The fos homolog kayak is required for adult eye formation and function in Drosophila.

ABSTRACT: This study characterizes the requirements of the kayak (kay) gene in Drosophila melanogaster adult eye biology by examining mutant phenotypes in photoreceptor development, external eye morphology, corneal and bristle ultrastructure, and visually guided behaviors, such as phototaxis, in kay strong loss-of-function homozygous mutant clones. Despite previous studies on kay, there is a dearth of phenotypic characterization of the morphological and behavioral consequences of kay loss-of-function alleles in the adult eye. We find that kay is expressed in developing ommatidia in eye discs. The kay mutant ommatidia are misaligned, lack photoreceptors, have malformed corneal surfaces, and have misshaped, misplaced, and fewer mechanosensory bri

SUBMITTER: Zuniga-Garcia M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12851592 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature