• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.46 no.1
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• pp.33-36
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• 2008

Megaselia scalaris (Diptera: Phoridae) is one of the medically important insects. Maggots from a urine sample of a 5-year-old Saudi girl were examined microscopically for identification. These maggots were cultured to become adult flies. Larvae and adults were identified using standard keys. Protozoan flagellates were obtained from the gut of the larvae. This is the first report of M. scalaris as a causative agent of urinary human myiasis in Saudi Arabia.

• Biomedical Science Letters
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.125-129
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• 2018

Megaselia scalaris, also known as the scuttle fly, has a humpbacked morphology and was categorized as an insect undergoing complete metamorphosis. Megaselia scalaris was reported to be found in diverse environments. Recently, the scuttle fly has been a focus of studies by forensic scientists, geneticists, and developmental biologists. However, detailed research into scuttle fly development is still unclear. Therefore, the current study has been performed to elucidate the development of Megaselia scalaris. The scuttle fly undergoes four distinct stages of development: egg, larva, pupa and adult fly. After mating, the scuttle fly eggs hatch within one day and become larvae. The newly generated larvae go through 1, 2, and 3 instar stages within a period of 5~10 days. The instar stage 1 takes 1~2 days, instar stage 2 takes 1~2 days, and instar stage 3 takes 3~5 days. Depending on the environmental temperature, the pupae stage takes approximately 10~15 days to complete. The pupa stage can be divided into five sub-stages: 1~3 days, 4~6 days, 7~9 days, 10~12 days and 13~15 days. After molting, the newly formed adult scuttle fly can fly after one day. The morphological characteristics of the scuttle fly during each stage of development was detailed within this study.

• Korean Journal of Clinical Laboratory Science
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• v.50 no.3
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• pp.284-288
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• 2018

The scuttle fly central nervous system (CNS) is unobservable during egg and larvae instar stage 1. During days 2~3 of larvae instar stage 2, the left and right hemisphere of the brain can be observed. Below the brain, the subesophageal ganglion (SOG) connects to the ventral nerve cord (VNC). During days 3~5 of larvae instar stage 3, the CNS enlarged slightly with no other changes. During days 1~3 of the pupal stage the CNS moved to the head with no distinguishable changes from the previous stage. During days 4~6 of the pupal stage, the left and right hemisphere of the brain had fused into one mass and the optic lobe (OL) located on the side of the brain completed its development. During days 7~9 of the pupal stage, the OL began to show eyeball pigment. The SOG was connected to the brain and the VNC began to separate, which was accompanied by an increase in nerve fibers. During days 10~12 of the pupal stage, the brain of the CNS and VNC was clearly distinguished and the brown pigmentation of OL became darker. During days 13~15 days of the pupal stage, the separated brain and VNC became connected by thin nerve fiber. The VNC began to separate into two with a greater increase in nerve fibers. The adult fly showed similar features to the previous stage, but the brain was located in the head and the VNC in the chest.