Polymorphism for the number of tandemly multiplicated glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase genes in Drosophila melanogaster.

A 26-kilobase-pair region encompassing the sn-glycerol-3-phosphate dehydrogenase (sn-glycerol-3-phosphate:NAD+ 2-oxidoreductase, EC 1.1.1.8) locus in Drosophila melanogaster from two natural populations in Japan was surveyed by restriction mapping. Both tandem duplications and triplications in this region were found in both populations. Detailed analysis of 86 chromosome 2 lines revealed restriction site and allozyme polymorphisms in the transcriptional unit: two restriction sites and the allozymes [fast (F) or slow (S)] were polymorphic among both duplication-bearing chromosomes and those carrying the standard sequence. This finding suggests recurrent recombination and/or gene conversion in this 5-kilobase-pair region. The differences observed for restriction site and allozyme haplotypes among the triplicated sequence both within and between populations, together with the distribution in natural populations, suggest a relatively recent ancestry of the triplication events and an independent origin in respective populations. Such events may represent the process of the formation of multigene families [compare Ohta, T. (1987) Genetics 115, 207-213]. Finally, the evolution of this type of polymorphism is discussed.