Tissue-specific variation in Hsp70 expression and thermal damage in Drosophila melanogaster larvae

All tissues of larval Drosophila melanogaster express Hsp70, the major heat-shock protein of this species, after both mild (36 degrees C) and severe (38.5 degrees C) heat shock. We used Hsp70-specific immunofluorescence to compare the rate and intensity of Hsp70 expression in various tissues after these two heat-shock treatments, and to compare this with related differences in the intensity of Trypan Blue staining shown by the tissues. Trypan Blue is a marker of tissue damage. Hsp70 was rarely detectable before heat shock. Brain, salivary glands, imaginal disks and hindgut expressed Hsp70 within the first hour of heat shock, whereas gut tissues, fat body and Malpighian tubules did not express Hsp70 until 4-21 h after heat shock. Differences in Hsp70 expression between tissues were more pronounced at the higher heat-shock temperature. Tissues that expressed Hsp70 slowly stained most intensely with Trypan Blue. Gut stained especially intensely, which suggests that its sensitivity to heat shock may limit larval thermotolerance. These patterns further suggest that some cells respond primarily to damage caused by heat shock rather than to elevated temperature per se and/or that Hsp70 expression is itself damaged by heat and requires time for recovery in some tissues.