The flesh-flies of the genus Sarcophaga (Diptera: Sarcophagidae) are prevalent world-wide, have great medical and veterinary importance forming an important group of myiasis producers. The diploid chromosome complements of the genus Sarcophaga comprise of five homologous pairs of autosomes and a pair of sex chromosomes (XX in females and XY in males). Heterochromatin of Sarcophaga species has been studied and characterized. The modification of permanently condensed patterns of chromosomes of the two Sarcophaga species, Sarcophaga argyrostoma and Sarcophaga ruficornis, by means of a GC specific DNA ligand Mithramycin (0.05μg/ml) proved to be useful for the analysis of heterochromatic regions of the chromosomes after DAPI staining. The pericentric regions of all the autosomes revealed fluorescent bands in both the species while both the X-and Y-chromosomes revealed differential staining due to differences in base sequence organization in these areas. Therefore, the present investigation was carried out in a view to characterize the heterochromatic components of the two species in order to unravel the base specificity of the chromosomes that will facilitate the study of heterochromatin in the evolution of the genus Sarcophaga.
Genetic variation at four gene enzyme systems was analyzed in Crysomya megacephala. The three enzymes namely acid phophatase (ACPH), aldehyde oxidase(AO),glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6PD) and alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) were found to express activity only in a single zone indicating that they are encoded at single locus .Alcohol dehydrogenase was monomorphic while acid phoshatase and glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase were polymorphic.
Male meiosis in 6 species of the sarcophagid genus Parasarcophaga-P, miseya, P, albiceps, P, argyyostoma, P, orchidea, P, ruficornis and P, knabi-was investigated with a view to obtain information regarding the degree of homology betweeen the X and Y chromosomes. Both autosomal as well as the sex bivalents are achiasmate in all the six species.The X and Y chromosomes in all the species, except P, knabi, show a close side by side association right from prophase I to metaphase I. In P, knabi, the extremely long X and Y chromosomes are spatially separate on emergence from the resting nucleus at prophase I and do not show close association at metaphase I. The role of C-band positive heterochromatic material in the pairing of X and Y chromosomes during first meiotic prophase has been discussed.
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