Context-dependent effects of developmental and adult diet on life-history traits in Drosophila melanogaster

Life-history traits such as body size, reproduction, survival, and stress resistance are fundamental to an organism's fitness and are highly influenced by nutritional environments across life stages. In this study, we employed a full factorial experimental design to investigate the effects of isocaloric diets (diets with equal caloric content but differing macronutrient composition) on key life-history traits in an outbred Drosophila melanogaster population. Our results demonstrated significant diet-induced plasticity, with male wing length (a proxy for body size) being influenced by the developmental diet; males reared on carbohydrate-rich developmental diets had larger wings as adults. Fertility increased with protein-rich diets at both developmental and adult stages, reaffirming the critical role of dietary protein in enhancing reproductive success. Lifespan exhibited sexually dimorphic responses to diet: carbohydrate-rich developmental diets extended male lifespan, while carbohydrat..., , , # **Context-dependent effects of developmental and adult diet on life-history traits in Drosophila melanogaster**

#### Authors and Contact Information

1. #### **Mohankumar Chandrakanth** – *[[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail])*
2. **Nishant Kumar** – *[[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail])*
3. **Chand Sura** – *[[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail])*
4. **Sudipta Tung** – *[[e-mail]](mailto:[e-mail])*

#### Study Summary

This dataset accompanies our study examining how stage-specific, isocaloric dietary compositions affect key life-history traits in *Drosophila melanogaster*. By altering the macronutrient composition (protein: carbohydrate ratio) during larval and adult stages, we assess how mismatches between developmental and adult nutrition influence traits such as body size, fertility, longevity, starvation resistance, and desiccation resistance.

#### Dataset Stru...,