Quantitative analysis of antennal mosaic generation in Drosophila melanogaster by the MARCM system

Mosaics have been used in Drosophila to study development and to generate mutant structures when a mutant allele is homozygous lethal. New approaches of directed somatic recombination based on FRT/FLP methods, have increased mosaicism rates but likewise multiple clones in the same individual appeared more frequently. Production of single clones could be essential for developmental studies; however, for cell-autonomous gene function studies only the presence of homozygous cells for the target recessive allele is relevant. Herein, we report the number and extension of antennal mosaics generated by the MARCM system at different ages. This information is directed to obtain the appropriated mosaic type for the intended application. By applying heat shock at 10 different developmental stages from 0-12 h to 6-7 days after egg laying, more than 50% of mosaics were obtained from 5,028 adults. Single recombinant clones appeared mainly at early stages while massive recombinant areas were observed with late treatments.