Life Sciences Commons^™

Increased Abundance Of Frost Mrna During Recovery From Cold Stress Is Not Essential For Cold Tolerance In Adult Drosophila Melanogaster., H Udaka, A Percival-Smith, B J Sinclair

Biology Publications

Frost (Fst) is a candidate gene associated with the response to cold in Drosophila melanogaster because Fst mRNA accumulation increases during recovery from low temperature exposure. We investigated the contribution of Fst expression to chill-coma recovery time, acute cold tolerance and rapid cold hardening (RCH) in adult D. melanogaster by knocking down Fst mRNA expression using GAL4/UAS-mediated RNA interference. In this experiment, four UAS-Fst and one tubulin-GAL4 lines were used. We predicted that if Fst is essential for cold tolerance phenotypes, flies with low Fst mRNA levels should be less cold tolerant than flies with normal levels of cold-induced Fst …

Pharmacological Analysis Of Dopamine Modulation In The Drosophila Melanogaster Larval Heart, Josh S. Titlow, Jenna M. Rufer, Kayla E. King, Robin L. Cooper

Biology Faculty Publications

Dopamine (DA) and other neurotransmitters affect nonneuronal tissues in insects by circulating in the hemolymph. In several organisms, DA has been shown to modulate distinct aspects of cardiac function but the signal transduction pathways that mediate dopaminergic effects on the heart are not well characterized. Here, we used a semiintact Drosophila melanogaster larva preparation and drugs targeting DA receptors and canonical second messenger pathways to identify signaling cascades that mediate the effect of DA on a myogenic heart. DA has a positive chronotropic effect that is mimicked by SKF38393 (type‐1 DA receptor agonist) and quinpirole (type‐2 DA receptor agonist). SCH23390 …

Neurodegeneration In Drop-Dead Mutant Drosophila Melanogaster Is Associated With The Respiratory System But Not With Hypoxia, Christine Lynn Sansone, Edward M. Blumenthal

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Mutations in the gene drop-dead (drd) cause diverse phenotypes in adult Drosophila melanogaster including early lethality, neurodegeneration, tracheal defects, gut dysfunction, reduced body mass, and female sterility. Despite the identification of the drd gene itself, the causes of early lethality and neurodegeneration in the mutant flies remain unknown. To determine the pattern of drd expression associated with the neurodegenerative phenotype, knockdown of drd with various Gal4 drivers was performed. Early adult lethality and neurodegeneration were observed upon knockdown of drd in the tracheal system with two independent insertions of the breathless-Gal4 driver and upon knockdown in the tracheal …

The Effects Of Starvation Selection On Drosophila Melanogaster Life History And Development, Lauren A. Reynolds

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

In nature, animals may endure periods of famine to complete their life cycles. Starvation stress will increase in populations as climates around the world change. To predict how populations may respond to such a stress, laboratory experimentation becomes essential. The evolutionary process of adaptation, its innovations and their trade-offs, can be studied in populations experiencing starvation stress. For this purpose outbred populations ofDrosophila melanogasterwere selected for starvation resistance in the laboratory.

After 60+ generations of starvation selection the starvation-selected flies have gone from surviving 2-3 days without food to 12-14 days without food. How this amazing feat of resistance is …

Diagnosis And Prevention Of Metabolic Diseases In Drosophila Melanogaster, Claire Marie Coogan

Collection of Engaged Learning

No abstract provided.

Locating The Modifier Of Segregation Distorter In Drosophila Melanogaster, Samuel Craven

Honors Program Projects

The Drosophila melanogaster meiotic drive system Segregation Distorter (SD) has been a topic of great interest over the past decades due to its implications for fertility issues in fruit flies and other species as well. Several genes have been associated with this system; however, little research has focused on a particular one of these genes—the Modifier of SD. The location of this modifier gene is still unknown, so multiple deleted segments of DNA that compose a suspect area along the 2nd chromosome were tested here to see if some level of distortion is established in the absence of these segments. …

Phage Life History Traits : Regulation Of Pseudomonas Aeruginosa And Evolution Of Phage Resistance Within The Drosophila Melanogaster Host Environment, Heather Lindberg

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Due to the increase in antibiotic resistant bacteria, there has been renewed interest in using bacteriophage to treat bacterial infections (phage therapy). This body of work examined different aspects related to the interaction between bacteria and phage within a host using the system of Drosophila melanogaster infected with Pseudomonas aeruginosa, which is then treated with lytic bacteriophage. Using this system four specific areas were addressed: I) How in vitro phage life history traits may be predictive of in vivo therapeutic efficacy, II) How the in vivo phage/bacteria dynamics differ for two different phages throughout the course of infection, III) How …

Flying Speed In Drosophila Melanogaster Selected For Fast Flight, Jess Wheeler Ms

All Student Scholarship

The aim of this study was to quantify the increase in flying speed in two replicate lines of Drosophila melanogaster (AA1 and AA2), after approximately 520 generations of selection for fast flight in a wind tunnel.

Genotoxic And Safety Assessment Of 2 Parabens In Somatic Cells Of In Vivo Drosophila Melanogaster, Ari̇f Ayar, Handan Uysal

Turkish Journal of Biology

The objective of this study was to determine the possible genotoxic effects of the para-hydroxybenzoic acid esters (parabens) of methylparaben, propylparaben, and the mixed paraben groups formed by a combination of these, which are used as preservative substances in the food, cosmetic, and drug industries, on Drosophila melanogaster using the wing somatic mutation and recombination test (SMART). According to the data obtained from microscopic analysis, no increase was determined in the single type clone number at various concentrations (100, 150, 200, and 250 mM) of paraben groups in comparison with the control group. In addition, increases corresponding to the concentration …