Systemic search for genes that confer tolerance to chronic cold exposure in Drosophila

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Earth has experienced cooling and warming cycles, and organisms exposed to these climate changes either were exterminated or adapted to survive. The genetic variants that confer heat-or cold-resistance to organisms must be selected during the period of extreme climate change, with these mutant populations then spreading over geographic regions that the ancestral population would never have been able to inhabit. The present divergence of wildlife may in part result from such adaptive changes in the genome.Drosophila melanogaster, a useful model organism in genetics, has its origin in tropical Africa, and has established its status as a cosmopolitan by acquisition of cold resistance in evolution. In this study we searched for the genes that confer tolerance to chronic cold exposure, and found that the suppression of energy metabolism, especially of mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation, conferred a significant increase in cold tolerance. Caloric restriction also significantly enhanced the cold tolerance. We discuss possible mechanisms underlying the effect of energy metabolism on cold tolerance.