An orphan gene is essential for efficient sperm entry into eggs in <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i>.

ABSTRACT: While spermatogenesis has been extensively characterized in the Drosophila melanogaster model system, very little is known about the genes required for fly sperm entry into eggs. We identified a lineage-specific gene, which we named katherine johnson (kj), that is required for efficient fertilization. Males that do not express kj produce and transfer sperm that are stored normally in females, but sperm from these males enter eggs with severely reduced efficiency. Using a tagged transgenic rescue construct, we observed that the KJ protein localizes around the edge of the nucleus at various stages of spermatogenesis but is undetectable in mature sperm. These data suggest that kj exerts an effect on sperm development, the loss of which results in reduced fer

SUBMITTER: Guay SY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11326263 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature