Fruit flies are a nuisance to most, but these little insects are the pride & joy of many biologists working in the laboratory. They were first used in genetics, where scientists came up with many colourful names for genes they identified (sonic hedgehog anyone?) Today, Drosophila are used in many biological fields, including development, ecology, evolution, & neurobiology. They can be kept in little vials in the laboratory where they feast on yeast. One of their greatest advantages that makes them wonderful genetic models is their short generation time of 11 days. Orange coloured mug featuring an illustration of Drosophila melanogaster & some facts about it. Printed on demand in the UK. UK shipping included. International shipping supplement. MODEL ORGANISMS Guinea pigs & lab rats are the stereotypical terms that come to mind when people think of labs & experiments & science. in actuality, neither of these animals are commonly used in science anymore, though a few decades ago they were the staples of animal experimentation. Today, scientists use a range of other organisms, collectively termed model organisms, to learn about biology. Model organisms tend to be ones that are both cheap, & easy to breed & maintain in a laboratory. Often these organisms take up little lab space, as well as having quick generation times & rapid life cycles. They offer simpler systems to study the mechanisms underlying processes in more complex creatures such as humans, & allow scientists to understand things that can’t be studied directly - like genetics or human diseases. This print contains the organisms: Ciona intestinalis, Escherichia coli, Saccharomyces cerevisae, Caenorhabditis elegans, Danio rerio, Peromyscus, Drosophila melanogaster, Mus musculus, Arabidopsis thaliana & Zea mays Drosophila Model Organism Mug
