The determination of aldehyde oxidase activity patterns in the wing discs of Drosophila melanogaster : Absence of field size influence during the third larval instar.

The pattern of aldehyde oxidase (AO) activity was determined in wing discs of Drosophila melanogaster larvae homozygous for the mutants apt , Beaded, and vestigial (vg) in order to determine if reduction in field size in the pouch could be related to alterations of the wild-type AO pattern, as suggested by the Kauffman (1978) hypothesis. The pattern in wild-type discs was resolved into six areas for comparison with mutant discs. vg discs developed at 25° C showed restriction of the pattern into a small area on the anterior side of the disc, and comparison of vg and wild-type prepupal wings allowed positive identification of the AO pattern elements which remained.