Fig. 4: The TraF-dependent mechanism is active in dsx-expressing cells.

a TraF protein sequence divergence between Drosophila species and the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum. b Sex transformations of abdominal pigmentation and genitalia induced by tra knock-out and knock-in of D. sechellia and D. virilis tra genes. c, d Adult wing size (c), and female fertility (d) quantifications following D. sechellia and D. virilis TraF protein expressions. e Diagrams representing the specific cell population with D. virilis tra expression, the allele generated, and the genotypes tested. f Female fertility quantifications following D. virilis TraF protein expression specifically in fru- or dsx-positive cells. Data was combined from at least three independent experiments. n = wing number measured per genotype in (c) and number of flies in (d) and (f). Asterisks highlighting significant comparisons across sexes are displayed in grey boxes at the bottom of graphs; those highlighting significant comparisons within female datasets are displayed in red. For all panels, p-values from one-sided Mann-Whitney-Wilcoxon tests are ***p < 0.0001, (ns) p > 0.066.