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

地球经历了变冷和变暖的循环，暴露在这些气候变化中的生物要么灭绝，要么适应了生存。在极端气候变化时期，必须选择赋予生物体耐热或耐寒能力的基因变异，然后这些突变种群传播到祖先种群永远无法居住的地理区域。野生动物目前的分化可能部分源于基因组的这种适应性变化。黑腹果蝇（Drosophila melanogaster）是一种有用的遗传学模式生物，起源于热带非洲，并在进化过程中获得了抗寒性，从而确立了其世界性的地位。在这项研究中，我们寻找了赋予对慢性寒冷暴露耐受性的基因，发现能量代谢的抑制，特别是线粒体氧化磷酸化的抑制，赋予了耐寒性的显著增加。热量限制也显著提高了耐寒性。我们讨论了能量代谢对耐寒性影响的可能机制。

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.