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Article: Fruit Flies, Drosophila
- Article from:
- Encyclopedia of Aging
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2002 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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FRUIT FLIES,
DROSOPHILA
The fruit fly,
Drosophila melanogaster,
has been a leading model for aging research since early in the twentieth century. The benefits of using
D. melanogaster
for research include its short life span (1 to 2 months), ease of culture, and the availability of powerful genetic and molecular biological tools. The latter includes the
Drosophila
"P element," which is a transposable element. Transposable elements are pieces of DNA that can insert into the DNA of a chromosome, and can move from one place in the DNA to another under appropriate conditions. The P element has been engineered so that scientists can control its movement in
D. melanogaster.
For example, it ...