ISSN:
1432-1432
Keywords:
Evolution
;
Expression patterns
;
α-Amylase
;
Glucose repression
;
Starch induction
;
Intra- and interspecific variation
;
Drosophila
;
Gene expression
;
Regulatory genes
Source:
Springer Online Journal Archives 1860-2000
Topics:
Biology
Notes:
Abstract Intraspecific variation of α-amylase activity in D. melanogaster and D. immigrans, which is distantly related to D. melanogaster, and interspecific variation of α-amylase activity in 18 Drosophila species were examined. The amount of intraspecific variation of α-amylase activities measured in terms of coefficient of variation in D. melanogaster and D. immigrans was one-half and one-tenth or less, respectively, of the interspecific variation in 18 Drosophila species. We also surveyed the response patterns of α-amylase activity to dietary carbohydrates at the larval and adult stages. The levels of α-amylase activity depended on both repression by dietary glucose (glucose repression) and induction by dietary starch (starch induction). In general, our data suggest that glucose repression was conserved among species at both stages while starch induction was mainly observed in larvae, although the degree of the response depended on species. In D. lebanonensis lebanonensis and D. serrata, larvae expressed electrophoretically different α-amylase variants (isozymes) from those of adult flies. These results may suggest that the regulatory systems responsible both for the response to environment and developmental expression are different among species in Drosophila.
Type of Medium:
Electronic Resource
URL:
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/BF00173189
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