Journal article
Gene duplication in the major insecticide target site, Rdl, in Drosophila melanogaster
EJ Remnant, RT Good, JM Schmidt, C Lumb, C Robin, PJ Daborn, P Batterham
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America | Published : 2013
Abstract
The Resistance to Dieldrin gene, Rdl, encodes a GABA-gated chloride channel subunit that is targeted by cyclodiene and phenylpyrazole insecticides. The gene was first characterized in Drosophila melanogaster by genetic mapping of resistance to the cyclodiene dieldrin. The 4,000-fold resistance observed was due to a single amino acid replacement, Ala301 to Ser. The equivalent change was subsequently identified in Rdl orthologs of a large range of resistant insect species. Here, we report identification of a duplication at the Rdl locus in D. melanogaster. The 113-kb duplication contains one WT copy of Rdl and a second copy with two point mutations: an Ala301 to Ser resistance mutation and Met..
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Funding Acknowledgements
We thank Tom Harrop for valuable comments on the manuscript and members of the Social Insects laboratory for advice on statistics. This research was funded by an Australian Research Council grant (to P.B.).