Related topics: current biology · fruit flies

Same gene, different mating techniques in flies

A study of two related species of fruit fly published in JNeurosci reveals that a gene known to regulate behavior for attracting a mate in one species gives rise to unique wooing techniques observed in the other species.

Drosophilia brings to light the role of morphogens in limb growth

Researchers working in the Development and Growth Control Lab at IRB Barcelona reveal that the Dpp gene (BMP in humans) plays a double role in the structural organisation and growth of the wings of the fruit fly Drosophila ...

XX protection against age-related mutations

Researchers at the University of Valencia's Cavanilles Institute of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology have put the 'unguarded X hypothesis' to the test and confirmed that differences in lifespan between the sexes, a widespread ...

African universities reap fruits of fly research

Fruit flies are proving the unlikely source of a new initiative to help improve postgraduate research opportunities in Africa, with the support of Cambridge academics. 

Fruit flies crucial to basic research

The world around us is full of amazing creatures. My favorite is an animal the size of a pinhead, that can fly and land on the ceiling, that stages an elaborate (if not beautiful) courtship ritual, that can learn and remember… ...

Leaf odor attracts Drosophila suzukii

In 2014, more spotted-wing Drosophila suzukii than ever before were observed in Germany. This pest lays its eggs in fresh and ripening fruits before they are harvested. Infested fruits are often additionally infected with ...

New technique captures real-time diagnostic 3-D images

Research, recently published in the journal Scientific Reports, makes it possible to follow the development of living organisms up to three millimetres long with three-dimensional images.  These organisms, such as the zebrafish ...

Toxic fruits hold the key to reproductive success

In the course of evolution, animals have become adapted to certain food sources, sometimes even to plants or to fruits that are actually toxic. The driving forces behind such adaptive mechanisms are often unknown. Scientists ...

New mechanism for growth control discovered

Research on Drosophila reveals that once activated during starvation, this regulatory system prevents the secretion of insulin like peptides, the counterparts of IGF and insulin in mammals.

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