Chapters authored
Drosophila Chromosomal Polymorphism: From Population Aspects to Origin Mechanisms of Inversions
High rates of chromosomal rearrangements are remarkably abundant in Drosophila Fallén, 1832 (Insecta, Diptera) genus, highlighting the paracentric inversions. Since different species of this genus are paradigms for genetics, evolutionary, and population studies, polymorphism analyses for chromosomal inversions have provided basic knowledge for beautiful biological questions. Chromosomal inversions suppress meiotic recombination and thus, natural selection can act to preserve favorable gene complexes. Analyses of natural and laboratory populations show that these polymorphisms provide adaptive advantages to their carriers in relation to diverse factors, such as niche exploration and climatic factors. In addition, due to their monophyletic origin, they also serve as genetic markers for the construction of unrooted phylogenies. With the increasing domain of molecular techniques and genome sequencing, factors such as the reuse of breakpoints by different inversions and the mechanisms that give rise to these polymorphisms have been exploited with scientific refinement. These analyses show the presence of regions that are hot spots for breakpoints, fitting the fragile breakage chromosomal evolution model, as well as the involvement of transposition elements at the origin of chromosomal inversions.
Part of the book: Drosophila melanogaster