This repository contains code and files used in the manuscript "Responses of Drosophila pseudoobscura to diet manipulation of nutrient density."
Data and scripts used for the single-strain, MV2-25, analysis start with "MV225" while those used for the multi-strain data start with "Strain".
Caloric intake can greatly affect many aspects of an organism’s life. A deficiency of calories can lead to stress resulting in decreased fecundity, not enough calories to maintain tissues, and increased lifespan. While increases in calories tend to increase fecundity and decrease lifespan. Despite decades of work exploring food quality and quantity on physiology in the model species Drosophila melanogaster, relatively little work explores the physiological responses to diet manipulation in Drosophila pseudoobscura. Here we examined the effects of five different caloric densities on food intake, body weight, body fat, fecundity, and longevity in D. pseudoobscura. Comparing longevity and fecundity across diets, we found that heavy caloric concentration (3.0x) decreases lifespan (p < 0.001) and that calorie restriction (0.5x and 0.75x) leads to decreases in fecundity (p < 0.001) and body weight (p = 0.002). However, calorie concentration did not significantly increase D. pseudoobscura body fat (p = 0.14). By expanding our understanding of the physiological responses to diet stress to D. pseudoobscura, we can establish comparative work across Drosophila species, which is currently lacking. With this information, we can then identify which responses might be most conserved and comparable across species.