Chronic low-dose -irradiation of Drosophila melanogaster larvae induces gene expression changes and enhances locomotive behavior

Mar 21, 2015Journal of radiation research

Long-term low-dose gamma radiation changes gene activity and improves movement in fruit fly larvae

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Abstract

Exposure to 0.1 Gy γ-radiation resulted in a 2-fold increase in pupation height of Drosophila melanogaster larvae.

Locomotive behavior in LDR-treated male flies increased by 7.7%, 29%, and 138% compared to controls.
Pupation and eclosion rates, as well as life spans, showed no significant changes after LDR exposure.
A total of 344 genes were identified as differentially expressed in larvae exposed to low-dose radiation.
Differentially expressed genes included those involved in locomotion, oxidation reduction, defense response, and sensory perception.
Four candidate genes were confirmed as having over 2-fold changes in expression in irradiated larvae.

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Although radiation effects have been extensively studied, the biological effects of low-dose radiation (LDR) are controversial. This study investigates LDR-induced alterations in locomotive behavior and gene expression profiles of Drosophila melanogaster. We measured locomotive behavior using larval pupation height and the rapid iterative negative geotaxis (RING) assay after exposure to 0.1 Gy γ-radiation (dose rate of 16.7 mGy/h). We also observed chronic LDR effects on development (pupation and eclosion rates) and longevity (life span). To identify chronic LDR effects on gene expression, we performed whole-genome expression analysis using gene-expression microarrays, and confirmed the results using quantitative real-time PCR. The pupation height of the LDR-treated group at the first larval instar was significantly higher (∼2-fold increase in PHI value, P < 0.05). The locomotive behavior of LDR-treated male flies (∼3 - 5 weeks of age) was significantly increased by 7.7%, 29% and 138%, respectively (P < 0.01), but pupation and eclosion rates and life spans were not significantly altered. Genome-wide expression analysis identified 344 genes that were differentially expressed in irradiated larvae compared with in control larvae. We identified several genes belonging to larval behavior functional groups such as locomotion (1.1%), oxidation reduction (8.0%), and genes involved in conventional functional groups modulated by irradiation such as defense response (4.9%), and sensory and perception (2.5%). Four candidate genes were confirmed as differentially expressed genes in irradiated larvae using qRT-PCR (>2-fold change). These data suggest that LDR stimulates locomotion-related genes, and these genes can be used as potential markers for LDR.

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Chronic low-dose -irradiation of Drosophila melanogaster larvae induces gene expression changes and enhances locomotive behavior

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