Abstract
The fruitfly (Drosophila melanogaster) visual system was investigated electrophysiologically in vivo after exposure to a zero magnetic field (ZMF). Electroretinographic (ERG) recording of fly eye electrical activity was performed on adult insects raised from pupae maintained for 20 hr in zero magnetic field. A flickering excitation regime was applied to excite the visual system, since in this way, a quasistable hyperpolarization component of the electroretinogram can be obtained, containing information from the neural cells, which are the most sensitive to the action of external factors during early ontogenetic stages. Results of the investigation of two D. melanogaster populations, sample and control, were statistically compared.
We found a significant statistical increase of sensitivity in neural cells from the first optic ganglion in the fly population developed from pupae exposed to ZMF.