title: Assessing senescence in Drosophila using video tracking.
abstract: Senescence is associated with changes in gene expression, including the upregulation of stress response- and innate immune response-related genes. In addition, aging animals exhibit characteristic changes in movement behaviors including decreased gait speed and a deterioration in sleep/wake rhythms. Here, we describe methods for tracking Drosophila melanogaster movements in 3D with simultaneous quantification of fluorescent transgenic reporters. This approach allows for the assessment of correlations between behavior, aging, and gene expression as well as for the quantification of biomarkers of aging.
authors.affiliation: Molecular and Computational Biology Program, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
authors.forename: Reza
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ardekani
authors.forename: Simon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tavaré
authors.forename: John
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Tower
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology*; D000818:Animals; D002138:Calibration; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000502:physiology*; D017930:Genes, Reporter / Q000235:genetics; D009068:Movement; D012984:Software; D014743:Videotape Recording / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*