Regulation of Mst57Dc expression in male accessory glands of Drosophila melanogaster.

Mst57Dc has been isolated as a male accessory gland transcript of Drosophila melanogaster. Its product is a secretory protein, which is phosphorylated by protein kinase A. In the present study, the expression pattern of Mst57Dc was analyzed. It is preferentially expressed in but not restricted to the male accessory glands. Other than in the accessory glands, it is slightly expressed in other body parts, including the head and female body. In the accessory glands, a high level of expression was detected right after eclosion when the titer of juvenile hormone III (JHIII) reaches a peak. Its accumulation was increased by mating, which has been known to act via JH. In ap56f a JH-deficient mutant, the level of Mst57Dc transcripts was about 60% of the wild type. Moreover a JH-responsive element like palindromic sequence and several sequence motifs were found in the 5' and 3' flanking regions of Mst57Dc. Taken together, JH is proposed as a regulator of Mst57Dc gene expression.