Sexually dimorphic characters have two-fold complexities in pattern formation as they have to get input from both somatic sex determination as well as the positional determining regulators. Sex comb development in Drosophila requires functions of the somatic sex-determining gene doublesex and the homeotic gene Sex combs reduced. Attempts have not been made to decipher the role of dsx in imparting sexually dimorphic expression of SCR and the differential function of sex-specific variants of dsx products in sex comb development. Our results in this study indicate that male-like pattern of SCR expression is independent of dsx function, and dsx F must be responsible for bringing about dimorphism in SCR expression, whereas dsx M function is required with Scr for the morphogenesis of sex comb.[Devi TR and Shyamala BV 2013 Male-and female-specific variants of doublesex gene products have different roles to play towards regulation of Sex combs reduced expression and sex comb morphogenesis in Drosophila. J. Biosci. 38 [455][456][457][458][459][460]

Summary: Sex comb is a recently evolved male specific character confined to the Sophophoran group of Drosophila. Such innovations in phenotypes as Waddington proposed, are, outcome of ''canalization'' in developmental pathways that occur due to mutations creating ''choice points'' in genetic regulatory pathways. Our interest in the present study is to understand the shifts in genetic network, which has lead to the origin of sex comb from the basic bristle pattern that is seen in rest of the members of Drosophilidae. Here we have made a comparative analysis of expression of some of the key regulators of sex comb morphogenesis, between D. melanogaster and a group of selected species, which primitively lack sex comb. Sex combs reduced (Scr), dachshund (dac), and bric-a-brac (bab) gene expression were studied. We show that, primitive bristle pattern is marked by a strikingly down regulated expression of Sex combs reduced in the first tarsal segment of the prothoracic leg discs of male flies. Further a remarkable change with respect to Dachshund, an activator of sex combs reduced gene in the sex comb regulatory pathway, is seen. This is attributed to changes in DAC protein that might have taken place between the two groups of species. bric-a-brac does not reveal any significant expression modulation between the sex comb bearing and the primitive patterned species. Earlier works had shown that within the Sophophoran group, dynamic changes in SCR expression is responsible for the diversity seen in sex comb morphology, where as no such variation is witnessed with respect to DAC expression. Our findings have demonstrated that the scenario is different between the group primitively lacking sex comb and D. melanogaster wherein an obvious change in the protein has taken place. genesis 51:97-109, 2013. V V C 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.