Karpova E.K., Adonyeva N.V., Deryuzhenko M.A., Gruntenko N.E. 2025. The role of dopamine in Drosophila melanogaster Meigen, 1830 fitness under chronic stress // Euroasian Entomological Journal. Vol.24. No.5: 239–243 [in English].
Institute of Cytology and Genetics SB RAS, Lavrentjeva Ave. 10, Novosibirsk 630090 Russia. E-mail: karpova@bionet.nsc.ru
doi 10.15298/euroasentj.24.05.01
ABSTRACT. Dopamine is a key link of the neuroendocrine stress response in insects, Drosophila melanogaster Meigen, 1830 in particular. Since earlier a decrease in the dopamine level had been found in insects having undergone chronic stress, we assumed that an artificial increase in the dopamine level can lead to increase insect resistance to chronic stress. Here we present the results of experimental testing of this assumption. It turned out that increasing the dopamine level by feeding D. melanogaster imagoes with its precursor L-DOPA does not elicit increased viability under acute stress but impedes it being increased as a result of chronic stress. It also did not affect D. melanogaster fertility both under normal conditions and under chronic stress. However, we discovered that increasing the dopamine level leads to decreased food consumption in flies under chronic stress. So, the data obtained allow us to conclude that dopamine takes part in controlling feeding behavior under chronic stress but does not regulate longevity and fertility.
KEY WORDS: Chronic stress, Drosophila melanogaster, feeding behavior, fertility, longevity.