X-Message-Number: 22271
Date: Wed, 30 Jul 2003 06:53:37 -0700
From: Kennita Watson <>
Subject: Re: 97'th update on fly longevity experiments
References: <>

CryoNet wrote:
> Message #22269
> Date: Tue, 29 Jul 2003 21:11:57 -0700 (PDT)
> From: Doug Skrecky <>
> Subject: 97'th update on fly longevity experiments
> 
>     This is the 97'th update of my fly longevity experiments. Average
> temperature was 21.1 C during this run. Estimated maximal longevity using
> the formula (363 - T*11.2) is 124 days.

Do you know how large the error bars and/or standard deviation
are on this number?

>     Blueberries have exerted some significant neurotropic effects in
> rodents. So it was with some surprise, that I found blueberry juice to be
> ineffective in previous fly longevity experiments. I theorize that
> blueberry (and prune) juices may have previously been exerting toxic side
> effects due to too high a dosage, since the juice fed flies were incapable
> of flight. I try small doses of these juices here, to test this idea out.

How much fly food is there (i.e., what is the concentration
of experimental substances)?  Might even 1/2 tsp be too much?

Have you tried running the same experiment more than once?

Might freshness be a factor?  I hypothesize that some
compounds may degrade more over the course of the
experiments than others, or even rot/become toxic (I'm
not sure blueberry juice that had been at room temperature
for a month would do *me* much good either.)  With that in
mind, might boiling/microwaving the ingredients help?  Or
would one or the other of those destroy "the good stuff"?

>     Neither blueberry nor prune juices prevented flight in the flies in
> this experiment. However no longevity benefits were noted either.
> 
> Run #97                       Percent Survival on Day
> supplement            5  10 15 21 27 33 38 43 49 55 60 65 71
> ____________________________________________________________
> control             100 100 96 88 58 50 46 38 38 38 17  8  0
> blueberry J 1/2 tsp 100 100 87 73 67 57 50 33 23 16  7  0  -
> blueberry J 1 tsp   100 100 67 47 43 37 37 30 20 16  7  7  0
> blueberry J 2 tsp    96  96 69 65 54 46 42 31 12  8  4  0  -
> prune J 1/2 tsp     100 100 77 67 67 53 47 40 37 23 10  7  0
> prune J 1 tsp       100  91 59 50 41 36 36 32 23 14 14  5  0
> prune J 2 tsp       100  96 81 70 63 59 59 56 44 22 11  4  0
-- 
May you live long and prosper,
Kennita
--
Kennita Watson          | Emancipate yourselves from mental slavery;
     |   None but ourselves can free our minds.
http://www.kennita.com  |           -- Bob Marley, "Redemption Song"

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