Drosophila Burrowing and Tunneling Assay: A Method to Assess Tissue Hypoxia in Fly Larvae
Published: April 30, 2023
Abstract
Source: Qiang, K. M., et al. A Burrowing/Tunneling Assay for Detection of Hypoxia in Drosophila melanogaster Larvae. J. Vis. Exp. (2018).
This video shows a method to test hypoxia in Drosophila larvae by assessing their burrowing and tunneling abilities. Using this technique researchers can distinguish larvae experiencing oxygen deprivation from those with developmental deficits. The example protocol demonstrates the setup for this assay.
Protocol
This protocol is an excerpt from Qiang et al., A Burrowing/Tunneling Assay for Detection of Hypoxia in Drosophila melanogaster Larvae, J. Vis. Exp. (2018). 1. Preparation of larvae Two or more days before beginning the assay, set up crosses of the desired experimental and control combinations (minimum 20 females and 10 males each) in egg-lay dishes as described by Wieschaus and Nusslein-Volhard but using 50 mL polypropylene beak…
Materials
| REAGENTS | |||
| Dehydrated yeast | |||
| Frozen grape juice concentrate | Welch's | Available at most large supermarkets | |
| Glacial acetic acid | Sigma-Aldrich | 320099 | |
| Drosophila agar | Apex Bioresearch Products | 66-103 | |
| Methyl-para-hydroxybenzoate | Apex Bioresearch Products | 20-658 | |
| EQUIPMENT | |||
| 50 ml polypropylene beakers | |||
| 6.0 cm disposable Petri dishes | Falcon | 08757100B | |
| 10 cm disposable plastic Petri dishes | E+K Scientific | EK-24104 | |
| Plastic microspatulas | Corning Incorporated | 3012 | |
| Bent teasing needle | Nasco | S08848MH | |
| Dissecting microscope | Any microscope with 10-30X magnification |
Cite This Article
Drosophila Burrowing and Tunneling Assay: A Method to Assess Tissue Hypoxia in Fly Larvae. J. Vis. Exp. (Pending Publication), e20076, doi: (2023).