Effects of Perga (Bee bread) on Metamorphosis, Mortality, and Fecundity in Drosophila melanogaster

Abstract

The present study aimed to investigate the effects of Perga ,whose high biological activity inhibits mold and fungal growth and increases the level of breeding hormones, on the rate of larva-pupa-adult metamorphosis, survival and fecundity in Drosophila melanogaster. The study determined the metamorphosis and mortality rates of 3rd stage D. melanogaster larvae placed in media containing Perga at different concentrations (5, 2.5, 1.25, 0.625, and 0.3125 mg/ml) and in Perga-free media as well as the fecundity rates of female individuals developing from larvae. The obtained data revealed that there was a significant increase in the fecundity rates of female individuals grown in media containing Perga at 5 different concentrations (p <0.05). While the mean fecundity rate was 57±0.88 in female individuals grown in media containing 2.5mg/ml Perga, this rate was found to be 47±1.15 in the standard Drosophila medium containing no Perga, which was the control group. Considering Perga's effects on larval mortality in 3rd stage Drosophila melanogaster larvae, while the percentage of survival was 94% in the control group, it was determined as 98% in the larvae fed with Perga (p <0.05). Considering the metamorphosis rates, no significant increase was observed in the number of individuals who could develop from larva to adult (p> 0.05). The present study revealed the positive effects of this precious apitherapic product, whose effects and importance are not well known, on vital parameters in D. melanogaster, a eukaryotic model organism.

Keywords

• Bee bread
• Perga
• Drosophila melanogaster
• Fecundity
• Mortality
• Metamorphosis

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