Meeting Abstract

104.2  Thursday, Jan. 7  Geometric characterization and phenotypic plasticity in the tracheal networks supplying insect flight muscle WATERS, James S*; HARRISON, Jon F; Arizona State University; Arizona State University james.waters@asu.edu

Tracheal networks extend throughout the metabolic tissues of insects and are responsible for providing pathways for the transport of critical respiratory gasses. The structure of these networks in the flight muscle of Drosophila melanogaster was investigated using confocal microscopy, taking advantage of the autofluorescence of tracheal chitin to visualize tracheae and tracheoles ranging from 20 to 0.5 micrometers in diameter. Flies were reared from egg to adulthood in 10, 21 or 40% oxygen atmospheres, and killed and fixed on the fourth day of adulthood. The extent to which the distal branches of these networks approximate fractal structures was quantified by means of topology, box counting, allometry, Horton analysis, and comparing an inverse power-law distribution with an exponential model. Tracheole density was strongly inversely proportional to the concentration of atmospheric oxygen, demonstrating that the adult tracheal system exhibits a major compensatory response to the larval oxygen environment. This research was supported by NSF GRFP to JSW and NSF IBN 0419704 to JFH.