The Utilization of Sugars and Other Substances by Drosophila

Drosophila melanogaster can survive for varying periods on pure solutions of many compounds, including sugars, polysaccharides, polyhydric alcohols, aliphatic acids, etc. 2. In equivalent solutions, the order of usefulness of some common sugars was found to be: fructose > maltose > sucrose > glucose > galactose > xylose > lactose. 3. There is no significant difference in life span between flies fed on disaccharides and their constituent monosaccharides. 4. Doubtful sugars can usually be resolved into toxic, repellent, or slightly useful substances by offering them in dilute sucrose solutions. 5. On a sterile, "starvation" diet, larvae develop better on fructose than on glucose. 6. On the basis of survival when fed pure substances, Drosophila seems to possess alpha-glucosidase, alpha-galactosidase, beta-fructofuranosidase and amylase.