A Genetic Test of a Model for Two Activities of Fushi Tarazu Protein in Drosophila Melanogaster
The important pair-rule segmentation gene fushi tarazu (ftz) encodes a homeodomain (HD)-containing protein involved in the establishment of even-numbered parasegments during embryonic development. The D. melanogaster ftz is a derived homeotic selector (Hox) gene which lost its homeotic function during the evolution of arthropods. Genetic analyses have shown that FTZ has two distinct activities required during development: HD-dependent and HD-independent FTZ activities. The aim of this study was to test the interaction of the two FTZ activities proposed by Hyduk and Percival-Smith (1996), by generating site-specific mutant ftz alleles for intragenic complementation. CRISPR-mediated homology directed repair (HDR) was used to introduce engineered ftz alleles into the ftz locus. Subsequently, four ftz engineered alleles were constructed in vectors for reintroduction by Recombinase-mediated cassette exchange (RMCE). Despite using multiple approaches no CRISPR mediated HDR events were detected, and therefore, the model could not be tested.
Drosophila melanogaster, pair rule genes, fushi tarazu, homeodomain, segmentation, CRISPR/Cas9.
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