Flies Alive! New Resources for Drosophila species Open Doors for Genome Biology

The Drosophila Species Stock Center at UC San Diego is a valuable resource for researchers integrating comparative genomics with studies of morphological evolution, behavior, ecological specialization, adaptation, reproductive isolation, cytogenetics, and genome evolution, to name a few. As part of its mission to maintain and distribute living cultures of Drosophila species, the Drosophila Species Stock Center has the source cultures of 21 Drosophila species with publicly available genome sequences. These cultures include 11 of the 12 species from the original 12 Genomes Consortium, as well as eight cultures used for the ModENCODE Project. The phylogenetic relationships of the 21 sequenced species are well resolved and provide the necessary backbone to complete comparative analyses in a range of disciplines. The utility of the known phylogenetic diversity of the sequenced species is coupled with additional information regarding feeding habits, reproductive biology, mating behavior, and appealing morphological characters for phenotypic analysis. In addition to stocks useful for comparative analyses among species, we also have 55 D. melanogaster lines (20 France, 20 Ghana, 15 USA) and 50 D. pseudoobscura lines (USA and Mexico) that have been sequenced to investigate genomic and structural variation in natural populations. Resequencing projects such as these provide an avenue to study large-scale patterns of intraspecific variation and population genetics. The entire living collection of Drosophila species at the Center comprises 250 species represented by over 1500 stocks. In order to facilitate familiarity between the research community and the diversity in our collection, the Center hosts an annual workshop where researchers learn to identify, culture, and experiment with over 100 Drosophila species.