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Science 6 February 2004:
Vol. 303. no. 5659, pp. 832 - 835
DOI: 10.1126/science.1091266
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Reports

Genome-Wide RNAi Analysis of Growth and Viability in Drosophila Cells

Michael Boutros,1*{dagger} Amy A. Kiger,1* Susan Armknecht,1,2 Kim Kerr,1,2 Marc Hild,3 Britta Koch,3 Stefan A. Haas,4 Heidelberg Fly Array Consortium,3 Renato Paro,3 Norbert Perrimon1,2{ddagger}

A crucial aim upon completion of whole genome sequences is the functional analysis of all predicted genes. We have applied a high-throughput RNA-interference (RNAi) screen of 19,470 double-stranded (ds) RNAs in cultured cells to characterize the function of nearly all (91%) predicted Drosophila genes in cell growth and viability. We found 438 dsRNAs that identified essential genes, among which 80% lacked mutant alleles. A quantitative assay of cell number was applied to identify genes of known and uncharacterized functions. In particular, we demonstrate a role for the homolog of a mammalian acute myeloid leukemia gene (AML1) in cell survival. Such a systematic screen for cell phenotypes, such as cell viability, can thus be effective in characterizing functionally related genes on a genome-wide scale.

1 Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
2 Howard Hughes Medical Institute (HHMI), Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
3 Zentrum für Molekulare Biologie der Universität Heidelberg, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany. The Heidelberg Fly Array Consortium consists of Marc Hild, Boris Beckmann, Stefan Haas, Britta Koch, Martin Vingron, Frank Sauer, Jörg Hoheisel, and Renato Paro.
4 Max-Planck Institute for Molecular Genetics, D-14195 Berlin, Germany.



* These authors contributed equally to this work.

{dagger} Present address: German Cancer Research Center, D-69120 Heidelberg, Germany.

{ddagger} To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: perrimon{at}rascal.med.harvard.edu

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