= Ronald J. Konopka
{c}
<Ronald J. Konopka> coauthored the 1971 identification of <circadian rhythm> mutants in <Drosophila melanogaster> with <Seymour Benzer>. Their screen produced arrhythmic, short-period and long-period flies. The combination showed that a <mutation> can alter the period of an internal timing mechanism, rather than only disabling movement altogether.<Clock Mutants of Drosophila melanogaster by Ronald J. Konopka and Seymour Benzer>[Abstract: arrhythmic, 19-hour and 28-hour phenotypes]{ref}
Automatic collection measured when adults emerged, and infrared detectors measured individual locomotion. Tests in constant darkness separated free-running timing from direct light-driven activity. Mapping and complementation indicated that the three mutations affected the same functional <gene> on the <X chromosome>, providing an entry point for the <genetics> of biological clocks.<Clock Mutants of Drosophila melanogaster by Ronald J. Konopka and Seymour Benzer>[Printed pp. 2112–2115, apparatus and genetic analysis]{ref}
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