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A L Perondini

Publications and source records attributed to A L Perondini.

10 recordsLinked to original sources

Role of microtubules and microtubule organizing centers on meiotic chromosome elimination in Sciara ocellaris.

Spindle formation and chromosome elimination during male meiosis in Sciara ocellaris (Diptera, Sciaridae) has been studied by immunofluorescence techniques. During meiosis I a monopolar spindle is formed from a single polar complex (centrosome-like structure). This single centrosomal structure persists during meiosis II and is responsible for the non-disjunction of the maternal X chromatids. During meiosis I and II non-spindle microtubules are assembled in the cytoplasmic bud regions of the spermatocytes. The chromosomes undergoing elimination during both meiotic divisions are segregated to the bud region where they associate with bundles of microtubules. The presence and distribution of centrosomal antigens in S. ocellaris meiotic spindles and bud regions has been investigated using different antibodies. gamma-Tubulin and centrin are present in the bud as well as in the single polar complex of first meiotic spindle. The results suggest that spermatocyte bud regions contain microtubule-organizing centres (MTOCs) that nucleate cytoplasmic microtubules that are involved in capturing chromosomes in the bud regions. The distribution of actin and myosin in the spermatocytes during meiosis is also reported.

Actins↗

Dosage compensation in sciarids is achieved by hypertranscription of the single X chromosome in males.

Dosage compensation refers to the process whereby females and males with different doses of sex chromosomes have similar amounts of products from sex chromosome-linked genes. We analyzed the process of dosage compensation in Sciara ocellaris, Diptera of the suborder Nematocera. By autoradiography and measurements of X-linked rRNA in females (XX) and males (XO), we found that the rate of transcription of the single X chromosome in males is similar to that of the two X chromosomes in females. This, together with the bloated appearance of the X chromosome in males, support the idea that in sciarids dosage compensation is accomplished by hypertranscription of the X chromosome in males.

Animals↗

Photoreactivation of U.V.-induced cytoplasmatic lesions in eggs of Sciara ocellaris.

Photoreactivation of Sciara eggs inactivated by U.V. at 254 or 300 nm wave-lengths was observed regardless of whether the lesions were induced in nuclear or cytoplasmic targets. Photoreactivation of cytoplasmic injury caused by U.V. at 254 nm seems to be a special property of Sciara eggs since this mechanism is practically absent in other insect eggs. The cause of this differential behaviour is not known.

Animals↗

A gene that modifies the sex ratio in a bisexual strain of Sciara ocellaris.

The influence of an X-linked recessive mutation, sepia, on the sex determination of a bisexual strain of Sciara ocellaris was studied. It induces an alteration in the sex ratio, especially in the progeny of heterozygous females, increasing the proportion of males. These results cannot be explained by differential fecundity of the female parents of different genotypes nor by differential mortality between the sexes. The occurrence of gynandromorphs indicates that the mutant probably interferes with the processes of X-chromosome elimination. Observations that heterozygous females which received the sepia allele from their mothers produced a higher frequency of gynandromorphs than females which received the mutated allele from their male parents, suggest that the mutation is interfering with the mechanism of chromosome elimination present in the egg cytoplasm.

Animals↗

Evidence for selective differences in single-band polytene chromosome polymorphism in Sciara ocellaris.

Sciara ocellaris (Bradysia tritici) is a dipteran species characterized by an extensive polymorphism of structural modifications of single bands occurring in the polytene chromosomes. In this experiment we obtained estimates of egg-to-adult viabilities in relation to the genotypes determined by 15 different loci. In spite of the presence of considerable levels of linkage disequilibrium possibly generated by random sampling genetic drift, it is suggested that at least one out of 15 polymorphic modified chromomeric loci is maintained in the population by an overdominance mechanism.

Animals↗