Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 3, 2026

Rearing the Fruit Fly Drosophila melanogaster Under Axenic and Gnotobiotic Conditions
Published on: July 30, 2016
Origin and spread of de novo genes in Drosophila melanogaster populations
Li Zhao1, Perot Saelao, Corbin D Jones
1Department of Evolution and Ecology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA.
Abstract:
Comparative genomic analyses have revealed that genes may arise from ancestrally nongenic sequence. However, the origin and spread of these de novo genes within populations remain obscure. We identified 142 segregating and 106 fixed testis-expressed de novo genes in a population sample of Drosophila melanogaster. These genes appear to derive primarily from ancestral intergenic, unexpressed open reading frames, with natural selection playing a significant role in their spread. These results reveal a heretofore unappreciated dynamism of gene content.
Related Concept Videos
Exon Recombination
Exon shuffling follows “splice frame rules.” Each exon...
Genome Size and the Evolution of New Genes
Gene Duplication and Divergence
The duplicated copies of the gene are called Paralogs. Paralogs with similar sequences and functions form a gene family. Across several species, a large number of gene families are...
Genetic Screens
Forward genetic screens
Forward or “classical” genetic screens involve creating random mutations in an organism’s DNA using radiation, mutagens, or insertion of additional bases, which...
Mutation, Gene Flow, and Genetic Drift
Position-effect Variegation

