Dosage Compensation in Drosophila
- 1Department of Biology, O. W. Rollins Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322
- 2Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02115
- Correspondence: jclucch{at}emory.edu
Abstract
Dosage compensation in Drosophila increases the transcription of genes on the single X chromosome in males to equal that of both X chromosomes in females. Site-specific histone acetylation by the male-specific lethal (MSL) complex is thought to play a fundamental role in the increased transcriptional output of the male X. Nucleation and sequence-independent spreading of the complex to active genes serves as a model for understanding the targeting and function of epigenetic chromatin-modifying complexes. Interestingly, two noncoding RNAs are key for MSL assembly and spreading to active genes along the length of the X chromosome.
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