Analysis of cytochrome P450 contribution to evolved plant toxin resistance in Drosophila sechellia

Drosophila sechellia is a dietary specialist species of fruit fly that has evolved resistance to the toxic secondary defence compounds produced by the fruit of its preferred host plant Morinda citrifolia. The genetic basis of adult toxin resistance is the result of evolution at five loci across the genome. Genetic mapping between D. sechellia and Drosophila simulans and subsequent functional studies in Drosophila melanogaster have identified candidate genes potentially underlying one locus involved in toxin resistance but the remainder of the genes involved are unknown. Genes in the mixed function oxidase or cytochrome P450 gene family are frequently utilized in evolved toxin resistance in insects, yet whether they play a role in D. sechellia's resistance to the toxins found in its host plant is unknown. Here we test the role of cytochrome P450 enzymatic activity in evolved resistance to the two primary toxins found in M. citrifolia fruit: octanoic acid and hexanoic acid. We found that although cytochrome P450 enzymatic activity is involved in basal resistance it is not involved in derived toxin resistance in D. sechellia.