Resveratrol and food effects on lifespan and reproduction in the model crustacean Daphnia.

Longevity is a highly variable life history trait and its variation is attributable to both genetic and environmental factors. Exploring well-known environmental factors in a new model system is a useful approach to explore taxonomic variation in plasticity of longevity. We examined responsiveness of the Daphnia pulex clone TCO to potentially related interventions that have been reported to extend lifespan: resveratrol and dietary restriction. First, we examined effects of resveratrol on lifespan and fecundity in TCO which were grown at moderate (12K cells Ankistrodesmus falcatus mL⁻¹) and high (20K cells A. falcatus mL⁻¹) food levels. We found no evidence for lifespan extension by resveratrol, but found a reduction of lifetime fecundity. The effect of resveratrol on fecundity was more pronounced early in life. We then conducted an additional life table to test the effect of dietary restriction on TCO. Surprisingly, reduced food level did not extend the lifespan of TCO, which contrasts with previous studies in D. pulex. Our results suggest that variation in the response to dietary restriction might be more common than previously thought. If resveratrol activates genes involved in the response to dietary restriction, genetic polymorphisms in dietary restriction will influence responses to resveratrol. Thus, this experiment suggests that careful re-examination of resveratrol effects using diverse genotypes is required.