Hi,
The genetics drosophila (fruit flies) have been studied extensively
for a variety of reasons. Here are the main ones:
-- They are easy to breed
-- Their chromosones are easy to identify
-- They are hardy
-- They have a short life cycle, so genetic changes are visible
quickly
-- They're cheap
-- They're prolific
-- They are tolerant of diverse conditions
-- There are many available mutations
-- Use of flies don't raise ethical questions that use of humans does
I adapted this list came from the following document:
The Genetics of Axis Specification in Drosophila
http://www.gordon.edu/biology/by323/by323ch9.pdf
Here is one explanation of the importance of drosophila research:
Fruit Flies in Space
"For numerous reasons, Drosophila has been utilized as a tool for
basic
biological research for almost a century. Drosophila are small,
require
little storage space or maintenance, and can be grown in numbers large
enough to support meaningful statistical analysis. Their generation
time is short, their small number of chromosomes permits easy genetic
manipulation, and a vast stock of mutant strains exist which affect
every aspect of biology. Many experiments that can be performed
easily,
quickly, and cheaply with Drosophila simply cannot be done for
technical reasons with any other species. Despite the obvious physical
differences between Drosophila and humans, much of our current
understanding of physiology, metabolism, gene expression, reproduction
and development, neurobiology, and aging has arisen directly as a
result of Drosophila research."
http://www.routes.com/projects/current/i-hab/why_fruit_flies_2_column.pdf
I hope this fully answers your question.
Sincerely,
Mvguy-ga
Google search used: "why study drosophila"
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