Radiation biology. Radioecology
ISSN: 0869-8031

Archives → 2019 → Vol. 59, No. 5 → pp. 453-464

Article

Radiation Biology of Structurally Different Drosophila Genes. Report VIII. The white Gene: General Characteristic of Radiomutability and PCR Assay of Gene “Point” Mutations

Kravchenko E.V.¹, Rusakovich A.N.¹, Elnoamany F.², Dubovic S.V.¹, Hassab El-Nabi S.E.², Alexandrova M.V.¹, Alexandrov I.D.¹

¹ Joint Institute for Nuclear Research, Dubna, Russia. ² Menoufia University, Menoufia, Egypt

Abstract

The results of genetic, cytogenetic and molecular (PCR) analysis of γ-ray (5–60 Gy) and neutron-induced (2.5–20 Gy) mutations at the sex-linked white (w) gene of Drosophila melanogaster X chromosome, are presented. The whole spectrum of white mutations induced by different quality radiation is found to be the same, and includes three classes of mutations – sterile F₁ white mutants, heritable gene «point» mutations and heritable gene/chromosome mutations. The dose–response dependence of both heritable mutational classes, as found, is linear for γ-rays and neutrons. It is important to note that many of chromosomal white gene mutations have complex nature, for example, an inversion located outside the gene and the independent DNA changes in w gene. Taking into account this results the RGE of neutrons in induction of gene-point and chromosome white mutations is 2.5 and 4 respectively. According to PCR assay the γ-ray and neutron-induced gene «point» white mutations were divided for four types of molecular alterations: micro changes of DNA not detected by PCR, the loss of one PCR-fragment, the loss of several adjacent PCR-fragments and a cluster of lesions of second and/or third type at the same time. Features of the white gene radiomutability in the comparison with another sex-linked yellow gene are discussed.

Keywords

neutrons, γ-radiation, white gene, recessive point and chromosomal mutations, PCR