News Releases & Research Results Elucidation of system for development with flexible adaptation to nutrients―carbohydrate responsive mechanism responsible for difference in adaptive capacity among species―

Results of research led by the group including Assistant Professor Yukako Hattori, Researcher Kaori Watanabe, and Professor Tadashi Uemura of Graduate School of Biostudies, Kyoto University, and Researcher Hironobu Uchiyama and Professor Shunsuke Yajima of Tokyo University of Agriculture.

• Adaptation and biological responses to different nutrient balance (ratio of protein and carbohydrates) were compared based on analyzed profile of gene expression and metabolic products among five D. melanogaster species with different feeding traits.
• The generalist species relying on a range of diets were found to be able to flexibly adapt to nutrient balance differences via mechanism to regulate gene expression and metabolism according to ratio of carbohydrates in diets, while the specialist species relying on a specific diet cannot exert such mechanism nor grow under a high-carbohydrate condition.
• Application of this research results and approach for interspecies analysis is expected to result in the progress of research on difference in adaptation and/or biological responses to nutrients or other environmental factors among species other than D. melanogaster.

This research was supported by Clarification of the Mechanism of Individual's Functional Impairment over the Entire Life Course of Advanced Research & Development Programs for Medical Innovation (AMED-CREST).

The results were published on September 4 in the online version of the U.S. journal Cell Reports.

Watanabe K., et al. Interspecies Comparative Analyses Reveal Distinct Carbohydrate-Responsive Systems among Drosophila Species, Cell Reports
DOI：10.1016/j.celrep.2019.08.030