Yellow Fever Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Yellow Fever, including details on immunization, vaccines, symptoms, transmission.

Testis-specific expression of the beta2 tubulin promoter of Aedes aegypti and its application as a genetic sex-separation marker.

Smith RC, Walter MF, Hice RH, O'Brochta DA, Atkinson PW

Program in Cell, Molecular, and Developmental Biology, University of California, Riverside, CA 92521, USA.

Sex-specific expression of transgenes in pest insects enables novel genetic control strategies, based either on genetic sexing or the spread of transgenes through the germ-line, to be developed and then tested for implementation. We describe the isolation of the beta tubulin genes from the yellow fever mosquito, Aedes aegypti, and the identification of the particular beta2 tubulin gene which has expression confined to the testes. We demonstrate that the beta2 tubulin promoter of Ae. aegypti can direct the expression of a DsRed genetic marker in the testes and show that labelled sperm can be detected in inseminated spermathecae. The applications for this technology in the genetic control of Ae. aegypti are discussed.

Published 29 January 2007 in Insect Mol Biol, 16(1): 61-71.
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