Department of Ophthalmology and Visual Sciences and Department of Genetics, and UW-Eye Research Institute, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53792, USA.
Adv Exp Med Biol. 2012;723:407-14. doi: 10.1007/978-1-4614-0631-0_52.
Many genes are functionally equivalent between flies and humans. In addition, the same, or similar, mutations cause disease in both species. In fact, nearly three-fourths of all human disease genes have related sequences in Drosophila. The fly has a relatively small genome, made up of about 13,600 genes in four pairs of chromosomes. However, despite the dramatic differences in size and apparent complexity between humans and flies--we have less than twice as many genes as a fly--our genome is estimated to be made up of only 20,000-25,000 genes contained in 23 pairs of chromosomes. Therefore, despite the fly's perceived simplicity, or our perceived complexity, our genetic makeup may not be all that different. Its versatility for genetic manipulation and convenience for unraveling fundamental biological processes continue to guarantee the fly a place in the spotlight for unraveling the basis of and therapeutic treatments for human eye diseases.
许多基因在果蝇和人类之间具有相同的功能。此外，相同或相似的突变会导致两种物种患病。事实上，几乎所有人类疾病基因的四分之三都在果蝇中具有相关序列。果蝇的基因组相对较小，由四条染色体上的约 13600 个基因组成。然而，尽管人类和果蝇在大小和明显的复杂性上存在显著差异——我们的基因数量比果蝇少不到两倍——但我们的基因组估计仅由 23 对染色体上的 20000-25000 个基因组成。因此，尽管果蝇看起来简单，或者我们看起来复杂，我们的基因构成可能并没有那么不同。它在遗传操作上的多功能性和在揭示基本生物学过程方面的便利性，继续保证了果蝇在揭示人类眼部疾病的基础和治疗方法方面处于焦点位置。
