
Diapause, a dormancy program in response to adverse environments, involves complex genetic and neural mechanisms that regulate lifespan extension and reproductive capacity in Drosophila melanogaster.


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The effects of environmental stress on animal life are gaining importance with climate change. Diapause is a dormancy program that occurs in response to an adverse environment, followed by resumption of development and reproduction upon the return of favorable conditions. Diapause is a complex trait, so we leveraged the Drosophila genetic reference panel (DGRP) lines and conducted a Genome-Wide Association Study (GWAS) to characterize the genetic basis of diapause. We assessed post-diapause and non-diapause fecundity across all DGRP lines. GWAS revealed 546 genetic variants, encompassing single nucleotide polymorphisms, insertions and deletions associated with post-diapause fecundity. We identified 291 candidate diapause-associated genes, 40 of which had previously been associated with diapause. 89 of the candidates were associated with more than one SNP. Gene network analysis indicated that the diapause-associated genes were primarily linked to neuronal and reproductive system development. Similarly, comparison with results from other fly GWAS revealed the greatest overlap with olfactory-behavior-associated and fecundity-and-lifespan-associated genes. An RNAi screen of the top candidates identified two neuronal genes, Dip- γ and Scribbler, to be required during recovery for post-diapause fecundity. We complemented the genetic analysis with a test of which neurons are required for successful diapause. We found that although amputation of the antenna had little to no effect on non-diapause lifespan, it reduced diapause lifespan and postdiapause fecundity. We further show that olfactory receptor neurons and temperature-sensing neurons are required for successful recovery from diapause. Our results provide insights into the molecular, cellular, and genetic basis of adult reproductive diapause in Drosophila.

### Competing Interest Statement

The authors have declared no competing interest.

A genome-wide association study implicates the olfactory system in Drosophila melanogaster diapause-associated lifespan extension and fecundity

genome-wide-association-study-reveals-the-genetic-basis-of-diapause-induced-lifespan-extension-and-fecundity-in-drosophila-melanogaster


Genome-Wide Association Study Reveals the Genetic Basis of Diapause-Induced Lifespan Extension and Fecundity in Drosophila melanogaster
