MUTATION INDUCTION IN THE MALE RECOMBINATION STRAINS OF DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER

Barton E. Slatko ¹ and Yuichiro Hiraizumi ¹

¹ Department of Zoology, The University of Texas at Austin, Austin, Texas 78712

One group of the second chromosome lines isolated from a southern Texas population of Drosophila melanogaster, which has been known to show relatively high frequencies of male recombinations, was found to increase the frequency of sex-linked recessive lethal mutations from a control frequency of 0.18% to 1.63%. The second group, which showed a very much reduced frequency of male recombinations, was found to cause a slight increase to 0.48%, although it was not statistically significant. The first group was also tested for the recessive lethal mutation frequency in the second chromosome; the frequency increased from a control frequency of 0.28% to 2.82%. Mapping of a portion of the sex-linked lethals indicated a distribution along the entire X chromosome, although there was a tendency of clustering towards the tip of the X chromosome. One sex-linked lethal line so far tested was found to be associated with an inversion (approximate breakpoints, 14A–18A). It was suggested that the element causing male recombination might be similar to the hi mutator gene studied earlier by Ives (1950).

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