A complete morphological characterization of all life stages of the phorid fly Megaselia scalaris

Megaselia scalaris , commonly known as the scuttle fly, is a cosmopolitan species in the family Phoridae. It is an easily cultured fly species that is an emerging model organism in the fields of genetics and developmental biology. Its affinity for carrion and its predictable life cycle makes it usef...

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Published in:	Scientific reports Vol. 13; no. 1; p. 22933
Main Authors:	Pallavi, Jayakumar, Snehal, Harshita, Kolipakala, Rakshita Sukruth, Salazar, Daniela, Hanbar, Mrunal, Chiramel, Larina Bejoy, Alok Jha, Khushi, Venkatesh, Sai Bhumica Lakshmi, Shetty, Tanishka Dayanand, Madhusudan, Navya, Mohan, Amrutha, John, Amulia, D’souza, Naomi Deep, Sheet, Priyanka, Nagarajan, Deepesh
Format:	Journal Article
Language:	English
Published:	London Nature Publishing Group UK 21-12-2023 Nature Publishing Group Nature Portfolio
Subjects:	631/601 631/601/1466 Carrion Developmental biology Forensic science Genetics Humanities and Social Sciences Life cycles Megaselia scalaris Morphology multidisciplinary Phenotypes Scanning electron microscopy Science Science (multidisciplinary)
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Summary:	Megaselia scalaris , commonly known as the scuttle fly, is a cosmopolitan species in the family Phoridae. It is an easily cultured fly species that is an emerging model organism in the fields of genetics and developmental biology. Its affinity for carrion and its predictable life cycle makes it useful in the field of forensic science for estimating the post-mortem interval (PMI) of human remains. Cases of human myasis caused by M. scalaris have also been reported in the medical literature. Despite its ubiquitous prevalence and its relevance across multiple fields, its morphology has not been adequately characterized. Here, we report the complete morphological characterization of all lifestages of M. scalaris , ranging from egg to adult. Scanning electron microscopy has enabled us to uncover morphological features and developmental processes that have previously not been reported in the literature. Our data lays the groundwork for future genetic studies: a morphological characterization of the wild type must be performed before mutants displaying different phenotypes can be identified. In this vein, we also report the observation of a acephalic, or 'headless’, adult phenotype whose study could yield insights into the process of cephalogenesis. Finally, all morphological features observed have been compiled into an ’atlas’ that should be of use to all workers in the field.
Bibliography:	ObjectType-Article-1 SourceType-Scholarly Journals-1 ObjectType-Feature-2 content type line 23
ISSN:	2045-2322 2045-2322
DOI:	10.1038/s41598-023-50200-6