Gynogenesis in Drosophila melanogaster

A unique male sterile mutant of Drosophila melanogaster, ms(3)K81 (3-91.3), has been discovered. The male homozygous for ms(3)K81 produces those abnormal sperm which are defective in syngamy but are still capable of activating eggs. The eggs activated by these sperm usually produce haploid embryos that die before hatching. But some of them, by restoring diploidy, undergo normal development to produce impaternate adults. This demonstrates that D. melanogaster has a capacity to reproduce gynogenetically.