Longevity is a temporal characteristic dependent on the level of equilibrium between the damaging and restorative processes in an organism. This is a complex parameter determined by both genotypic and external factors. In experiments with the mutant strain of Drosophila melanogaster mei-41D5, it was demonstrated that chronic exposure to low-dose radiation can change the longevity of flies. A decrease in the longevity of both males and homo- and heterozygous females of this strain was also caused by specific inducers of apoptosis. We suggest that apoptosis plays a certain role in the aging of an organism and that the dominant gene mei-41D5 takes part in determining longevity in Drosophila.