ALTERATIONS OF GENETIC MATERIAL FOR ANALYSIS OF ALCOHOL DEHYDROGENASE ISOZYMES OF DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER *

The supply of gene mutations, chromosome rearrangements, and techniques in Drosophila genetics is the result of over 50 years of research. This material allows manipulation of genetic factors that is not feasible with other animals. The methods of classical Drosophila genetics should be useful in the study of the control of enzymes. Gel electrophoresis provides a convenient and powerful method which is easily used on Drosophila enzymes in combination with genetic methods. It is with this system that we have investigated alcohol dehydrogenase (ADH) of D . melanogaster. This enzyme catalyzes the NAD-linked oxidation of alcohols to their corresponding aldehydes or ketones and the reverse reaction. Alcohols of from two to five carbons are good substrates for Drosophila ADH. Crude extracts of flies from inbred strains have three isozymes of ADH (Grell et al., 1965; Unprung and Leone, 1965). Another report described two of the isozymes (Johnson and Denniston, 1964). Furthermore, there are two kinds of inbreds with respect to the migration of their trios of ADH in gel electrophoresis. Hybrids from crosses between these two kinds contain hybrid isozymes not present in either parental type.