Suppressor screens are an invaluable method for identifying novel genetic interactions between genes in the model organism Caenorhabditis elegans. However, traditionally this approach has suffered from the laborious and protracted process of mapping mutations at the molecular level. Using a mutagen known to generate small deletions, coupled with oligoarray comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH), we have identified mutations in two genes that suppress the lethality associated with a mutation of the essential receptor tyrosine kinase rol-3. First, we find that deletion of the Bicaudal-C ortholog, bcc-1, suppresses rol-3-associated lethality. Second, we identify several duplications that also suppress rol-3-associated lethality. We establish that overexpression of srap-1, a single gene present in these duplications, mediates the suppression. This study demonstrates the suitability of deletion-biased mutagenesis screening in combination with aCGH characterization for the rapid identification of novel suppressor mutations. In addition to detecting small deletions, this approach is suitable for identifying copy number suppressor mutations, a class of suppressor not easily characterized using alternative approaches.
Keywords: BCC-1; Caenorhabditis elegans; ROL-3; SRAP-1; duplication suppressors; oligoarray comparative genomic hybridization.