Cytogenetic mapping of the male-determining region of Lucilia cuprina (Diptera: Calliphoridae)

The Y chromosome of L. cuprina was cytogenetically dissected by recovering adjacent segregation products from crosses with appropriate autosomal and Y-autosome translocations. By these means Y chromosomes lacking most of the short, long, or both arms were isolated. Only the centromeric portion of the Y chromosome was necessary for male determination and fertility, the bulk of the short and long arms having no role in sex determination. Additionally, it was shown that most of the short arm can be passed into the female line with no marked effect. These results, together with evidence from other studies, indicate that male determination in L. cuprina is centred in a discrete region near the Y chromosome centromere.