A new chamber for studying the behavior of Drosophila.

ABSTRACT: Methods available for quickly and objectively quantifying the behavioral phenotypes of the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, lag behind in sophistication the tools developed for manipulating their genotypes. We have developed a simple, easy-to-replicate, general-purpose experimental chamber for studying the ground-based behaviors of fruit flies. The major innovative feature of our design is that it restricts flies to a shallow volume of space, forcing all behavioral interactions to take place within a monolayer of individuals. The design lessens the frequency that flies occlude or obscure each other, limits the variability in their appearance, and promotes a greater number of flies to move throughout the center of the chamber, thereby increasing the frequency of their interactions. The n

SUBMITTER: Simon JC 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2811731 | biostudies-literature | 2010 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature