Effects of heavy metals on Drosophila larvae and a metallothionein cDNA

Journal Article · Sat Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 1986 · Environ. Health Perspect.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.2307/3430170· OSTI ID:5498663

Maroni, G; Lastowski-Perry, D; Otto, E; Watson, D

Drosophila melanogaster larvae reared on food containing radioactive cadmium retained over 80% of it, mostly in the intestinal epithelium. The majority of this radioactivity was associated with a soluble protein of less than 10,000 molecular weight. Synthesis of this cadmium-binding protein was induced by the metal as demonstrated by incorporation of radioactive cysteine. Most copper ingested by larvae was also found to associate with a low molecular weight, inducible protein, but some of it was found in an insoluble fraction. A D. melanogaster cDNA clone was isolated based on its more intense hybridization to copies of RNA sequences from copper-fed larvae than from control larvae. This clone showed strong hybridization to mouse metallothionein-I cDNA at reduced stringency. Its nucleotide sequence includes an open-reading segment which codes for a 40 amino acid protein; this protein was identified as metallothionein based on its similarity to the amino-terminal portion of mammalian and crab metalloproteins. The ten cysteine residues present occur in five pairs of near-vicinal cysteines (Cys-X-Cys). This cDNA sequence hybridized to a 400-nucleotide polyadenylated RNA whose presence in the cells of the alimentary canal of larvae was stimulated by ingestion of cadmium or copper; in other tissues this RNA was present at much lower levels.

• Research Organization: Univ. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
• OSTI ID: 5498663
• Journal Information: Environ. Health Perspect.; (United States), Journal Name: Environ. Health Perspect.; (United States) Vol. 65; ISSN EVHPA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

550601 -- Medicine-- Unsealed Radionuclides in Diagnostics
560304* -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology-- Invertebrates-- (-1987)
62 RADIOLOGY AND NUCLEAR MEDICINE
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ANIMALS
ARTHROPODS
BETA DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BETA-MINUS DECAY RADIOISOTOPES
BIOLOGICAL EFFECTS
BIOSYNTHESIS
CADMIUM 109
CADMIUM CHLORIDES
CADMIUM COMPOUNDS
CADMIUM HALIDES
CADMIUM ISOTOPES
CHLORIDES
CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
COPPER COMPOUNDS
COPPER SULFATES
DAYS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
DIPTERA
DISTRIBUTION
DNA
DROSOPHILA
ELECTRON CAPTURE RADIOISOTOPES
EVEN-ODD NUCLEI
FLIES
FRUIT FLIES
HALIDES
HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
INSECTS
INTERMEDIATE MASS NUCLEI
INVERTEBRATES
ISOTOPES
LARVAE
LIGHT NUCLEI
METALLOPROTEINS
METALLOTHIONEIN
NUCLEI
NUCLEIC ACIDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
PROTEINS
RADIOISOTOPES
SULFATES
SULFUR 35
SULFUR COMPOUNDS
SULFUR ISOTOPES
SYNTHESIS
TISSUE DISTRIBUTION
TRANSITION ELEMENT COMPOUNDS
UPTAKE
YEARS LIVING RADIOISOTOPES
ZINC CHLORIDES
ZINC COMPOUNDS
ZINC HALIDES