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Doublesex: a conserved downstream gene controlled by diverse upstream regulators.

J N Shukla¹, J Nagaraju

¹Centre for DNA Fingerprinting and Diagnostics, Tuljaguda, Nampally, Hyderabad 500 001, India.

Journal of Genetics

|September 30, 2010

Summary

The doublesex (dsx) gene is crucial for sexual differentiation in insects and is highly conserved across species. Its upstream regulators show diverse evolutionary paths, supporting a reverse evolution model for sex determination cascades.

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Area of Science:

Evolutionary Biology
Genetics
Developmental Biology

Background:

Sex determination pathways generate distinct sexes, with the Drosophila doublesex (dsx) gene being a key conserved element.
dsx homologues are found at the base of sex determination cascades in various insect species.

Purpose of the Study:

To review conserved and varied features of dsx homologues across insect species.
To explore the evolutionary dynamics of sex determination pathways.

Main Methods:

Comparative analysis of dsx homologues in different insect orders.
Review of functional studies including transgenesis and knockdown experiments.

Main Results:

The dsx gene is conserved across insects and plays a critical role in somatic sexual differentiation.
Upstream regulators of dsx exhibit significant diversity, supporting an evolutionary model of cascade recruitment.
Sex-specific splicing of dsx pre-mRNA produces transcription factors essential for sexually dimorphic traits.

Conclusions:

The dsx gene is a conserved downstream component of insect sex determination.
Evolution of sex determination cascades likely occurred in reverse, with upstream genes added over time.