the first paper was published in 1910, for being a good organism to conduct research. In addition to being small and easy to handle and store, D. melanogaster is inexpensive to maintain, making possible to keep a great amount of flies in the laboratory. The life cycle and the diet are also uncomplicated. Depending on the temperature, it takes about 10 days to develop from …show more content…
The Dr gene has the MSX2 gene as an ortholog found in humans, which encodes the homeobox protein MSX-2. The protein plays an important role in craniofacial morphogenesis. A mutation in this gene is probably one of the reasons for craniosynostosis, which is a defect in babies head that prevents the brain to grow normally, resulting in a deformed head (Mozer, 2001). After several studies, Drop was proven an essential gene to neural development and cell differentiation. Mutations in this gene absolutely develop a severe phenotype, as the sensorial system plays an important role in the animal body. Future researches with Drop gene could establish a treatment for craniosynostosis or relieve the severe symptoms of this disorder (Mozer, 2001). This big similarity gives an opportunity to researchers discoverer mutations in genes related to human biology, such as neural development, eye formation (shape and color), overall body development, among other things. Besides carrying only four chromosomes, the fruit fly has revealed to be a key element in Genetic’s studies and only enhance discovery about the human …show more content…
Mozer, B.A. (2001). Dominant Drop mutants are gain-of-function alleles of the muscle segment homeobox gene (msh) whose overexpression leads to the arrest of eye development. Dev. Biol. 233(2): 380--393.
2. Pandey, Udai Bhan and Nichols, Charles D. (2011). Human Disease Models in Drosophila melanogaster and the Role of the Fly in Therapeutic Drug Discovery. Vol. 63, No. 2
3. Frankfort, Benjamin J. and Mardon, Graeme. (2002) R8 development in the Drosophila eye: a paradigm for neural selection and differentiation. Development 129, 1295-1306.
4. Mozer BA, Easwarachandran K. (1999). Pattern formation in the absence of cell proliferation: tissue-specific regulation of cell cycle progression by string (stg) during Drosophila eye development. Dev Biol. 1999 Sep 1; 213(1): 54-69.
5. Tearle, Rick; Tomlinson, Andrew and Saint, Robert. The dominant Drop eye mutations of Drosophila melanogaster define two loci implicated in normal eye development. (1994). Mol Gen Genet. 244: 426-434.
6. Kwang-wook, Choi (1996) Independent determination of symmetry and polarity in the Drosophila eye Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. Developmental Biology, Vol. 93, pp. 5737-5741.
7. Roberts, B., David. (2006). Drosophila melanogaster: the Model
PS ID #: 1396854 Three digit mutant code: 848
BIOL 3311 Spring 2015 Lab Section: 14704
Date: 02/23/2015 TA Instructor Name: Eric Pham
Writing Assignment 3: Review of a D. melanogaster gene
Characteristics of the Drop gene
Introduction The fly Drosophila melanogaster has been widely utilized in the field of genetics, since the first paper was published in 1910, for being a good organism to conduct research. In addition to being small and easy to handle and store, D. melanogaster is inexpensive to maintain, making possible to keep a great amount of flies in the laboratory. The life cycle and the diet are also uncomplicated. Depending on the temperature, it takes about 10 days to develop from …show more content…
The Dr gene has the MSX2 gene as an ortholog found in humans, which encodes the homeobox protein MSX-2. The protein plays an important role in craniofacial morphogenesis. A mutation in this gene is probably one of the reasons for craniosynostosis, which is a defect in babies head that prevents the brain to grow normally, resulting in a deformed head (Mozer, 2001). After several studies, Drop was proven an essential gene to neural development and cell differentiation. Mutations in this gene absolutely develop a severe phenotype, as the sensorial system plays an important role in the animal body. Future researches with Drop gene could establish a treatment for craniosynostosis or relieve the severe symptoms of this disorder (Mozer, 2001). This big similarity gives an opportunity to researchers discoverer mutations in genes related to human biology, such as neural development, eye formation (shape and color), overall body development, among other things. Besides carrying only four chromosomes, the fruit fly has revealed to be a key element in Genetic’s studies and only enhance discovery about the human …show more content…
Mozer, B.A. (2001). Dominant Drop mutants are gain-of-function alleles of the muscle segment homeobox gene (msh) whose overexpression leads to the arrest of eye development. Dev. Biol. 233(2): 380--393.
2. Pandey, Udai Bhan and Nichols, Charles D. (2011). Human Disease Models in Drosophila melanogaster and the Role of the Fly in Therapeutic Drug Discovery. Vol. 63, No. 2
3. Frankfort, Benjamin J. and Mardon, Graeme. (2002) R8 development in the Drosophila eye: a paradigm for neural selection and differentiation. Development 129, 1295-1306.
4. Mozer BA, Easwarachandran K. (1999). Pattern formation in the absence of cell proliferation: tissue-specific regulation of cell cycle progression by string (stg) during Drosophila eye development. Dev Biol. 1999 Sep 1; 213(1): 54-69.
5. Tearle, Rick; Tomlinson, Andrew and Saint, Robert. The dominant Drop eye mutations of Drosophila melanogaster define two loci implicated in normal eye development. (1994). Mol Gen Genet. 244: 426-434.
6. Kwang-wook, Choi (1996) Independent determination of symmetry and polarity in the Drosophila eye Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA. Developmental Biology, Vol. 93, pp. 5737-5741.
7. Roberts, B., David. (2006). Drosophila melanogaster: the Model