A mild stress due to hypergravity exposure at young age increases longevity in Drosophila melanogaster males

Drosophila melanogaster flies were exposed to hypergravity starting at two days of age, the range of gravity levels used being 2.58-7.38 g. No longevi ty change was observed for exposures of less than 14 days. The longevity of males increased if they were submitted to hypergravity for durations rangi ng from 14 to 24 days. This increase in longevity was never observed in fem ales. The positive effect of exposure to hypergravity has been replicated i n two laboratories using two wild-type strains and different rearing condit ions. A short hypergravity exposure seems to be a mild stress, yielding pos itive effects on longevity. This is in accordance with two previous studies showing a slight longevity increase after heat shock in the nematode Caeno rhabditis elegans and in Drosophila melanogaster.