Genetically modified organisms are crucial for our understanding of gene regulatory networks, physiological processes and ontogeny. With modern molecular genetic techniques allowing the rapid generation of different Drosophila melanogaster mutants, efficient in-depth morphological investigations become an important issue. Anatomical studies can elucidate the role of certain genes in developmental processes and point out which parts of gene regulatory networks are involved in evolutionary changes of morphological structures. The wingless mutation wg1 of D. melanogaster was discovered more than 40 years ago. While early studies addressed the external phenotype of these mutants, the documentation of the internal organization was largely restricted to the prominent indirect flight muscles. We used SEM micrographs, histological serial sections, μ-computed tomography, CLSM and 3D reconstructions to study and document the thoracic skeletomuscular system of the wild type and mutant. A recently introduced nomenclature for the musculature of neopteran insects was applied to facilitate comparisons with closely or more distantly related taxa. The mutation is phenotypically mainly characterized by the absence of one or both wings and halteres. The wing is partly or entirely replaced by duplications of mesonotal structures, whereas the haltere and its associated muscles are completely absent on body sides showing the reduction. Both the direct and indirect mesothoracic flight muscles are affected by loss and reorientation of bundles or fibers. Our observations lead to the conclusion that the wingless mutation causes a homeotic transformation in the imaginal discs of wings and halteres with a direct effect on the development of skeletal structures and an indirect effect on the associated muscular system.
Keywords: 3D reconstruction; Drosophila; Insect morphology; Thoracic skeletomuscular system; Wingless mutant.
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