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Quantifying Abdominal Pigmentation in Drosophila melanogaster
Published on: June 1, 2017
Functional analysis of genes involved in color pattern formation in Lepidoptera
Haruhiko Fujiwara1, Hideki Nishikawa1
1Department of Integrated Biosciences, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo, Kashiwa, Chiba 277-8562, Japan.
Abstract:
In addition to the genome editing technology, novel functional analyses using electroporation are powerful tools to reveal the gene function in the color pattern formation. Using these methods, several genes involved in various larval color pattern formation are clarified in the silkworm Bombyx mori and some Papilio species. Furthermore, the coloration pattern mechanism underlying the longtime mystery of female-limited Batesian mimicry of Papilio polytes has been recently revealed. This review presents the recent progress on the molecular mechanisms and evolutionary process of coloration patterns contributing to various mimicry in Lepidoptera, especially focusing on the gene function in the silkworm and Papilio species.
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