Document Type
Article
Publication Date
2-2009
Originally Published In
Riddle NC, Shaffer CD, Elgin SC. A lot about a little dot - lessons learned from Drosophila melanogaster chromosome 4. Biochem Cell Biol. 2009;87(1):229–241. doi:10.1139/O08-119
Abstract
The fourth chromosome of Drosophila melanogaster has a number of unique properties that make it a convenient model for the study of chromatin structure. Only 4.2 Mb overall, the 1.2 Mb distal arm of chromosome 4 seen in polytene chromosomes combines characteristics of heterochromatin and euchromatin. This domain has a repeat density of ~35%, comparable to some pericentric chromosome regions, while maintaining a gene density similar to that of the other euchromatic chromosome arms. Studies of position-effect variegation have revealed that heterochromatic and euchromatic domains are interspersed on chromosome 4, and both cytological and biochemical studies have demonstrated that chromosome 4 is associated with heterochromatic marks, such as heterochromatin protein 1 and histone 3 lysine 9 methylation. Chromosome 4 is also marked by POF (painting-of-fourth), a chromosome 4-specific chromosomal protein, and utilizes a dedicated histone methyltransferase, EGG. Studies of chromosome 4 have helped to shape our understanding of heterochromatin domains and their establishment and maintenance. In this review, we provide a synthesis of the work to date and an outlook to the future.
ORCID
https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5176-2510 [Elgin]
Recommended Citation
Riddle, Nicole; Shaffer, Christopher; and Elgin, Sarah C.R., "A lot about a little dot - lessons learned from Drosophila melanogaster chromosome 4" (2009). Biology Faculty Publications & Presentations. 193.
https://openscholarship.wustl.edu/bio_facpubs/193