Functions and interactions of sperm-bound seminal proteins in Drosophila melanogaster
Authors: Sarah Allen; Snigdha Misra; Mariana Wolfner
Affiliation: Cornell University, Ithaca, NY
Keywords: r. other (Seminal Fluid Proteins); h. sex-specific traits and molecules
Sperm enter mating Drosophila females accompanied by secretions from the male reproductive tract. These secretions include seminal fluid proteins (SFPs) that modify the physiology of the female to enhance the fertility of the mated pair. While most seminal proteins are present transiently within the mated female, a few bind to sperm. In particular, the seminal “Sex Peptide” (SP) remains bound to sperm long-term, allowing it to be retained to modulate female behavior and physiology for ~10-14 days. To determine the generality of this response, we collaborated with the Dorus and Pitnick labs* to identify sperm-bound SFPs in an unbiased mass spectrometry screen. We are using RNAi to determine the fertility functions of sperm-bound SFPs detected in this screen. In addition, we are using two tagging methods (TAP, TurboID) to identify the binding targets of one of these SFPs (SP) on sperm.
*Whittington, Murphy, Singh, Pitnick, Wolfner, and Dorus, The life history of Drosophila sperm involves molecular continuity between male and female reproductive tracts. In review