100% penetrant maternal effect phenotype that is not subject to paternal rescue. Severe defects in cell division pathways and structure of the cell layers. Nuclear density is uneven at the syncytial embryo surface after nuclear migration and the regions devoid of nuclei contain "extra" centrosomes. Fail to separate chromatin at anaphase, can result in chromatin fragmentation. P element mediated transformation of the wild type lds gene restored fertility in homozygous females.