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Updated: Jun 4, 2026
Straightforward Assay for Quantification of Social Avoidance in Drosophila melanogaster
Published on: December 13, 2014
A behavioral stress assay in Drosophila larvae
Elizabeth A Daubert1, Barry G Condron
1Department of Biology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, Virginia 22903-4328, USA.
Abstract:
INTRODUCTIONThis protocol describes a simple behavioral assay designed to test the response of Drosophila larvae to a homeostatic insult: bright light. Treating normally photophobic larvae with bright light before placing them near a target food source reveals a greater latency to reach the target when compared to controls not receiving light treatment. This effect is reversible given a recovery period after light treatment, and it may reveal a method by which to measure behavioral plasticity and stress responses in fruit fly larvae.
