Molecular and Cellular Biology Program, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98185, USA.
Science. 2009 Dec 11;326(5959):1538-41. doi: 10.1126/science.1181756.
Hybrid sterility of the heterogametic sex is one of the first postzygotic reproductive barriers to evolve during speciation, yet the molecular basis of hybrid sterility is poorly understood. We show that the hybrid male sterility gene Odysseus-site homeobox (OdsH) encodes a protein that localizes to evolutionarily dynamic loci within heterochromatin and leads to their decondensation. In Drosophila mauritiana x Drosophila simulans male hybrids, OdsH from D. mauritiana (OdsHmau) acts as a sterilizing factor by associating with the heterochromatic Y chromosome of D. simulans, whereas D. simulans OdsH (OdsHsim) does not. Characterization of sterile hybrid testes revealed that OdsH abundance and localization in the premeiotic phases of spermatogenesis differ between species. These results reveal that rapid heterochromatin evolution affects the onset of hybrid sterility.
异型配子杂交不育性是物种形成过程中最早进化的合子后生殖隔离之一,但杂交不育的分子基础仍知之甚少。我们发现杂种雄性不育基因 Odysseus-site homeobox(OdsH)编码的蛋白定位于异染色质中进化活跃的位点,并导致其解凝聚。在Drosophila mauritiana x Drosophila simulans 雄性杂种中,来自 D. mauritiana 的 OdsH(OdsHmau)通过与 D. simulans 的异染色质 Y 染色体结合而成为一种致不育因子,而 D. simulans 的 OdsH(OdsHsim)则没有。对不育杂种睾丸的特征分析表明,OdsH 在精子发生的减数分裂前阶段的丰度和定位在物种间存在差异。这些结果表明,异染色质的快速进化影响了杂交不育的发生。