Lifespan Protocol for Drosophila melanogaster: Generating Survival Curves to Identify Differences in Fly Longevity

Abstract

Source: Bovier, T. F., et al. Methods to Test Endocrine Disruption in Drosophila melanogaster. J. Vis. Exp. (2019).

Scientists use the Drosophila lifespan protocol to measure how different experimental conditions affect flies' longevity and generate survival curves in the process to quantify the experimental outcomes. The sample protocol features the assay being applied to study the effects on longevity from exposure to varying concentrations of endocrine disruptor chemicals, or EDCs, such as 17-α-ethinylestradiol (EE2).

Protocol

This protocol is an excerpt from Bovier et al., Methods to Test Endocrine Disruption in Drosophila melanogaster, J. Vis. Exp. (2019).

1. Food Preparation

1. For stock maintenance and for larval growth, use a cornmeal medium containing 3% powdered yeast, 10% sucrose, 9% precooked cornmeal, 0.4% agar, thereafter called Cornmeal medium (CM).
   1. Put 30 g of yeast into 100 mL of tap water, bring it to a boil and let it boil for 15 min.
   2. Separately, mix well 90 g of precooked cornmeal, 100 g of sugar, and 4 g of agar into 900 mL of tap water.
   3. Bring the solution to a boil, lower the....

Results

Figure 1: Lifespan curves. On the left, a representative table is reported in which the number of dead flies has been recorded every 3 days, both for the treatment group (medium + EDC [0.05 mM EE2]) and for the control group (medium + solvent), throughout the entire experimental period. Th.......

Materials

List of materials used in this article

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
17α-Ethinylestradiol	Sigma	E4876-1G
Agar for Drosophila medium	BIOSIGMA	789148
Cornmeal	CA' BIANCA
Drosophila Vials	BIOSIGMA	789008	25 mm x 95 mm
Drosophila Vials	BIOSIGMA	789009	29 mm x 95 mm
Drosophila Vials	Kaltek	187	22 mm x 63 mm
Ethanol	FLUKA	2860
Glass Bottle			250 mL Bottles
Glass Vials	Microtech	ST 10024	Flat bottom tube 100 x 24
Instant Success yeast	ESKA		Powdered yeast
Methyl4-hydroxybenzoate	SIGMA	H5501
Stereomicroscope with LED lights	Leica		S4E
Sucrose	HIMEDIA	MB025
Hand blender Pimmy	Ariete		food processor