Reduced expression of CDP-DAG synthase changes lipid composition and leads to male sterility in Drosophila.

ABSTRACT: Drosophila spermatogenesis is an ideal system to study the effects of changes in lipid composition, because spermatid elongation and individualization requires extensive membrane biosynthesis and remodelling. The bulk of transcriptional activity is completed with the entry of cysts into meiotic division, which makes post-meiotic stages of spermatogenesis very sensitive to even a small reduction in gene products. In this study, we describe the effect of changes in lipid composition during spermatogenesis using a hypomorphic male sterile allele of the Drosophila CDP-DAG synthase (CdsA) gene. We find that the CdsA mutant shows defects in spermatid individualization and enlargement of mitochondria and the axonemal sheath of the spermatids. Furthermore, we could genetically rescue the male ster

SUBMITTER: Laurinyecz B 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4736822 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature