title: Gene expression during blow fly development: improving the precision of age estimates in forensic entomology.
abstract: Forensic entomologists use size and developmental stage to estimate blow fly age, and from those, a postmortem interval. Since such estimates are generally accurate but often lack precision, particularly in the older developmental stages, alternative aging methods would be advantageous. Presented here is a means of incorporating developmentally regulated gene expression levels into traditional stage and size data, with a goal of more precisely estimating developmental age of immature Lucilia sericata. Generalized additive models of development showed improved statistical support compared to models that did not include gene expression data, resulting in an increase in estimate precision, especially for postfeeding third instars and pupae. The models were then used to make blind estimates of development for 86 immature L. sericata raised on rat carcasses. Overall, inclusion of gene expression data resulted in increased precision in aging blow flies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Zoology, Michigan State University, East Lansing, 48824, USA.
authors.forename: Aaron M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Tarone
authors.forename: David R
authors.initials: DR
authors.lastname: Foran
mesh_terms: D018528:ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters / Q000235:genetics; D000110:Acetylcholinesterase / Q000235:genetics; D000818:Animals; D018834:Chaperonin 60 / Q000235:genetics; D002687:Chitin Synthase / Q000235:genetics; D017931:DNA Primers; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D004175:Diptera / Q000235:genetics* / Q000254:growth & development*; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D004772:Entomology; D005136:Eye Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D018732:Forensic Anthropology; D049429:Forensic Pathology; D020869:Gene Expression Profiling; D018841:HSP90 Heat-Shock Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D007814:Larva / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins / Q000235:genetics; D016133:Polymerase Chain Reaction; D011180:Postmortem Changes; D051381:Rats; D011987:Receptors, Steroid / Q000235:genetics; D000076988:Sulfate Transporters; D014157:Transcription Factors / Q000235:genetics; D014404:Tubulin / Q000235:genetics; D051155:Wnt1 Protein / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D018528:ATP-Binding Cassette Transporters; D018834:Chaperonin 60; D017931:DNA Primers; D004268:DNA-Binding Proteins; D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D005136:Eye Proteins; D018841:HSP90 Heat-Shock Proteins; D026901:Membrane Transport Proteins; D011987:Receptors, Steroid; D000076988:Sulfate Transporters; D014157:Transcription Factors; D014404:Tubulin; C066030:USP protein, Drosophila; D051155:Wnt1 Protein; C055469:ecdysone receptor; C476249:sll protein, Drosophila; C059254:w protein, Drosophila; C074622:wg protein, Drosophila; D002687:Chitin Synthase; D000110:Acetylcholinesterase