Drosophila

Drosophila is a genus of small flies in the family Drosophilidae, with Drosophila melanogaster as the best-known species. It is a premier model organism in genetics and developmental biology due to a short life cycle, high fecundity, and ease of care in the laboratory.

Under standard conditions, D. melanogaster develops from egg to adult in about 10 days at 25°C. The life cycle includes egg, three larval instars, pupa, and the adult. Females lay hundreds of eggs, and generations can be produced rapidly, enabling multigenerational genetic studies. They are commonly found on rotting fruit and other decaying organic matter.

Genetics and genome: The species has four chromosome pairs: X and Y as the sex chromosomes and autosomes 2, 3, and 4. Females are XX and males XY. The genome is approximately 165 million base pairs and contains about 14,000 genes. Drosophila has been central to genetics since Thomas Hunt Morgan's experiments linking genes to chromosomes. A wide array of genetic tools exists, including P-element transposon insertions, GAL4/UAS binary expression systems, and CRISPR-based editing.

Research and applications: Drosophila serves as a model in developmental biology, neurobiology, circadian biology, aging, and disease modeling. Conservation of many signaling pathways with vertebrates makes it useful for understanding basic biology and for drug and genetic screens. The community maintains extensive stock resources, and the species is also widely used in education.