# A Conditional Loss-of-Function Mutation Collection in Drosophila

> **NIH NIH R44** · GENETIVISION CORPORATION · 2022 · $893,628

## Abstract

Project Summary/Abstract
The overall goal of this proposal is to generate, maintain, and distribute a new collection of 2,800 conditional
loss- and gain-of-function alleles for more than 1,400 Drosophila melanogaster genes that are highly
conserved in humans. One key factor that sets Drosophila apart from other model systems is the huge
wealth of genetic and molecular tools that have accumulated in the past 100 years of research. With a
large, active Drosophila research community, additional technologies and tools that benefit the entire field
can have a profound impact by accelerating the pace of research for many. Many of the most important
advances in our understanding of human development have come from studies using the fruit fly as an
animal model system. Since many parallels exist between Drosophila and mammals in terms of the
underlying molecular mechanisms controlling biological processes, knowledge gained from research in
Drosophila can be either directly applied or readily adapted to understanding human biology and disease.
We propose to generate a collection of conditional "flip-flop-loxP" alleles that allow a specific gene to be
turned off or on at any time in any cell type for a large fraction of the conserved genes in Drosophila.
Therefore, the resulting collection is distinct from existing resources as it allows mitosis-independent
modulation of gene activity, enabling mosaic analysis of gene function during different development stages
and in adults. Moreover, this method allows restoration of gene function with full cell-type and temporal
control. Therefore, this new collection will benefit virtually all Drosophila researchers; as such it is likely that
there will be a high demand for this resource for many years to come. We propose to produce such alleles
for 1,400 highly conserved genes. Our Specific Aims are to:
Aim 1. Generate and validate 2,800 loss- and gain-of-function flip-flop-loxP alleles.
Aim 2. Create and maintain an online searchable database for the flip-flop-loxP collection.
This collection of conditional alleles will complement existing resources by adding significant capability to
investigate gene function in any tissue/cell type in developing or adult flies by either knockout or restoration
of function at any desired time. Once generated, this collection will offer great utility for the Drosophila
research community. As clear evidence of the large size of the potential market, there are at least 2,000
Drosophila laboratories worldwide. Moreover, there are currently 2,567 projects funded by the NIH alone
that have "Drosophila" in the title of the grant, comprising more than 1.1 billion USD in total costs per year.
Since many grants that use Drosophila as a model system do not include the genus name in the title, these
numbers are a clear underestimation of the potential market size. Thus, there is a large and actively funded
research community that represents a substantial market for new reagents of broad utilit...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10546055
- **Project number:** 1R44GM148146-01
- **Recipient organization:** GENETIVISION CORPORATION
- **Principal Investigator:** Ying Tan
- **Activity code:** R44 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2022
- **Award amount:** $893,628
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2022-09-01 → 2024-08-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10546055

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10546055, A Conditional Loss-of-Function Mutation Collection in Drosophila (1R44GM148146-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-06-02 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10546055. Licensed CC0.

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