Sandrelli Federica, Tauber Eran, Pegoraro Mirko, Mazzotta Gabriella, Cisotto Paola, Landskron Johannes, Stanewsky Ralf, Piccin Alberto, Rosato Ezio, Zordan Mauro, Costa Rodolfo, Kyriacou Charalambos P
Department of Biology, University of Padova, 35131 Padova, Italy.
Science. 2007 Jun 29;316(5833):1898-900. doi: 10.1126/science.1138426.
Diapause is a protective response to unfavorable environments that results in a suspension of insect development and is most often associated with the onset of winter. The ls-tim mutation in the Drosophila melanogaster clock gene timeless has spread in Europe over the past 10,000 years, possibly because it enhances diapause. We show that the mutant allele attenuates the photosensitivity of the circadian clock and causes decreased dimerization of the mutant TIMELESS protein isoform to CRYPTOCHROME, the circadian photoreceptor. This interaction results in a more stable TIMELESS product. These findings reveal a molecular link between diapause and circadian photoreception.
滞育是昆虫对不利环境的一种保护性反应，会导致其发育暂停，且通常与冬季的来临相关。在过去一万年里，果蝇生物钟基因“无时间”（timeless）中的ls-tim突变在欧洲广泛传播，这可能是因为它增强了滞育能力。我们发现，该突变等位基因会减弱生物钟的光敏性，并导致突变的“无时间”（TIMELESS）蛋白异构体与生物钟光感受器隐花色素（CRYPTOCHROME）的二聚化作用减弱。这种相互作用产生了一种更稳定的“无时间”（TIMELESS）产物。这些发现揭示了滞育与生物钟光感受之间的分子联系。
