The Drosophila Gene Sevenless Serves as an Evolutionary Adaptation to High-Sugar Selective Pressure

Authors: Utsav Nyachhyon, Thomas Rundell, Xiaoshun Li, Jenna Hoyland, Gabrielle Safian, Laura Musselman

Field of Study: Science, Technology, Engineering, and/or Math

Faculty Mentors: Laura Musselman

Easel: 3

Timeslot: Morning

Abstract: The higher fat and sugar content in the western diet has resulted in the increased prevalence of overnutrition in our society and its negative health effects, including reduced physical activity and lifespan. Genes that reduce such ailments under these dietary conditions could prove to be beneficial to aging humans. Sevenless (Sev) is one such gene that this study identified due to its significant SNP and expression changes in our populations that exhibited the most dramatic increases in lifespan and physical activity in response to the selection pressure of a high-sugar diet after 15 generations. Here, it is shown that Sev affects physical activity in a tissue-specific manner and could play a role in glucose and lipid metabolism. Sev could benefit fitness under high-sugar conditions through modulation of physical activity and metabolism.