Microarray Analysis of Replicate Populations Selected Against a Wing Shape Correlation in Drosophila Melanogaster
Kenneth E. Weber 1*, Ralph J. Greenspan 2, David R. Chicoine 1, Katia Fiorentino 1, Mary H. Thomas 1 and Theresa L. Knight 1
1 University of Southern Maine
2 The Neurosciences Institute
* To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: keweber{at}usm.maine.edu.
Submitted on October 18, 2007
Revised on November 26, 2007
Accepted on 26 November 2007
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Abstract |
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We selected bidirectionally against the phenotypic correlation between two wing dimensions in Drosophila melanogaster, and measured gene expression differences in late third-instar wing disks, using microarrays. We tested an array of 12 selected lines, including ten from a Massachusetts population (five divergently selected pairs) and two from a California population (one divergently selected pair). In the Massachusetts replicates, 29 loci showed consistent, significant association with the trait in all comparisons. In the California lines, however, the loci most closely associated with the trait were almost completely different from these. The disparity between responding genes in different gene pools confirms recent evidence that surprisingly large numbers of loci can have detectable effects on wing shape. Our results also show that well-replicated selection lines, of large effective population size, can greatly improve resolution in microarray-based searches for quantitative trait genes.
Key Words:
QTLs, development, morphology, wings
