Cytoplasmic effect on gene function in Xenopus laevis

The pigmentation gene of Xenopus laevis is dominant and that of albino aP mutant recessive. Heterologous haploid hybrids are produced by UV inactivation of the egg nuclei during second polar body formation in the mutant sperm-fertilized Xenopus eggs. During development of these hybrids, melanin appeared in the eye and melanophores in the skin at stages comparable to those of the wild type, but much earlier than in the albino mutant. The number and intensity of pigment cells are intermediate between the black Xenopus and albino mutant. While a number of pigment cells remain in the hybrids, those in the albino eventually degenerate. Therefore, the development and maintenance of pigmentation in heterologous hybrids are contributed by Xenopus cytoplasm. Tadpole tail-tips were squashed and stained for chromosome counting. The results show that Xenopus and mutants are diploid (36 chromosomes) and heterologous haploid hybrids have 18 chromosomes.