Nosema kingi: Effects on fecundity, fertility, and longevity ofDrosophila melanogaster

✍ Scribed by Armstrong, Earlene ;Bass, Linda K.

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1989
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 377 KB
• Volume: 250
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0022-104X
• DOI: 10.1002/jez.1402500111

✦ Synopsis

The effects of Nosema kingi on the fecundity, fertility, and longevity of Drosophila rnelanogaster were investigated. These studies revealed that parasitized D. melanogaster lay significantly fewer eggs and produce fewer offspring than nonparasitized flies. Although males tended to live longer than females, the life span of both sexes of infected D. melanogaster was significantly reduced.

An earlier study (Armstrong et al., '86) identified a microsporidium found in D. melanogaster (OR-R strain) as Nosema kingi. This microsporidium was originally found in the Barbados-3 strain of Drosophila willistoni (Burnett and King, '62) and further described by Kramer ('64). Since one of the obvious signs of N . kingi infections in D. melanogaster stock cultures appeared to be reduced fecundity and fertility, a quantitative and qualitative study was undertaken to evaluate these parameters as well as the longevity of the flies during infection.