Butyrate suppression of position-effect variegation in Drosophila melanogaster

Abstract
Summary The strain of Drosophila melanogaster carrying the inversion In(1)w m4, which juxtaposes the normal w + gene to the centromeric heterochromatin, variegates for pigmentation in the eye. This strain was treated with various concentrations of n-butyrate and n-proprionate during the embryonic and larval stages. Concentrations as low as 70mM markedly suppress the variegated eye phenotype. This suggests that non-acetylated histones play a major role in the phenomenon of position-effect variegation.