A molecularly defined duplication set for the X chromosome of Drosophila melanogaster.

We describe a molecularly defined duplication kit for the X chromosome of Drosophila melanogaster. A set of 408 overlapping P[acman] BAC clones was used to create small duplications (average length 88 kb) covering the 22-Mb sequenced portion of the chromosome. The BAC clones were inserted into an attP docking site on chromosome 3L using ΦC31 integrase, allowing direct comparison of different transgenes. The insertions complement 92% of the essential and viable mutations and deletions tested, demonstrating that almost all Drosophila genes are compact and that the current annotations of the genome are reasonably accurate. Moreover, almost all genes are tolerated at twice the normal dosage. Finally, we more precisely mapped two regions at which duplications cause diplo-lethality in males. This collection comprises the first molecularly defined duplication set to cover a whole chromosome in a multicellular organism. The work presented removes a long-standing barrier to genetic analysis of the Drosophila X chromosome, will greatly facilitate functional assays of X-linked genes in vivo, and provides a model for functional analyses of entire chromosomes in other species.

Customized microinjection glass capillary needles for P-element transformations in Drosophila melanogaster.

Here we describe how to generate customized microinjection needles from glass capillary tubes. Controls demonstrate the range of variables and effects on needle tip shape using a standard Flaming/Brown micropipet needle puller. Needles generated with two-cycle pulls provide a wider range of needle shapes in a predictable fashion. We used the needle puller's ramp function for multiple-cycle programs to determine the useful range of heat settings inherent to the glass capillary tube. This articlefocuses primarily on the preparation of injection needles utilized for P-element-mediated germ-line transformation in Drosophila melanogaster that do not require the dechorionation of the egg. However, these types of needles can be usefulfor numerous other types of injections, such as RNA interference, homologous recombination mutagenesis, morpholinos, transient gene regulation, drug delivery, and the transfer of cytoplasmic factors that are useful in a wide range of biological systems ranging from plants to vertebrates. Using our standard needle, we correlate the survival of injected D. melanogaster embryos with transformation efficiencies and plasmid construct characteristics.