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Gattuso H, Nuñez K, de la Rea B, Ermentrout B, Victor J, Nagel K. Inhibitory control of locomotor statistics in walking Drosophila. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.04.15.589655. [PMID: 38659800 PMCID: PMC11042290 DOI: 10.1101/2024.04.15.589655] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
In order to forage for food, many animals regulate not only specific limb movements but the statistics of locomotor behavior over time, for example switching between long-range dispersal behaviors and more localized search depending on the availability of resources. How pre-motor circuits regulate such locomotor statistics is not clear. Here we took advantage of the robust changes in locomotor statistics evoked by attractive odors in walking Drosophila to investigate their neural control. We began by analyzing the statistics of ground speed and angular velocity during three well-defined motor regimes: baseline walking, upwind running during odor, and search behavior following odor offset. We find that during search behavior, flies adopt higher angular velocities and slower ground speeds, and tend to turn for longer periods of time in one direction. We further find that flies spontaneously adopt periods of different mean ground speed, and that these changes in state influence the length of odor-evoked runs. We next developed a simple physiologically-inspired computational model of locomotor control that can recapitulate these statistical features of fly locomotion. Our model suggests that contralateral inhibition plays a key role both in regulating the difference between baseline and search behavior, and in modulating the response to odor with ground speed. As the fly connectome predicts decussating inhibitory neurons in the lateral accessory lobe (LAL), a pre-motor structure, we generated genetic tools to target these neurons and test their role in behavior. Consistent with our model, we found that activation of neurons labeled in one line increased curvature. In a second line labeling distinct neurons, activation and inactivation strongly and reciprocally regulated ground speed and altered the length of the odor-evoked run. Additional targeted light activation experiments argue that these effects arise from the brain rather than from neurons in the ventral nerve cord, while sparse activation experiments argue that speed control in the second line arises from both LAL neurons and a population of neurons in the dorsal superior medial protocerebrum (SMP). Together, our work develops a biologically plausible computational architecture that captures the statistical features of fly locomotion across behavioral states and identifies potential neural substrates of these computations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah Gattuso
- Department of Neuroscience, NYU School of Medicine, 435 E 30 St. New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Kavin Nuñez
- Department of Neuroscience, NYU School of Medicine, 435 E 30 St. New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Beatriz de la Rea
- Department of Neuroscience, NYU School of Medicine, 435 E 30 St. New York, NY 10016, USA
| | - Bard Ermentrout
- Department of Mathematics, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Jonathan Victor
- Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA
| | - Katherine Nagel
- Department of Neuroscience, NYU School of Medicine, 435 E 30 St. New York, NY 10016, USA
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2
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Kann MR, Ackerman MK, Ackerman SD. OptoChamber: A Low-cost, Easy-to-Make, Customizable, and Multi-Chambered Electronic Device for Applying Optogenetic Stimulation to Larval Drosophila melanogaster. MICROPUBLICATION BIOLOGY 2024; 2024:10.17912/micropub.biology.001082. [PMID: 38681674 PMCID: PMC11056014 DOI: 10.17912/micropub.biology.001082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2023] [Revised: 03/26/2024] [Accepted: 04/11/2024] [Indexed: 05/01/2024]
Abstract
Optogenetics is a powerful tool used to manipulate physiological processes in animals through cell-specific expression of genetically modified channelrhodopsins. In Drosophila melanogaster, optogenetics is frequently used for temporal control of neuronal activation or silencing through light-dependent actuation of cation and anion channelrhodopsins, respectively. The high setup costs and complexity associated with commercially available optogenetic systems prevents many investigators from exploring the use of this technology. We developed a low-cost, customizable, and easy-to-make optogenetics chamber (OptoChamber) and verified its functionality in a robust cellular assay: activity-dependent remodeling of larval motor neurons in Drosophila embryos.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Ryan Kann
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Brian Immunology & Glia (BIG) Center, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, United States
- University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, United States
| | | | - Sarah D. Ackerman
- Department of Pathology and Immunology, Brian Immunology & Glia (BIG) Center, Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine, St Louis, Missouri, United States
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3
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Meng J, Ahamed T, Yu B, Hung W, EI Mouridi S, Wang Z, Zhang Y, Wen Q, Boulin T, Gao S, Zhen M. A tonically active master neuron modulates mutually exclusive motor states at two timescales. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadk0002. [PMID: 38598630 PMCID: PMC11006214 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adk0002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 03/07/2024] [Indexed: 04/12/2024]
Abstract
Continuity of behaviors requires animals to make smooth transitions between mutually exclusive behavioral states. Neural principles that govern these transitions are not well understood. Caenorhabditis elegans spontaneously switch between two opposite motor states, forward and backward movement, a phenomenon thought to reflect the reciprocal inhibition between interneurons AVB and AVA. Here, we report that spontaneous locomotion and their corresponding motor circuits are not separately controlled. AVA and AVB are neither functionally equivalent nor strictly reciprocally inhibitory. AVA, but not AVB, maintains a depolarized membrane potential. While AVA phasically inhibits the forward promoting interneuron AVB at a fast timescale, it maintains a tonic, extrasynaptic excitation on AVB over the longer timescale. We propose that AVA, with tonic and phasic activity of opposite polarities on different timescales, acts as a master neuron to break the symmetry between the underlying forward and backward motor circuits. This master neuron model offers a parsimonious solution for sustained locomotion consisted of mutually exclusive motor states.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Meng
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Tosif Ahamed
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Bin Yu
- College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Wesley Hung
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
| | - Sonia EI Mouridi
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, MeLiS, CNRS UMR 5284, INSERM U1314, 69008 Lyon, France
| | - Zezhen Wang
- Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Yongning Zhang
- College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Quan Wen
- Division of Life Sciences and Medicine, University of Science and Technology of China, Hefei, Anhui, China
| | - Thomas Boulin
- University Claude Bernard Lyon 1, MeLiS, CNRS UMR 5284, INSERM U1314, 69008 Lyon, France
| | - Shangbang Gao
- College of Life Science and Technology, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China
| | - Mei Zhen
- Department of Physiology, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, Canada
- Lunenfeld-Tanenbaum Research Institute, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
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4
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Gowda SBM, Banu A, Hussain S, Mohammad F. Neuronal mechanisms regulating locomotion in adult Drosophila. J Neurosci Res 2024; 102:e25332. [PMID: 38646942 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.25332] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/26/2024] [Revised: 04/01/2024] [Accepted: 04/03/2024] [Indexed: 04/25/2024]
Abstract
The coordinated action of multiple leg joints and muscles is required even for the simplest movements. Understanding the neuronal circuits and mechanisms that generate precise movements is essential for comprehending the neuronal basis of the locomotion and to infer the neuronal mechanisms underlying several locomotor-related diseases. Drosophila melanogaster provides an excellent model system for investigating the neuronal circuits underlying motor behaviors due to its simple nervous system and genetic accessibility. This review discusses current genetic methods for studying locomotor circuits and their function in adult Drosophila. We highlight recently identified neuronal pathways that modulate distinct forward and backward locomotion and describe the underlying neuronal control of leg swing and stance phases in freely moving flies. We also report various automated leg tracking methods to measure leg motion parameters and define inter-leg coordination, gait and locomotor speed of freely moving adult flies. Finally, we emphasize the role of leg proprioceptive signals to central motor circuits in leg coordination. Together, this review highlights the utility of adult Drosophila as a model to uncover underlying motor circuitry and the functional organization of the leg motor system that governs correct movement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Swetha B M Gowda
- Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS), College of Health and Life Sciences (CHLS), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), Doha, Qatar
| | - Ayesha Banu
- Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS), College of Health and Life Sciences (CHLS), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), Doha, Qatar
| | - Sadam Hussain
- Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS), College of Health and Life Sciences (CHLS), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), Doha, Qatar
| | - Farhan Mohammad
- Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS), College of Health and Life Sciences (CHLS), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), Doha, Qatar
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5
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Diamandi JA, Duckhorn JC, Miller KE, Weinstock M, Leone S, Murphy MR, Shirangi TR. Developmental remodeling repurposes larval neurons for sexual behaviors in adult Drosophila. Curr Biol 2024; 34:1183-1193.e3. [PMID: 38377996 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.01.065] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2023] [Revised: 01/05/2024] [Accepted: 01/26/2024] [Indexed: 02/22/2024]
Abstract
Most larval neurons in Drosophila are repurposed during metamorphosis for functions in adult life, but their contribution to the neural circuits for sexually dimorphic behaviors is unknown. Here, we identify two interneurons in the nerve cord of adult Drosophila females that control ovipositor extrusion, a courtship rejection behavior performed by mated females. We show that these two neurons are present in the nerve cord of larvae as mature, sexually monomorphic interneurons. During pupal development, they acquire the expression of the sexual differentiation gene, doublesex; undergo doublesex-dependent programmed cell death in males; and are remodeled in females for functions in female mating behavior. Our results demonstrate that the neural circuits for courtship in Drosophila are built in part using neurons that are sexually reprogrammed from former sex-shared activities in larval life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia A Diamandi
- Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 East Lancaster Ave, Villanova, PA 19085, USA
| | - Julia C Duckhorn
- Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 East Lancaster Ave, Villanova, PA 19085, USA
| | - Kara E Miller
- Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 East Lancaster Ave, Villanova, PA 19085, USA
| | - Mason Weinstock
- Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 East Lancaster Ave, Villanova, PA 19085, USA
| | - Sofia Leone
- Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 East Lancaster Ave, Villanova, PA 19085, USA
| | - Micaela R Murphy
- Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 East Lancaster Ave, Villanova, PA 19085, USA
| | - Troy R Shirangi
- Department of Biology, Villanova University, 800 East Lancaster Ave, Villanova, PA 19085, USA.
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6
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Simpson JH. Descending control of motor sequences in Drosophila. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2024; 84:102822. [PMID: 38096757 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2023.102822] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2023] [Revised: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 11/22/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2024]
Abstract
The descending neurons connecting the fly's brain to its ventral nerve cord respond to sensory stimuli and evoke motor programs of varying complexity. Anatomical characterization of the descending neurons and their synaptic connections suggests how these circuits organize movements, while optogenetic manipulation of their activity reveals what behaviors they can induce. Monitoring their responses to sensory stimuli or during behavior performance indicates what information they may encode. Recent advances in all three approaches make the descending neurons an excellent place to better understand the sensorimotor integration and transformation required for nervous systems to govern the motor sequences that constitute animal behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie H Simpson
- Dept. Molecular Cellular and Developmental Biology and Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California Santa Barbara, USA.
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7
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Furusawa K, Ishii K, Tsuji M, Tokumitsu N, Hasegawa E, Emoto K. Presynaptic Ube3a E3 ligase promotes synapse elimination through down-regulation of BMP signaling. Science 2023; 381:1197-1205. [PMID: 37708280 DOI: 10.1126/science.ade8978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2022] [Accepted: 08/18/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023]
Abstract
Inactivation of the ubiquitin ligase Ube3a causes the developmental disorder Angelman syndrome, whereas increased Ube3a dosage is associated with autism spectrum disorders. Despite the enriched localization of Ube3a in the axon terminals including presynapses, little is known about the presynaptic function of Ube3a and mechanisms underlying its presynaptic localization. We show that developmental synapse elimination requires presynaptic Ube3a activity in Drosophila neurons. We further identified the domain of Ube3a that is required for its interaction with the kinesin motor. Angelman syndrome-associated missense mutations in the interaction domain attenuate presynaptic targeting of Ube3a and prevent synapse elimination. Conversely, increased Ube3a activity in presynapses leads to precocious synapse elimination and impairs synaptic transmission. Our findings reveal the physiological role of Ube3a and suggest potential pathogenic mechanisms associated with Ube3a dysregulation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kotaro Furusawa
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Kenichi Ishii
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Masato Tsuji
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Nagomi Tokumitsu
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Eri Hasegawa
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
| | - Kazuo Emoto
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
- International Research Center for Neurointelligence (WPI-IRCN), The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan
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8
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Kohsaka H. Linking neural circuits to the mechanics of animal behavior in Drosophila larval locomotion. Front Neural Circuits 2023; 17:1175899. [PMID: 37711343 PMCID: PMC10499525 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2023.1175899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/13/2023] [Indexed: 09/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The motions that make up animal behavior arise from the interplay between neural circuits and the mechanical parts of the body. Therefore, in order to comprehend the operational mechanisms governing behavior, it is essential to examine not only the underlying neural network but also the mechanical characteristics of the animal's body. The locomotor system of fly larvae serves as an ideal model for pursuing this integrative approach. By virtue of diverse investigation methods encompassing connectomics analysis and quantification of locomotion kinematics, research on larval locomotion has shed light on the underlying mechanisms of animal behavior. These studies have elucidated the roles of interneurons in coordinating muscle activities within and between segments, as well as the neural circuits responsible for exploration. This review aims to provide an overview of recent research on the neuromechanics of animal locomotion in fly larvae. We also briefly review interspecific diversity in fly larval locomotion and explore the latest advancements in soft robots inspired by larval locomotion. The integrative analysis of animal behavior using fly larvae could establish a practical framework for scrutinizing the behavior of other animal species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroshi Kohsaka
- Graduate School of Informatics and Engineering, The University of Electro-Communications, Chofu, Tokyo, Japan
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, The University of Tokyo, Chiba, Japan
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9
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Patel AA, Cardona A, Cox DN. Neural substrates of cold nociception in Drosophila larva. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.07.31.551339. [PMID: 37577520 PMCID: PMC10418107 DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.31.551339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/15/2023]
Abstract
Metazoans detect and differentiate between innocuous (non-painful) and/or noxious (harmful) environmental cues using primary sensory neurons, which serve as the first node in a neural network that computes stimulus specific behaviors to either navigate away from injury-causing conditions or to perform protective behaviors that mitigate extensive injury. The ability of an animal to detect and respond to various sensory stimuli depends upon molecular diversity in the primary sensors and the underlying neural circuitry responsible for the relevant behavioral action selection. Recent studies in Drosophila larvae have revealed that somatosensory class III multidendritic (CIII md) neurons function as multimodal sensors regulating distinct behavioral responses to innocuous mechanical and nociceptive thermal stimuli. Recent advances in circuit bases of behavior have identified and functionally validated Drosophila larval somatosensory circuitry involved in innocuous (mechanical) and noxious (heat and mechanical) cues. However, central processing of cold nociceptive cues remained unexplored. We implicate multisensory integrators (Basins), premotor (Down-and-Back) and projection (A09e and TePns) neurons as neural substrates required for cold-evoked behavioral and calcium responses. Neural silencing of cell types downstream of CIII md neurons led to significant reductions in cold-evoked behaviors and neural co-activation of CIII md neurons plus additional cell types facilitated larval contraction (CT) responses. We further demonstrate that optogenetic activation of CIII md neurons evokes calcium increases in these neurons. Collectively, we demonstrate how Drosophila larvae process cold stimuli through functionally diverse somatosensory circuitry responsible for generating stimulus specific behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Atit A. Patel
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Albert Cardona
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, USA
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
- Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, UK
| | - Daniel N. Cox
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, USA
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10
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Steele TJ, Lanz AJ, Nagel KI. Olfactory navigation in arthropods. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2023; 209:467-488. [PMID: 36658447 PMCID: PMC10354148 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-022-01611-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/02/2022] [Revised: 12/26/2022] [Accepted: 12/31/2022] [Indexed: 01/21/2023]
Abstract
Using odors to find food and mates is one of the most ancient and highly conserved behaviors. Arthropods from flies to moths to crabs use broadly similar strategies to navigate toward odor sources-such as integrating flow information with odor information, comparing odor concentration across sensors, and integrating odor information over time. Because arthropods share many homologous brain structures-antennal lobes for processing olfactory information, mechanosensors for processing flow, mushroom bodies (or hemi-ellipsoid bodies) for associative learning, and central complexes for navigation, it is likely that these closely related behaviors are mediated by conserved neural circuits. However, differences in the types of odors they seek, the physics of odor dispersal, and the physics of locomotion in water, air, and on substrates mean that these circuits must have adapted to generate a wide diversity of odor-seeking behaviors. In this review, we discuss common strategies and specializations observed in olfactory navigation behavior across arthropods, and review our current knowledge about the neural circuits subserving this behavior. We propose that a comparative study of arthropod nervous systems may provide insight into how a set of basic circuit structures has diversified to generate behavior adapted to different environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Theresa J Steele
- Neuroscience Institute, NYU School of Medicine, 435 E 30th St., New York, NY, 10016, USA
| | - Aaron J Lanz
- Neuroscience Institute, NYU School of Medicine, 435 E 30th St., New York, NY, 10016, USA
| | - Katherine I Nagel
- Neuroscience Institute, NYU School of Medicine, 435 E 30th St., New York, NY, 10016, USA.
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11
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Yamaguchi A, Wu R, McNulty P, Karagyozov D, Mihovilovic Skanata M, Gershow M. Multi-neuronal recording in unrestrained animals with all acousto-optic random-access line-scanning two-photon microscopy. Front Neurosci 2023; 17:1135457. [PMID: 37389365 PMCID: PMC10303936 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2023.1135457] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/31/2022] [Accepted: 05/18/2023] [Indexed: 07/01/2023] Open
Abstract
To understand how neural activity encodes and coordinates behavior, it is desirable to record multi-neuronal activity in freely behaving animals. Imaging in unrestrained animals is challenging, especially for those, like larval Drosophila melanogaster, whose brains are deformed by body motion. A previously demonstrated two-photon tracking microscope recorded from individual neurons in freely crawling Drosophila larvae but faced limits in multi-neuronal recording. Here we demonstrate a new tracking microscope using acousto-optic deflectors (AODs) and an acoustic GRIN lens (TAG lens) to achieve axially resonant 2D random access scanning, sampling along arbitrarily located axial lines at a line rate of 70 kHz. With a tracking latency of 0.1 ms, this microscope recorded activities of various neurons in moving larval Drosophila CNS and VNC including premotor neurons, bilateral visual interneurons, and descending command neurons. This technique can be applied to the existing two-photon microscope to allow for fast 3D tracking and scanning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Akihiro Yamaguchi
- Department of Physics, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Rui Wu
- Department of Physics, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Paul McNulty
- Department of Physics, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | - Doycho Karagyozov
- Department of Physics, New York University, New York, NY, United States
| | | | - Marc Gershow
- Department of Physics, New York University, New York, NY, United States
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, New York, NY, United States
- Neuroscience Institute, New York University, New York, NY, United States
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12
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Braun A, Borst A, Meier M. Disynaptic inhibition shapes tuning of OFF-motion detectors in Drosophila. Curr Biol 2023:S0960-9822(23)00601-2. [PMID: 37236181 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2023] [Revised: 04/02/2023] [Accepted: 05/03/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
The circuitry underlying the detection of visual motion in Drosophila melanogaster is one of the best studied networks in neuroscience. Lately, electron microscopy reconstructions, algorithmic models, and functional studies have proposed a common motif for the cellular circuitry of an elementary motion detector based on both supralinear enhancement for preferred direction and sublinear suppression for null-direction motion. In T5 cells, however, all columnar input neurons (Tm1, Tm2, Tm4, and Tm9) are excitatory. So, how is null-direction suppression realized there? Using two-photon calcium imaging in combination with thermogenetics, optogenetics, apoptotics, and pharmacology, we discovered that it is via CT1, the GABAergic large-field amacrine cell, where the different processes have previously been shown to act in an electrically isolated way. Within each column, CT1 receives excitatory input from Tm9 and Tm1 and provides the sign-inverted, now inhibitory input signal onto T5. Ablating CT1 or knocking down GABA-receptor subunit Rdl significantly broadened the directional tuning of T5 cells. It thus appears that the signal of Tm1 and Tm9 is used both as an excitatory input for preferred direction enhancement and, through a sign inversion within the Tm1/Tm9-CT1 microcircuit, as an inhibitory input for null-direction suppression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amalia Braun
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Department of Circuits - Computation - Models, Am Klopferspitz 18, 82152 Martinsried, Germany.
| | - Alexander Borst
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Department of Circuits - Computation - Models, Am Klopferspitz 18, 82152 Martinsried, Germany
| | - Matthias Meier
- Max Planck Institute for Biological Intelligence, Department of Circuits - Computation - Models, Am Klopferspitz 18, 82152 Martinsried, Germany.
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13
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Thane M, Paisios E, Stöter T, Krüger AR, Gläß S, Dahse AK, Scholz N, Gerber B, Lehmann DJ, Schleyer M. High-resolution analysis of individual Drosophila melanogaster larvae uncovers individual variability in locomotion and its neurogenetic modulation. Open Biol 2023; 13:220308. [PMID: 37072034 PMCID: PMC10113034 DOI: 10.1098/rsob.220308] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/12/2022] [Accepted: 03/05/2023] [Indexed: 04/20/2023] Open
Abstract
Neuronally orchestrated muscular movement and locomotion are defining faculties of multicellular animals. Due to its simple brain and genetic accessibility, the larva of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster allows one to study these processes at tractable levels of complexity. However, although the faculty of locomotion clearly pertains to the individual, most studies of locomotion in larvae use measurements aggregated across animals, or animals tested one by one, an extravagance for larger-scale analyses. This prevents grasping the inter- and intra-individual variability in locomotion and its neurogenetic determinants. Here, we present the IMBA (individual maggot behaviour analyser) for analysing the behaviour of individual larvae within groups, reliably resolving individual identity across collisions. We use the IMBA to systematically describe the inter- and intra-individual variability in locomotion of wild-type animals, and how the variability is reduced by associative learning. We then report a novel locomotion phenotype of an adhesion GPCR mutant. We further investigated the modulation of locomotion across repeated activations of dopamine neurons in individual animals, and the transient backward locomotion induced by brief optogenetic activation of the brain-descending 'mooncrawler' neurons. In summary, the IMBA is an easy-to-use toolbox allowing an unprecedentedly rich view of the behaviour and its variability of individual larvae, with utility in multiple biomedical research contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Thane
- Department Genetics of Learning and Memory, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
- Department of Simulation and Graphics, Otto von Guerike University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Emmanouil Paisios
- Department Genetics of Learning and Memory, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Torsten Stöter
- Combinatorial NeuroImaging Core Facility, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Anna-Rosa Krüger
- Department Genetics of Learning and Memory, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
- Institute of Biology, Free University of Berlin, Berlin, Germany
| | - Sebastian Gläß
- Department Genetics of Learning and Memory, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Anne-Kristin Dahse
- Division of General Biochemistry, Rudolf Schönheimer Institute of Biochemistry, Medical Faculty, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Nicole Scholz
- Division of General Biochemistry, Rudolf Schönheimer Institute of Biochemistry, Medical Faculty, Leipzig University, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Bertram Gerber
- Department Genetics of Learning and Memory, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
- Institute of Biology, Otto von Guericke University Magdeburg, Magdeburg, Germany
- Center for Behavioral Brain Sciences, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Dirk J. Lehmann
- Department of Simulation and Graphics, Otto von Guerike University, Magdeburg, Germany
- Department for Information Engineering, Faculty of Computer Science, Ostfalia University of Applied Science, Brunswick-Wolfenbuettel, Germany
| | - Michael Schleyer
- Department Genetics of Learning and Memory, Leibniz Institute for Neurobiology, Magdeburg, Germany
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14
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Winding M, Pedigo BD, Barnes CL, Patsolic HG, Park Y, Kazimiers T, Fushiki A, Andrade IV, Khandelwal A, Valdes-Aleman J, Li F, Randel N, Barsotti E, Correia A, Fetter RD, Hartenstein V, Priebe CE, Vogelstein JT, Cardona A, Zlatic M. The connectome of an insect brain. Science 2023; 379:eadd9330. [PMID: 36893230 PMCID: PMC7614541 DOI: 10.1126/science.add9330] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 63.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2022] [Accepted: 02/07/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023]
Abstract
Brains contain networks of interconnected neurons and so knowing the network architecture is essential for understanding brain function. We therefore mapped the synaptic-resolution connectome of an entire insect brain (Drosophila larva) with rich behavior, including learning, value computation, and action selection, comprising 3016 neurons and 548,000 synapses. We characterized neuron types, hubs, feedforward and feedback pathways, as well as cross-hemisphere and brain-nerve cord interactions. We found pervasive multisensory and interhemispheric integration, highly recurrent architecture, abundant feedback from descending neurons, and multiple novel circuit motifs. The brain's most recurrent circuits comprised the input and output neurons of the learning center. Some structural features, including multilayer shortcuts and nested recurrent loops, resembled state-of-the-art deep learning architectures. The identified brain architecture provides a basis for future experimental and theoretical studies of neural circuits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael Winding
- University of Cambridge, Department of Zoology, Cambridge, UK
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Neurobiology Division, Cambridge, UK
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
| | - Benjamin D. Pedigo
- Johns Hopkins University, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Christopher L. Barnes
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Neurobiology Division, Cambridge, UK
- University of Cambridge, Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience, Cambridge, UK
| | - Heather G. Patsolic
- Johns Hopkins University, Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Accenture, Arlington, VA, USA
| | - Youngser Park
- Johns Hopkins University, Center for Imaging Science, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Tom Kazimiers
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
- kazmos GmbH, Dresden, Germany
| | - Akira Fushiki
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
- Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | - Ingrid V. Andrade
- University of California Los Angeles, Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Avinash Khandelwal
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
| | - Javier Valdes-Aleman
- University of Cambridge, Department of Zoology, Cambridge, UK
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
| | - Feng Li
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
| | - Nadine Randel
- University of Cambridge, Department of Zoology, Cambridge, UK
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Neurobiology Division, Cambridge, UK
| | - Elizabeth Barsotti
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Neurobiology Division, Cambridge, UK
- University of Cambridge, Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience, Cambridge, UK
| | - Ana Correia
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Neurobiology Division, Cambridge, UK
- University of Cambridge, Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience, Cambridge, UK
| | - Richard D. Fetter
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
- Stanford University, Stanford, CA, USA
| | - Volker Hartenstein
- University of California Los Angeles, Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Carey E. Priebe
- Johns Hopkins University, Department of Applied Mathematics and Statistics, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Johns Hopkins University, Center for Imaging Science, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Joshua T. Vogelstein
- Johns Hopkins University, Department of Biomedical Engineering, Baltimore, MD, USA
- Johns Hopkins University, Center for Imaging Science, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | - Albert Cardona
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Neurobiology Division, Cambridge, UK
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
- University of Cambridge, Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience, Cambridge, UK
| | - Marta Zlatic
- University of Cambridge, Department of Zoology, Cambridge, UK
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Neurobiology Division, Cambridge, UK
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, VA, USA
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15
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Han S, Xiu M, Li S, Shi Y, Wang X, Lin X, Cai H, Liu Y, He J. Exposure to cytarabine causes side effects on adult development and physiology and induces intestinal damage via apoptosis in Drosophila. Biomed Pharmacother 2023; 159:114265. [PMID: 36652735 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopha.2023.114265] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/05/2022] [Revised: 01/13/2023] [Accepted: 01/14/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Cytarabine (Ara-C) is a widely used drug in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). However, it faces serious challenges in clinical application due to serious side effects such as gastrointestinal disorders and neurologic toxicities. Until now, the mechanism of Ara-C-induced damage is not clear. Here, we used Drosophila melanogaster (fruit fly) as the in vivo model to explore the side effects and mechanism of Ara-C. Our results showed that Ara-C supplementation delayed larval development, reduced lifespan, impaired locomotor capacity, and increased susceptibility to stress response in adult flies. In addition, Ara-C led to the intestinal morphological damage and ROS accumulation in the guts. Moreover, administration of Ara-C promoted gene expressions of Toll pathway, IMD pathway, and apoptotic pathway in the guts. These findings raise the prospects of using Drosophila as in vivo model to rapidly assess chemotherapy-mediated toxicity and efficiently screen the protective drugs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shuzhen Han
- Provincial-level Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine of Major Diseases and The Prevention and Treatment with Traditional Chinese Medicine Research in Gansu Colleges and University, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; College of Basic Medicine, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Minghui Xiu
- Provincial-level Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine of Major Diseases and The Prevention and Treatment with Traditional Chinese Medicine Research in Gansu Colleges and University, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; College of Public Health, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; Key Laboratory for Transfer of Dunhuang Medicine at the Provincial and Ministerial Level, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Shuang Li
- College of Basic Medicine, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; Key Laboratory for Transfer of Dunhuang Medicine at the Provincial and Ministerial Level, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Yan Shi
- Provincial-level Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine of Major Diseases and The Prevention and Treatment with Traditional Chinese Medicine Research in Gansu Colleges and University, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; College of Basic Medicine, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Xiaoqian Wang
- Provincial-level Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine of Major Diseases and The Prevention and Treatment with Traditional Chinese Medicine Research in Gansu Colleges and University, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; College of Basic Medicine, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Xingyao Lin
- Key Laboratory for Transfer of Dunhuang Medicine at the Provincial and Ministerial Level, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China
| | - Hui Cai
- Key Laboratory of Molecular Diagnostics and Precision Medicine for Surgical Oncology in Gansu Province, Gansu Provincial Hospital, Lanzhou 730000, China; NHC Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Therapy of Gastrointestinal Tumor, Gansu Provincial Hospital, Lanzhou 730000, China.
| | - Yongqi Liu
- Provincial-level Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine of Major Diseases and The Prevention and Treatment with Traditional Chinese Medicine Research in Gansu Colleges and University, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; Key Laboratory for Transfer of Dunhuang Medicine at the Provincial and Ministerial Level, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China.
| | - Jianzheng He
- Provincial-level Key Laboratory for Molecular Medicine of Major Diseases and The Prevention and Treatment with Traditional Chinese Medicine Research in Gansu Colleges and University, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; College of Basic Medicine, Gansu University of Chinese Medicine, Lanzhou 730000, China; Key Laboratory of Molecular Diagnostics and Precision Medicine for Surgical Oncology in Gansu Province, Gansu Provincial Hospital, Lanzhou 730000, China; NHC Key Laboratory of Diagnosis and Therapy of Gastrointestinal Tumor, Gansu Provincial Hospital, Lanzhou 730000, China.
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16
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Linskens A, Doe C, Lee K. Developmental origin of the Pair1 descending interneuron. MICROPUBLICATION BIOLOGY 2023; 2022:10.17912/micropub.biology.000707. [PMID: 36606082 PMCID: PMC9807459 DOI: 10.17912/micropub.biology.000707] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2022] [Revised: 01/01/1970] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
Pair1 is part of a Drosophila larval locomotor circuit that promotes backward locomotion by inhibiting forward locomotion. We hypothesize that lineage related neurons may function in neuronal circuits together. Testing this hypothesis requires knowing the progenitor of each neuron within this locomotor circuit, and here we focus exclusively on Pair1. During Drosophila melanogaster embryogenesis, unique neuroblasts form by inheriting the spatial transcription factors (TFs) expressed in their birth location within the neuroectoderm. We examine the Pair1 neurons using immunofluorescence to determine which neuroblast the Pair1s derive from. Our results show that Pair1 is derived from gnathal neuroblast 5-3 which expresses Gooseberry (Gsb) and Intermediate neuroblasts defective (Ind). When Gsb or Ind were overexpressed in the Pair1 lineage, extra neurons formed with similar Pair1 morphology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Linskens
- University of Oregon, Eugene, OR USA
,
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
| | - Chris Doe
- University of Oregon, Eugene, OR USA
,
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
| | - Kristen Lee
- University of Oregon, Eugene, OR USA
,
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
,
Correspondence to: Kristen Lee (
)
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17
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Bansal S, Lin S. Transcriptional Genetically Encoded Calcium Indicators in Drosophila. Cold Spring Harb Protoc 2023; 2023:8-18. [PMID: 36167674 DOI: 10.1101/pdb.top107797] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Knowing which neurons are active during behavior is a crucial step toward understanding how nervous systems work. Neuronal activation is generally accompanied by an increase in intracellular calcium levels. Therefore, intracellular calcium levels are widely used as a proxy for neuronal activity. Many types of synthetic components and bioluminescent or fluorescent proteins that report transient and long-term changes in intracellular calcium levels have been developed over the past 60 years. Calcium indicators that enable imaging of the dynamic activity of a large ensemble of neurons in behaving animals have revolutionized the field of neuroscience. Among these, transcription-based genetically encoded calcium indicators (transcriptional GECIs) have proven easy to use and do not depend on sophisticated imaging systems, offering unique advantages over other types of calcium indicators. Here, we describe the two currently available fly transcriptional GECIs-calcium-dependent nuclear import of LexA (CaLexA) and transcriptional reporter of intracellular calcium (TRIC)-and review studies that have used them. In the accompanying protocol, we present step-by-step details for generating CaLexA- and TRIC-ready flies and for imaging CaLexA and TRIC signals in dissected brains after experimental manipulations of intact free-moving flies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonia Bansal
- Institute of Molecular Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan
| | - Suewei Lin
- Institute of Molecular Biology, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan
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18
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Giachello CNG, Hunter I, Pettini T, Coulson B, Knüfer A, Cachero S, Winding M, Arzan Zarin A, Kohsaka H, Fan YN, Nose A, Landgraf M, Baines RA. Electrophysiological Validation of Monosynaptic Connectivity between Premotor Interneurons and the aCC Motoneuron in the Drosophila Larval CNS. J Neurosci 2022; 42:6724-6738. [PMID: 35868863 PMCID: PMC9435966 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2463-21.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2021] [Revised: 04/28/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The Drosophila connectome project aims to map the synaptic connectivity of entire larval and adult fly neural networks, which is essential for understanding nervous system development and function. So far, the project has produced an impressive amount of electron microscopy data that has facilitated reconstructions of specific synapses, including many in the larval locomotor circuit. While this breakthrough represents a technical tour de force, the data remain underutilized, partly because of a lack of functional validation of reconstructions. Attempts to validate connectivity posited by the connectome project, have mostly relied on behavioral assays and/or GFP reconstitution across synaptic partners (GRASP) or GCaMP imaging. While these techniques are useful, they have limited spatial or temporal resolution. Electrophysiological assays of synaptic connectivity overcome these limitations. Here, we combine patch-clamp recordings with optogenetic stimulation in male and female larvae, to test synaptic connectivity proposed by connectome reconstructions. Specifically, we use multiple driver lines to confirm that several connections between premotor interneurons and the anterior corner cell motoneuron are, as the connectome project suggests, monosynaptic. In contrast, our results also show that conclusions based on GRASP imaging may provide false-positive results regarding connectivity between cells. We also present a novel imaging tool, based on the same technology as our electrophysiology, as a favorable alternative to GRASP imaging. Finally, of eight Gal4 lines tested, five are reliably expressed in the premotor interneurons they are targeted to. Thus, our work highlights the need to confirm functional synaptic connectivity, driver line specificity, and use of appropriate genetic tools to support connectome projects.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT The Drosophila connectome project aims to provide a complete description of connectivity between neurons in an organism that presents experimental advantages over other models. It has reconstructed hundreds of thousands of synaptic connections of the fly larva by manual identification of anatomic landmarks present in serial section transmission electron microscopy (ssTEM) volumes of the larval CNS. We use a highly reliable electrophysiological approach to verify these connections, providing useful insight into the accuracy of work based on ssTEM. We also present a novel imaging tool for validating excitatory monosynaptic connections between cells and show that several genetic driver lines designed to target neurons of the larval connectome exhibit nonspecific and/or unreliable expression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlo N G Giachello
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, United Kingdom
- Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester M13 9NQ, United Kingdom
| | - Iain Hunter
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, United Kingdom
- Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester M13 9NQ, United Kingdom
| | - Tom Pettini
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
| | - Bramwell Coulson
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, United Kingdom
- Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester M13 9NQ, United Kingdom
| | - Athene Knüfer
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
| | - Sebastian Cachero
- Neurobiology Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge CB2 0QH, United Kingdom
| | - Michael Winding
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
| | - Aref Arzan Zarin
- Department of Biology, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843-3258
| | - Hiroshi Kohsaka
- Graduate School of Informatics and Engineering, The University of Electro-Communications, Tokyo 182-8585, Japan
| | - Yuen Ngan Fan
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, United Kingdom
- Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester M13 9NQ, United Kingdom
| | - Akinao Nose
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, University of Tokyo, Chiba 277-8561, Japan
| | - Matthias Landgraf
- Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EJ, United Kingdom
| | - Richard A Baines
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, United Kingdom
- Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, Manchester M13 9NQ, United Kingdom
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19
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York RA, Brezovec LE, Coughlan J, Herbst S, Krieger A, Lee SY, Pratt B, Smart AD, Song E, Suvorov A, Matute DR, Tuthill JC, Clandinin TR. The evolutionary trajectory of drosophilid walking. Curr Biol 2022; 32:3005-3015.e6. [PMID: 35671756 PMCID: PMC9329251 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.05.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2021] [Revised: 03/03/2022] [Accepted: 05/13/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Neural circuits must both execute the behavioral repertoire of individuals and account for behavioral variation across species. Understanding how this variation emerges over evolutionary time requires large-scale phylogenetic comparisons of behavioral repertoires. Here, we describe the evolution of walking in fruit flies by capturing high-resolution, unconstrained movement from 13 species and 15 strains of drosophilids. We find that walking can be captured in a universal behavior space, the structure of which is evolutionarily conserved. However, the occurrence of and transitions between specific movements have evolved rapidly, resulting in repeated convergent evolution in the temporal structure of locomotion. Moreover, a meta-analysis demonstrates that many behaviors evolve more rapidly than other traits. Thus, the architecture and physiology of locomotor circuits can execute precise individual movements in one species and simultaneously support rapid evolutionary changes in the temporal ordering of these modular elements across clades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan A York
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
| | - Luke E Brezovec
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Jenn Coughlan
- Biology Department, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Steven Herbst
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Avery Krieger
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Su-Yee Lee
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Brandon Pratt
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Ashley D Smart
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Eugene Song
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA
| | - Anton Suvorov
- Biology Department, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - Daniel R Matute
- Biology Department, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA
| | - John C Tuthill
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Thomas R Clandinin
- Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA 94305, USA.
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20
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Abstract
Bicoid is famous for its role in early embryo patterning of Drosophila by activating Hunchback expression to establish the anterior-posterior axis. A new study found that in a type of post-mitotic neuron Hunchback conversely activates Bicoid expression to regulate synapse targeting and locomotor behavior.
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21
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Sun X, Liu Y, Liu C, Mayumi K, Ito K, Nose A, Kohsaka H. A neuromechanical model for Drosophila larval crawling based on physical measurements. BMC Biol 2022; 20:130. [PMID: 35701821 PMCID: PMC9199175 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-022-01336-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/05/2022] [Accepted: 05/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Animal locomotion requires dynamic interactions between neural circuits, the body (typically muscles), and surrounding environments. While the neural circuitry of movement has been intensively studied, how these outputs are integrated with body mechanics (neuromechanics) is less clear, in part due to the lack of understanding of the biomechanical properties of animal bodies. Here, we propose an integrated neuromechanical model of movement based on physical measurements by taking Drosophila larvae as a model of soft-bodied animals. RESULTS We first characterized the kinematics of forward crawling in Drosophila larvae at a segmental and whole-body level. We then characterized the biomechanical parameters of fly larvae, namely the contraction forces generated by neural activity, and passive elastic and viscosity of the larval body using a stress-relaxation test. We established a mathematical neuromechanical model based on the physical measurements described above, obtaining seven kinematic values characterizing crawling locomotion. By optimizing the parameters in the neural circuit, our neuromechanical model succeeded in quantitatively reproducing the kinematics of larval locomotion that were obtained experimentally. This model could reproduce the observation of optogenetic studies reported previously. The model predicted that peristaltic locomotion could be exhibited in a low-friction condition. Analysis of floating larvae provided results consistent with this prediction. Furthermore, the model predicted a significant contribution of intersegmental connections in the central nervous system, which contrasts with a previous study. This hypothesis allowed us to make a testable prediction for the variability in intersegmental connection in sister species of the genus Drosophila. CONCLUSIONS We generated a neurochemical model based on physical measurement to provide a new foundation to study locomotion in soft-bodied animals and soft robot engineering.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiyang Sun
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, the University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan
| | - Yingtao Liu
- Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, the University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 133-0033, Japan
| | - Chang Liu
- Department of Advanced Materials Science, Graduate School of Frontier Science, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan
| | - Koichi Mayumi
- Department of Advanced Materials Science, Graduate School of Frontier Science, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan
| | - Kohzo Ito
- Department of Advanced Materials Science, Graduate School of Frontier Science, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan
| | - Akinao Nose
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, the University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan.,Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, the University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 133-0033, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Kohsaka
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, the University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan. .,Division of General Education, Graduate School of Informatics and Engineering, The University of Electro-Communications, 1-5-1, Chofugaoka, Chofu, Tokyo, 182-8585, Japan.
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22
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Lee KM, Linskens AM, Doe CQ. Hunchback activates Bicoid in Pair1 neurons to regulate synapse number and locomotor circuit function. Curr Biol 2022; 32:2430-2441.e3. [PMID: 35512697 PMCID: PMC9178783 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.04.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/17/2022] [Revised: 04/01/2022] [Accepted: 04/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
Abstract
Neural circuit function underlies cognition, sensation, and behavior. Proper circuit assembly depends on the identity of the neurons in the circuit (gene expression, morphology, synapse targeting, and biophysical properties). Neuronal identity is established by spatial and temporal patterning mechanisms, but little is known about how these mechanisms drive circuit formation in postmitotic neurons. Temporal patterning involves the sequential expression of transcription factors (TFs) in neural progenitors to diversify neuronal identity, in part through the initial expression of homeodomain TF combinations. Here, we address the role of the Drosophila temporal TF Hunchback and the homeodomain TF Bicoid in the assembly of the Pair1 (SEZ_DN1) descending neuron locomotor circuit, which promotes larval pausing and head casting. We find that both Hunchback and Bicoid are expressed in larval Pair1 neurons, Hunchback activates Bicoid in Pair1 (opposite of their embryonic relationship), and the loss of Hunchback function or Bicoid function from Pair1 leads to ectopic presynapse numbers in Pair1 axons and an increase in Pair1-induced pausing behavior. These phenotypes are highly specific, as the loss of Bicoid or Hunchback has no effect on Pair1 neurotransmitter identity, dendrite morphology, or axonal morphology. Importantly, the loss of Hunchback or Bicoid in Pair1 leads to the addition of new circuit partners that may underlie the exaggerated locomotor pausing behavior. These data are the first to show a role for Bicoid outside of embryonic patterning and the first to demonstrate a cell-autonomous role for Hunchback and Bicoid in interneuron synapse targeting and locomotor behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristen M Lee
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA.
| | - Amanda M Linskens
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA
| | - Chris Q Doe
- Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Institute of Neuroscience, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR 97403, USA.
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23
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Jonaitis J, MacLeod J, Pulver SR. Localization of muscarinic acetylcholine receptor-dependent rhythm-generating modules in the Drosophila larval locomotor network. J Neurophysiol 2022; 127:1098-1116. [PMID: 35294308 PMCID: PMC9018013 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00106.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 03/09/2022] [Accepted: 03/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Mechanisms of rhythm generation have been extensively studied in motor systems that control locomotion over terrain in limbed animals; however, much less is known about rhythm generation in soft-bodied terrestrial animals. Here we explored how muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAChR)-modulated rhythm-generating networks are distributed in the central nervous system (CNS) of soft-bodied Drosophila larvae. We measured fictive motor patterns in isolated CNS preparations, using a combination of Ca2+ imaging and electrophysiology while manipulating mAChR signaling pharmacologically. Bath application of the mAChR agonist oxotremorine potentiated bilaterally asymmetric activity in anterior thoracic regions and promoted bursting in posterior abdominal regions. Application of the mAChR antagonist scopolamine suppressed rhythm generation in these regions and blocked the effects of oxotremorine. Oxotremorine triggered fictive forward crawling in preparations without brain lobes. Oxotremorine also potentiated rhythmic activity in isolated posterior abdominal CNS segments as well as isolated anterior brain and thoracic regions, but it did not induce rhythmic activity in isolated anterior abdominal segments. Bath application of scopolamine to reduced preparations lowered baseline Ca2+ levels and abolished rhythmic activity. Overall, these results suggest that mAChR signaling plays a role in enabling rhythm generation at multiple sites in the larval CNS. This work furthers our understanding of motor control in soft-bodied locomotion and provides a foundation for study of rhythm-generating networks in an emerging genetically tractable locomotor system.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Using a combination of pharmacology, electrophysiology, and Ca2+ imaging, we find that signaling through mACh receptors plays a critical role in rhythmogenesis in different regions of the Drosophila larval CNS. mAChR-dependent rhythm generators reside in distal regions of the larval CNS and provide functional substrates for central pattern-generating networks (CPGs) underlying headsweep behavior and forward locomotion. This provides new insights into locomotor CPG operation in soft-bodied animals that navigate over terrain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julius Jonaitis
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, United Kingdom
| | - James MacLeod
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, United Kingdom
| | - Stefan R Pulver
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, United Kingdom
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24
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Fölsz O, Lin CC, Task D, Riabinina O, Potter CJ. The Q-system: A Versatile Repressible Binary Expression System. Methods Mol Biol 2022; 2540:35-78. [PMID: 35980572 DOI: 10.1007/978-1-0716-2541-5_2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/15/2023]
Abstract
Binary expression systems are useful genetic tools for experimentally labeling or manipulating the function of defined cells. The Q-system is a repressible binary expression system that consists of a transcription factor QF (and the recently improved QF2/QF2w), the inhibitor QS, a QUAS-geneX effector, and a drug that inhibits QS (quinic acid). The Q-system can be used alone or in combination with other binary expression systems, such as GAL4/UAS and LexA/LexAop. In this review chapter, we discuss the past, present, and future of the Q-system for applications in Drosophila and other organisms. We discuss the in vivo application of the Q-system for transgenic labeling, the modular nature of QF that allows chimeric or split transcriptional activators to be developed, its temporal control by quinic acid, new methods to generate QF2 reagents, intersectional expression labeling, and its recent adoption into many emerging experimental species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Orsolya Fölsz
- Department of Biosciences, Durham University, Durham, UK
| | - Chun-Chieh Lin
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Giesel School of Medicine, Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center, Lebanon, NH, USA
| | - Darya Task
- Department of Biology, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, USA
| | | | - Christopher J Potter
- The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD, USA.
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25
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Matsuo Y, Nose A, Kohsaka H. Interspecies variation of larval locomotion kinematics in the genus Drosophila and its relation to habitat temperature. BMC Biol 2021; 19:176. [PMID: 34470643 PMCID: PMC8411537 DOI: 10.1186/s12915-021-01110-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2021] [Accepted: 07/29/2021] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Speed and trajectory of locomotion are the characteristic traits of individual species. Locomotion kinematics may have been shaped during evolution towards increased survival in the habitats of each species. Although kinematics of locomotion is thought to be influenced by habitats, the quantitative relation between the kinematics and environmental factors has not been fully revealed. Here, we performed comparative analyses of larval locomotion in 11 Drosophila species. RESULTS We found that larval locomotion kinematics are divergent among the species. The diversity is not correlated to the body length but is correlated instead to the habitat temperature of the species. Phylogenetic analyses using Bayesian inference suggest that the evolutionary rate of the kinematics is diverse among phylogenetic tree branches. CONCLUSIONS The results of this study imply that the kinematics of larval locomotion has diverged in the evolutionary history of the genus Drosophila and evolved under the effects of the ambient temperature of habitats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuji Matsuo
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan
| | - Akinao Nose
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan
- Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 133-0033, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Kohsaka
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, The University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan.
- School of Informatics and Engineering, The University of Electro-Communications, 1-5-1, Chofugaoka, Chofu-shi, Tokyo, 182-8585, Japan.
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26
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Lee K, Doe CQ. A locomotor neural circuit persists and functions similarly in larvae and adult Drosophila. eLife 2021; 10:e69767. [PMID: 34259633 PMCID: PMC8298091 DOI: 10.7554/elife.69767] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Accepted: 07/13/2021] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Individual neurons can undergo drastic structural changes, known as neuronal remodeling or structural plasticity. One example of this is in response to hormones, such as during puberty in mammals or metamorphosis in insects. However, in each of these examples, it remains unclear whether the remodeled neuron resumes prior patterns of connectivity, and if so, whether the persistent circuits drive similar behaviors. Here, we utilize a well-characterized neural circuit in the Drosophila larva: the moonwalker descending neuron (MDN) circuit. We previously showed that larval MDN induces backward crawling, and synapses onto the Pair1 interneuron to inhibit forward crawling (Carreira-Rosario et al., 2018). MDN is remodeled during metamorphosis and regulates backward walking in the adult fly. We investigated whether Pair1 is remodeled during metamorphosis and functions within the MDN circuit during adulthood. We assayed morphology and molecular markers to demonstrate that Pair1 is remodeled during metamorphosis and persists in the adult fly. MDN-Pair1 connectivity is lost during early pupal stages, when both neurons are severely pruned back, but connectivity is re-established at mid-pupal stages and persist into the adult. In the adult, optogenetic activation of Pair1 resulted in arrest of forward locomotion, similar to what is observed in larvae. Thus, the MDN-Pair1 neurons are an interneuronal circuit - a pair of synaptically connected interneurons - that is re-established during metamorphosis, yet generates similar locomotor behavior at both larval and adult stages.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristen Lee
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - Chris Q Doe
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
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27
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Elliott AD, Berndt A, Houpert M, Roy S, Scott RL, Chow CC, Shroff H, White BH. Pupal behavior emerges from unstructured muscle activity in response to neuromodulation in Drosophila. eLife 2021; 10:68656. [PMID: 34236312 PMCID: PMC8331185 DOI: 10.7554/elife.68656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Identifying neural substrates of behavior requires defining actions in terms that map onto brain activity. Brain and muscle activity naturally correlate via the output of motor neurons, but apart from simple movements it has been difficult to define behavior in terms of muscle contractions. By mapping the musculature of the pupal fruit fly and comprehensively imaging muscle activation at single-cell resolution, we here describe a multiphasic behavioral sequence in Drosophila. Our characterization identifies a previously undescribed behavioral phase and permits extraction of major movements by a convolutional neural network. We deconstruct movements into a syllabary of co-active muscles and identify specific syllables that are sensitive to neuromodulatory manipulations. We find that muscle activity shows considerable variability, with sequential increases in stereotypy dependent upon neuromodulation. Our work provides a platform for studying whole-animal behavior, quantifying its variability across multiple spatiotemporal scales, and analyzing its neuromodulatory regulation at cellular resolution. How do we find out how the brain works? One way is to use imaging techniques to visualise an animal’s brain in action as it performs simple behaviours: as the animal moves, parts of its brain light up under the microscope. For laboratory animals like fruit flies, which have relatively small brains, this lets us observe their brain activity right down to the level of individual brain cells. The brain directs movements via collective activity of the body’s muscles. Our ability to track the activity of individual muscles is, however, more limited than our ability to observe single brain cells: even modern imaging technology still cannot monitor the activity of all the muscle cells in an animal’s body as it moves about. Yet this is precisely the information that scientists need to fully understand how the brain generates behaviour. Fruit flies perform specific behaviours at certain stages of their life cycle. When the fly pupa begins to metamorphose into an adult insect, it performs a fixed sequence of movements involving a set number of muscles, which is called the pupal ecdysis sequence. This initial movement sequence and the rest of metamorphosis both occur within the confines of the pupal case, which is a small, hardened shell surrounding the whole animal. Elliott et al. set out to determine if the fruit fly pupa’s ecdysis sequence could be used as a kind of model, to describe a simple behaviour at the level of individual muscles. Imaging experiments used fly pupae that were genetically engineered to produce an activity-dependent fluorescent protein in their muscle cells. Pupal cases were treated with a chemical to make them transparent, allowing easy observation of their visually ‘labelled’ muscles. This yielded a near-complete record of muscle activity during metamorphosis. Initially, individual muscles became active in small groups. The groups then synchronised with each other over the different regions of the pupa’s body to form distinct movements, much as syllables join to form words. This synchronisation was key to progression through metamorphosis and was co-ordinated at each step by specialised nerve cells that produce or respond to specific hormones. These results reveal how the brain might direct muscle activity to produce movement patterns. In the future, Elliott et al. hope to compare data on muscle activity with comprehensive records of brain cell activity, to shed new light on how the brain, muscles, and other factors work together to control behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amicia D Elliott
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States.,National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Adama Berndt
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Matthew Houpert
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Snehashis Roy
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Robert L Scott
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Carson C Chow
- National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Hari Shroff
- National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Benjamin H White
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, United States
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28
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Hunter I, Coulson B, Zarin AA, Baines RA. The Drosophila Larval Locomotor Circuit Provides a Model to Understand Neural Circuit Development and Function. Front Neural Circuits 2021; 15:684969. [PMID: 34276315 PMCID: PMC8282269 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2021.684969] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 06/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
It is difficult to answer important questions in neuroscience, such as: "how do neural circuits generate behaviour?," because research is limited by the complexity and inaccessibility of the mammalian nervous system. Invertebrate model organisms offer simpler networks that are easier to manipulate. As a result, much of what we know about the development of neural circuits is derived from work in crustaceans, nematode worms and arguably most of all, the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster. This review aims to demonstrate the utility of the Drosophila larval locomotor network as a model circuit, to those who do not usually use the fly in their work. This utility is explored first by discussion of the relatively complete connectome associated with one identified interneuron of the locomotor circuit, A27h, and relating it to similar circuits in mammals. Next, it is developed by examining its application to study two important areas of neuroscience research: critical periods of development and interindividual variability in neural circuits. In summary, this article highlights the potential to use the larval locomotor network as a "generic" model circuit, to provide insight into mammalian circuit development and function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Iain Hunter
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Bramwell Coulson
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Aref Arzan Zarin
- Department of Biology, The Texas A&M Institute for Neuroscience, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Richard A Baines
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, Manchester Academic Health Science Centre, School of Biological Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
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29
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Evans CG, Barry MA, Jing J, Perkins MH, Weiss KR, Cropper EC. The Complement of Projection Neurons Activated Determines the Type of Feeding Motor Program in Aplysia. Front Neural Circuits 2021; 15:685222. [PMID: 34177471 PMCID: PMC8222659 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2021.685222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 05/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Multiple projection neurons are often activated to initiate behavior. A question that then arises is, what is the unique functional role of each neuron activated? We address this issue in the feeding system of Aplysia. Previous experiments identified a projection neuron [cerebral buccal interneuron 2 (CBI-2)] that can trigger ingestive motor programs but only after it is repeatedly stimulated, i.e., initial programs are poorly defined. As CBI-2 stimulation continues, programs become progressively more ingestive (repetition priming occurs). This priming results, at least in part, from persistent actions of peptide cotransmitters released from CBI-2. We now show that in some preparations repetition priming does not occur. There is no clear seasonal effect; priming and non-priming preparations are encountered throughout the year. CBI-2 is electrically coupled to a second projection neuron, cerebral buccal interneuron 3 (CBI-3). In preparations in which priming does not occur, we show that ingestive activity is generated when CBI-2 and CBI-3 are coactivated. Programs are immediately ingestive, i.e., priming is not necessary, and a persistent state is not induced. Our data suggest that dynamic changes in the configuration of activity can vary and be determined by the complement of projection neurons that trigger activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Colin G. Evans
- Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Michael A. Barry
- Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Jian Jing
- Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
- State Key Laboratory of Pharmaceutical Biotechnology, Institute for Brain Sciences, Collaborative Innovation Center of Chemistry for Life Sciences, Jiangsu Engineering Research Center for MicroRNA Biology and Biotechnology, Advanced Institute for Life Sciences, School of Life Sciences, Nanjing University, Nanjing, China
| | - Matthew H. Perkins
- Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Klaudiusz R. Weiss
- Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
| | - Elizabeth C. Cropper
- Department of Neuroscience and Friedman Brain Institute, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, NY, United States
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30
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Hiramoto A, Jonaitis J, Niki S, Kohsaka H, Fetter RD, Cardona A, Pulver SR, Nose A. Regulation of coordinated muscular relaxation in Drosophila larvae by a pattern-regulating intersegmental circuit. Nat Commun 2021; 12:2943. [PMID: 34011945 PMCID: PMC8134441 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-23273-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 04/22/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Typical patterned movements in animals are achieved through combinations of contraction and delayed relaxation of groups of muscles. However, how intersegmentally coordinated patterns of muscular relaxation are regulated by the neural circuits remains poorly understood. Here, we identify Canon, a class of higher-order premotor interneurons, that regulates muscular relaxation during backward locomotion of Drosophila larvae. Canon neurons are cholinergic interneurons present in each abdominal neuromere and show wave-like activity during fictive backward locomotion. Optogenetic activation of Canon neurons induces relaxation of body wall muscles, whereas inhibition of these neurons disrupts timely muscle relaxation. Canon neurons provide excitatory outputs to inhibitory premotor interneurons. Canon neurons also connect with each other to form an intersegmental circuit and regulate their own wave-like activities. Thus, our results demonstrate how coordinated muscle relaxation can be realized by an intersegmental circuit that regulates its own patterned activity and sequentially terminates motor activities along the anterior-posterior axis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Atsuki Hiramoto
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Chiba, Japan
| | - Julius Jonaitis
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Sawako Niki
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Chiba, Japan
- Research Center for Advanced Science and Technology, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Hiroshi Kohsaka
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Chiba, Japan
| | | | - Albert Cardona
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, USA
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK
| | - Stefan R Pulver
- School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, St Andrews, UK
| | - Akinao Nose
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Chiba, Japan.
- Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
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31
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Mark B, Lai SL, Zarin AA, Manning L, Pollington HQ, Litwin-Kumar A, Cardona A, Truman JW, Doe CQ. A developmental framework linking neurogenesis and circuit formation in the Drosophila CNS. eLife 2021; 10:67510. [PMID: 33973523 PMCID: PMC8139831 DOI: 10.7554/elife.67510] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/12/2021] [Accepted: 05/10/2021] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
The mechanisms specifying neuronal diversity are well characterized, yet it remains unclear how or if these mechanisms regulate neural circuit assembly. To address this, we mapped the developmental origin of 160 interneurons from seven bilateral neural progenitors (neuroblasts) and identify them in a synapse-scale TEM reconstruction of the Drosophila larval central nervous system. We find that lineages concurrently build the sensory and motor neuropils by generating sensory and motor hemilineages in a Notch-dependent manner. Neurons in a hemilineage share common synaptic targeting within the neuropil, which is further refined based on neuronal temporal identity. Connectome analysis shows that hemilineage-temporal cohorts share common connectivity. Finally, we show that proximity alone cannot explain the observed connectivity structure, suggesting hemilineage/temporal identity confers an added layer of specificity. Thus, we demonstrate that the mechanisms specifying neuronal diversity also govern circuit formation and function, and that these principles are broadly applicable throughout the nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brandon Mark
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, United States
| | - Sen-Lin Lai
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, United States
| | - Aref Arzan Zarin
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, United States
| | - Laurina Manning
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, United States
| | - Heather Q Pollington
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, United States
| | - Ashok Litwin-Kumar
- Mortimer B Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, United States
| | - Albert Cardona
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Department of Physiology, Development & Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - James W Truman
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington, Friday Harbor, United States
| | - Chris Q Doe
- Institute of Neuroscience, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, University of Oregon, Eugene, United States
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32
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Key B, Zalucki O, Brown DJ. Neural Design Principles for Subjective Experience: Implications for Insects. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:658037. [PMID: 34025371 PMCID: PMC8131515 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.658037] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
How subjective experience is realized in nervous systems remains one of the great challenges in the natural sciences. An answer to this question should resolve debate about which animals are capable of subjective experience. We contend that subjective experience of sensory stimuli is dependent on the brain's awareness of its internal neural processing of these stimuli. This premise is supported by empirical evidence demonstrating that disruption to either processing streams or awareness states perturb subjective experience. Given that the brain must predict the nature of sensory stimuli, we reason that conscious awareness is itself dependent on predictions generated by hierarchically organized forward models of the organism's internal sensory processing. The operation of these forward models requires a specialized neural architecture and hence any nervous system lacking this architecture is unable to subjectively experience sensory stimuli. This approach removes difficulties associated with extrapolations from behavioral and brain homologies typically employed in addressing whether an animal can feel. Using nociception as a model sensation, we show here that the Drosophila brain lacks the required internal neural connectivity to implement the computations required of hierarchical forward models. Consequently, we conclude that Drosophila, and those insects with similar neuroanatomy, do not subjectively experience noxious stimuli and therefore cannot feel pain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian Key
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Oressia Zalucki
- School of Biomedical Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | - Deborah J. Brown
- School of Historical and Philosophical Inquiry, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
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33
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Abstract
Critical periods-brief intervals during which neural circuits can be modified by activity-are necessary for proper neural circuit assembly. Extended critical periods are associated with neurodevelopmental disorders; however, the mechanisms that ensure timely critical period closure remain poorly understood1,2. Here we define a critical period in a developing Drosophila motor circuit and identify astrocytes as essential for proper critical period termination. During the critical period, changes in activity regulate dendrite length, complexity and connectivity of motor neurons. Astrocytes invaded the neuropil just before critical period closure3, and astrocyte ablation prolonged the critical period. Finally, we used a genetic screen to identify astrocyte-motor neuron signalling pathways that close the critical period, including Neuroligin-Neurexin signalling. Reduced signalling destabilized dendritic microtubules, increased dendrite dynamicity and impaired locomotor behaviour, underscoring the importance of critical period closure. Previous work defined astroglia as regulators of plasticity at individual synapses4; we show here that astrocytes also regulate motor circuit critical period closure to ensure proper locomotor behaviour.
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34
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Gowda SBM, Salim S, Mohammad F. Anatomy and Neural Pathways Modulating Distinct Locomotor Behaviors in Drosophila Larva. BIOLOGY 2021; 10:90. [PMID: 33504061 PMCID: PMC7910854 DOI: 10.3390/biology10020090] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2020] [Revised: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 12/30/2020] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
The control of movements is a fundamental feature shared by all animals. At the most basic level, simple movements are generated by coordinated neural activity and muscle contraction patterns that are controlled by the central nervous system. How behavioral responses to various sensory inputs are processed and integrated by the downstream neural network to produce flexible and adaptive behaviors remains an intense area of investigation in many laboratories. Due to recent advances in experimental techniques, many fundamental neural pathways underlying animal movements have now been elucidated. For example, while the role of motor neurons in locomotion has been studied in great detail, the roles of interneurons in animal movements in both basic and noxious environments have only recently been realized. However, the genetic and transmitter identities of many of these interneurons remains unclear. In this review, we provide an overview of the underlying circuitry and neural pathways required by Drosophila larvae to produce successful movements. By improving our understanding of locomotor circuitry in model systems such as Drosophila, we will have a better understanding of how neural circuits in organisms with different bodies and brains lead to distinct locomotion types at the organism level. The understanding of genetic and physiological components of these movements types also provides directions to understand movements in higher organisms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Farhan Mohammad
- Division of Biological and Biomedical Sciences (BBS), College of Health & Life Sciences (CHLS), Hamad Bin Khalifa University (HBKU), Doha 34110, Qatar; (S.B.M.G.); (S.S.)
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35
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Development of motor circuits: From neuronal stem cells and neuronal diversity to motor circuit assembly. Curr Top Dev Biol 2020; 142:409-442. [PMID: 33706923 DOI: 10.1016/bs.ctdb.2020.11.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
In this review, we discuss motor circuit assembly starting from neuronal stem cells. Until recently, studies of neuronal stem cells focused on how a relatively small pool of stem cells could give rise to a large diversity of different neuronal identities. Historically, neuronal identity has been assayed in embryos by gene expression, gross anatomical features, neurotransmitter expression, and physiological properties. However, these definitions of identity are largely unlinked to mature functional neuronal features relevant to motor circuits. Such mature neuronal features include presynaptic and postsynaptic partnerships, dendrite morphologies, as well as neuronal firing patterns and roles in behavior. This review focuses on recent work that links the specification of neuronal molecular identity in neuronal stem cells to mature, circuit-relevant identity specification. Specifically, these studies begin to address the question: to what extent are the decisions that occur during motor circuit assembly controlled by the same genetic information that generates diverse embryonic neuronal diversity? Much of the research addressing this question has been conducted using the Drosophila larval motor system. Here, we focus largely on Drosophila motor circuits and we point out parallels to other systems. And we highlight outstanding questions in the field. The main concepts addressed in this review are: (1) the description of temporal cohorts-novel units of developmental organization that link neuronal stem cell lineages to motor circuit configuration and (2) the discovery that temporal transcription factors expressed in neuronal stem cells control aspects of circuit assembly by controlling the size of temporal cohorts and influencing synaptic partner choice.
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36
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Feng K, Sen R, Minegishi R, Dübbert M, Bockemühl T, Büschges A, Dickson BJ. Distributed control of motor circuits for backward walking in Drosophila. Nat Commun 2020; 11:6166. [PMID: 33268800 PMCID: PMC7710706 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-020-19936-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2020] [Accepted: 11/05/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
How do descending inputs from the brain control leg motor circuits to change how an animal walks? Conceptually, descending neurons are thought to function either as command-type neurons, in which a single type of descending neuron exerts a high-level control to elicit a coordinated change in motor output, or through a population coding mechanism, whereby a group of neurons, each with local effects, act in combination to elicit a global motor response. The Drosophila Moonwalker Descending Neurons (MDNs), which alter leg motor circuit dynamics so that the fly walks backwards, exemplify the command-type mechanism. Here, we identify several dozen MDN target neurons within the leg motor circuits, and show that two of them mediate distinct and highly-specific changes in leg muscle activity during backward walking: LBL40 neurons provide the hindleg power stroke during stance phase; LUL130 neurons lift the legs at the end of stance to initiate swing. Through these two effector neurons, MDN directly controls both the stance and swing phases of the backward stepping cycle. These findings suggest that command-type descending neurons can also operate through the distributed control of local motor circuits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai Feng
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia.
| | - Rajyashree Sen
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 19700 Helix Drive, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA
- The Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Department of Neuroscience, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10027, USA
| | - Ryo Minegishi
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 19700 Helix Drive, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA
| | - Michael Dübbert
- Institute for Zoology, Biocenter Cologne, University of Cologne, D-50674, Cologne, Germany
| | - Till Bockemühl
- Institute for Zoology, Biocenter Cologne, University of Cologne, D-50674, Cologne, Germany
| | - Ansgar Büschges
- Institute for Zoology, Biocenter Cologne, University of Cologne, D-50674, Cologne, Germany
| | - Barry J Dickson
- Queensland Brain Institute, University of Queensland, St Lucia, QLD, 4072, Australia.
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, 19700 Helix Drive, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA.
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37
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Luan H, Diao F, Scott RL, White BH. The Drosophila Split Gal4 System for Neural Circuit Mapping. Front Neural Circuits 2020; 14:603397. [PMID: 33240047 PMCID: PMC7680822 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2020.603397] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2020] [Accepted: 10/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The diversity and dense interconnectivity of cells in the nervous system present a huge challenge to understanding how brains work. Recent progress toward such understanding, however, has been fuelled by the development of techniques for selectively monitoring and manipulating the function of distinct cell types-and even individual neurons-in the brains of living animals. These sophisticated techniques are fundamentally genetic and have found their greatest application in genetic model organisms, such as the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. Drosophila combines genetic tractability with a compact, but cell-type rich, nervous system and has been the incubator for a variety of methods of neuronal targeting. One such method, called Split Gal4, is playing an increasingly important role in mapping neural circuits in the fly. In conjunction with functional perturbations and behavioral screens, Split Gal4 has been used to characterize circuits governing such activities as grooming, aggression, and mating. It has also been leveraged to comprehensively map and functionally characterize cells composing important brain regions, such as the central complex, lateral horn, and the mushroom body-the latter being the insect seat of learning and memory. With connectomics data emerging for both the larval and adult brains of Drosophila, Split Gal4 is also poised to play an important role in characterizing neurons of interest based on their connectivity. We summarize the history and current state of the Split Gal4 method and indicate promising areas for further development or future application.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Benjamin H. White
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Institute of Mental Health, NIH, Bethesda, MD, United States
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38
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Omamiuda-Ishikawa N, Sakai M, Emoto K. A pair of ascending neurons in the subesophageal zone mediates aversive sensory inputs-evoked backward locomotion in Drosophila larvae. PLoS Genet 2020; 16:e1009120. [PMID: 33137117 PMCID: PMC7605633 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2020] [Accepted: 09/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals typically avoid unwanted situations with stereotyped escape behavior. For instance, Drosophila larvae often escape from aversive stimuli to the head, such as mechanical stimuli and blue light irradiation, by backward locomotion. Responses to these aversive stimuli are mediated by a variety of sensory neurons including mechanosensory class III da (C3da) sensory neurons and blue-light responsive class IV da (C4da) sensory neurons and Bolwig's organ (BO). How these distinct sensory pathways evoke backward locomotion at the circuit level is still incompletely understood. Here we show that a pair of cholinergic neurons in the subesophageal zone, designated AMBs, evoke robust backward locomotion upon optogenetic activation. Anatomical and functional analysis shows that AMBs act upstream of MDNs, the command-like neurons for backward locomotion. Further functional analysis indicates that AMBs preferentially convey aversive blue light information from C4da neurons to MDNs to elicit backward locomotion, whereas aversive information from BO converges on MDNs through AMB-independent pathways. We also found that, unlike in adult flies, MDNs are dispensable for the dead end-evoked backward locomotion in larvae. Our findings thus reveal the neural circuits by which two distinct blue light-sensing pathways converge on the command-like neurons to evoke robust backward locomotion, and suggest that distinct but partially redundant neural circuits including the command-like neurons might be utilized to drive backward locomotion in response to different sensory stimuli as well as in adults and larvae.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Moeka Sakai
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo
| | - Kazuo Emoto
- Department of Biological Sciences, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo
- International Research Center for Neurointelligence (WPI-IRCN), The University of Tokyo
- * E-mail:
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39
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Bidaye SS, Laturney M, Chang AK, Liu Y, Bockemühl T, Büschges A, Scott K. Two Brain Pathways Initiate Distinct Forward Walking Programs in Drosophila. Neuron 2020; 108:469-485.e8. [PMID: 32822613 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2020.07.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2020] [Revised: 06/08/2020] [Accepted: 07/24/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
An animal at rest or engaged in stationary behaviors can instantaneously initiate goal-directed walking. How descending brain inputs trigger rapid transitions from a non-walking state to an appropriate walking state is unclear. Here, we identify two neuronal types, P9 and BPN, in the Drosophila brain that, upon activation, initiate and maintain two distinct coordinated walking patterns. P9 drives forward walking with ipsilateral turning, receives inputs from central courtship-promoting neurons and visual projection neurons, and is necessary for a male to pursue a female during courtship. In contrast, BPN drives straight, forward walking and is not required during courtship. BPN is instead recruited during and required for fast, straight, forward walking bouts. Thus, this study reveals separate brain pathways for object-directed walking and fast, straight, forward walking, providing insight into how the brain initiates context-appropriate walking programs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Salil S Bidaye
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
| | - Meghan Laturney
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Amy K Chang
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Yuejiang Liu
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
| | - Till Bockemühl
- Department of Animal Physiology, Institute of Zoology, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, Germany
| | - Ansgar Büschges
- Department of Animal Physiology, Institute of Zoology, University of Cologne, 50674 Cologne, Germany
| | - Kristin Scott
- Department of Molecular and Cell Biology and Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute, University of California, Berkeley, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA.
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40
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Masson JB, Laurent F, Cardona A, Barré C, Skatchkovsky N, Zlatic M, Jovanic T. Identifying neural substrates of competitive interactions and sequence transitions during mechanosensory responses in Drosophila. PLoS Genet 2020; 16:e1008589. [PMID: 32059010 PMCID: PMC7173939 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1008589] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/10/2019] [Revised: 04/21/2020] [Accepted: 12/30/2019] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Nervous systems have the ability to select appropriate actions and action sequences in response to sensory cues. The circuit mechanisms by which nervous systems achieve choice, stability and transitions between behaviors are still incompletely understood. To identify neurons and brain areas involved in controlling these processes, we combined a large-scale neuronal inactivation screen with automated action detection in response to a mechanosensory cue in Drosophila larva. We analyzed behaviors from 2.9x105 larvae and identified 66 candidate lines for mechanosensory responses out of which 25 for competitive interactions between actions. We further characterize in detail the neurons in these lines and analyzed their connectivity using electron microscopy. We found the neurons in the mechanosensory network are located in different regions of the nervous system consistent with a distributed model of sensorimotor decision-making. These findings provide the basis for understanding how selection and transition between behaviors are controlled by the nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Baptiste Masson
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia, United States of America
- Decision and Bayesian Computation, USR 3756 (C3BI/DBC) & Neuroscience Department, Institut Pasteur & CNRS, Paris, France
| | - François Laurent
- Decision and Bayesian Computation, USR 3756 (C3BI/DBC) & Neuroscience Department, Institut Pasteur & CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Albert Cardona
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia, United States of America
- Department of Physiology, Development, and Neuroscience, Cambridge University, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Trumpington, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Chloé Barré
- Decision and Bayesian Computation, USR 3756 (C3BI/DBC) & Neuroscience Department, Institut Pasteur & CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Nicolas Skatchkovsky
- Decision and Bayesian Computation, USR 3756 (C3BI/DBC) & Neuroscience Department, Institut Pasteur & CNRS, Paris, France
| | - Marta Zlatic
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia, United States of America
- MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Trumpington, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- Department of Zoology, Cambridge University, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Tihana Jovanic
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, Virginia, United States of America
- Decision and Bayesian Computation, USR 3756 (C3BI/DBC) & Neuroscience Department, Institut Pasteur & CNRS, Paris, France
- Université Paris-Saclay, CNRS, Institut des Neurosciences Paris Saclay, Gif-sur-Yvette, France
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41
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Zarin AA, Mark B, Cardona A, Litwin-Kumar A, Doe CQ. A multilayer circuit architecture for the generation of distinct locomotor behaviors in Drosophila. eLife 2019; 8:e51781. [PMID: 31868582 PMCID: PMC6994239 DOI: 10.7554/elife.51781] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2019] [Accepted: 12/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals generate diverse motor behaviors, yet how the same motor neurons (MNs) generate two distinct or antagonistic behaviors remains an open question. Here, we characterize Drosophila larval muscle activity patterns and premotor/motor circuits to understand how they generate forward and backward locomotion. We show that all body wall MNs are activated during both behaviors, but a subset of MNs change recruitment timing for each behavior. We used TEM to reconstruct a full segment of all 60 MNs and 236 premotor neurons (PMNs), including differentially-recruited MNs. Analysis of this comprehensive connectome identified PMN-MN 'labeled line' connectivity; PMN-MN combinatorial connectivity; asymmetric neuronal morphology; and PMN-MN circuit motifs that could all contribute to generating distinct behaviors. We generated a recurrent network model that reproduced the observed behaviors, and used functional optogenetics to validate selected model predictions. This PMN-MN connectome will provide a foundation for analyzing the full suite of larval behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aref Arzan Zarin
- Institute of NeuroscienceHoward Hughes Medical Institute, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - Brandon Mark
- Institute of NeuroscienceHoward Hughes Medical Institute, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
| | - Albert Cardona
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical InstituteAshburnUnited States
| | - Ashok Litwin-Kumar
- Mortimer B Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Department of NeuroscienceColumbia UniversityNew YorkUnited States
| | - Chris Q Doe
- Institute of NeuroscienceHoward Hughes Medical Institute, University of OregonEugeneUnited States
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42
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TwoLumps Ascending Neurons Mediate Touch-Evoked Reversal of Walking Direction in Drosophila. Curr Biol 2019; 29:4337-4344.e5. [PMID: 31813606 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2019.11.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2019] [Revised: 10/09/2019] [Accepted: 11/01/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
External cues, including touch, enable walking animals to flexibly maneuver around obstacles and extricate themselves from dead-ends (for reviews, see [1-3]). In a screen for neurons that enable Drosophila melanogaster to retreat when it encounters a dead-end, we identified a pair of ascending neurons, the TwoLumps Ascending (TLA) neurons. Silencing TLA activity impairs backward locomotion, whereas optogenetic activation triggers backward walking. TLA-induced reversal is mediated in part by the Moonwalker Descending Neurons (MDNs) [4], which receive excitatory input from the TLAs. Silencing the TLAs decreases the extent to which freely walking flies back up upon encountering a physical barrier in the dark, and TLAs show calcium responses to optogenetic activation of neurons expressing the mechanosensory channel NOMPC. We infer that TLAs convey feedforward mechanosensory stimuli to transiently activate MDNs in response to anterior body touch.
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43
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Kohsaka H, Zwart MF, Fushiki A, Fetter RD, Truman JW, Cardona A, Nose A. Regulation of forward and backward locomotion through intersegmental feedback circuits in Drosophila larvae. Nat Commun 2019; 10:2654. [PMID: 31201326 PMCID: PMC6572865 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-10695-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2018] [Accepted: 05/26/2019] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Animal locomotion requires spatiotemporally coordinated contraction of muscles throughout the body. Here, we investigate how contractions of antagonistic groups of muscles are intersegmentally coordinated during bidirectional crawling of Drosophila larvae. We identify two pairs of higher-order premotor excitatory interneurons present in each abdominal neuromere that intersegmentally provide feedback to the adjacent neuromere during motor propagation. The two feedback neuron pairs are differentially active during either forward or backward locomotion but commonly target a group of premotor interneurons that together provide excitatory inputs to transverse muscles and inhibitory inputs to the antagonistic longitudinal muscles. Inhibition of either feedback neuron pair compromises contraction of transverse muscles in a direction-specific manner. Our results suggest that the intersegmental feedback neurons coordinate contraction of synergistic muscles by acting as delay circuits representing the phase lag between segments. The identified circuit architecture also shows how bidirectional motor networks could be economically embedded in the nervous system. Locomotion involves the coordinated contraction of antagonistic muscles. Here, the authors report that in Drosophila larvae a pair of higher-order feedback neurons temporally regulates the intersegmental coordination of contraction of synergistic muscles enabling bidirectional movement.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroshi Kohsaka
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, the University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan.
| | - Maarten F Zwart
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA.,School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews, KY16 9JP, Scotland, UK
| | - Akira Fushiki
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA.,Departments of Neuroscience and Neurology, Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA
| | | | - James W Truman
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA.,Friday Harbor Laboratories, University of Washington, Friday Harbor, WA, 98250, USA
| | - Albert Cardona
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, 20147, USA.,Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, CB2 3DY, UK
| | - Akinao Nose
- Department of Complexity Science and Engineering, Graduate School of Frontier Science, the University of Tokyo, 5-1-5 Kashiwanoha, Kashiwa, Chiba, 277-8561, Japan. .,Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, the University of Tokyo, 7-3-1 Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 133-0033, Japan.
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44
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Cury KM, Prud'homme B, Gompel N. A short guide to insect oviposition: when, where and how to lay an egg. J Neurogenet 2019; 33:75-89. [PMID: 31164023 DOI: 10.1080/01677063.2019.1586898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 32] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Egg-laying behavior is one of the most important aspects of female behavior, and has a profound impact on the fitness of a species. As such, it is controlled by several layers of regulation. Here, we review recent advances in our understanding of insect neural circuits that control when, where and how to lay an egg. We also outline outstanding open questions about the control of egg-laying decisions, and speculate on the possible neural underpinnings that can drive the diversification of oviposition behaviors through evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin M Cury
- a Department of Neuroscience and the Mortimer B. Zuckerman Mind Brain Behavior Institute , Columbia University , New York , NY , USA
| | - Benjamin Prud'homme
- b Aix Marseille Université, CNRS , Institut de Biologie du Développement de Marseille (IBDM) , Marseille , France
| | - Nicolas Gompel
- c Fakultät für Biologie, Biozentrum , Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München , Munich , Germany
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45
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46
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Tastekin I, Khandelwal A, Tadres D, Fessner ND, Truman JW, Zlatic M, Cardona A, Louis M. Sensorimotor pathway controlling stopping behavior during chemotaxis in the Drosophila melanogaster larva. eLife 2018; 7:38740. [PMID: 30465650 PMCID: PMC6264072 DOI: 10.7554/elife.38740] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2018] [Accepted: 11/07/2018] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Sensory navigation results from coordinated transitions between distinct behavioral programs. During chemotaxis in the Drosophila melanogaster larva, the detection of positive odor gradients extends runs while negative gradients promote stops and turns. This algorithm represents a foundation for the control of sensory navigation across phyla. In the present work, we identified an olfactory descending neuron, PDM-DN, which plays a pivotal role in the organization of stops and turns in response to the detection of graded changes in odor concentrations. Artificial activation of this descending neuron induces deterministic stops followed by the initiation of turning maneuvers through head casts. Using electron microscopy, we reconstructed the main pathway that connects the PDM-DN neuron to the peripheral olfactory system and to the pre-motor circuit responsible for the actuation of forward peristalsis. Our results set the stage for a detailed mechanistic analysis of the sensorimotor conversion of graded olfactory inputs into action selection to perform goal-oriented navigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ibrahim Tastekin
- EMBL-CRG Systems Biology Research Unit, Centre for Genomic Regulation, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona, Spain.,Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Avinash Khandelwal
- EMBL-CRG Systems Biology Research Unit, Centre for Genomic Regulation, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona, Spain.,Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - David Tadres
- EMBL-CRG Systems Biology Research Unit, Centre for Genomic Regulation, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona, Spain.,Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.,Institute of Molecular Life Sciences, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.,Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology & Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - Nico D Fessner
- EMBL-CRG Systems Biology Research Unit, Centre for Genomic Regulation, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona, Spain.,Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain
| | - James W Truman
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Marta Zlatic
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States.,Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Albert Cardona
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States.,Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Matthieu Louis
- EMBL-CRG Systems Biology Research Unit, Centre for Genomic Regulation, The Barcelona Institute of Science and Technology, Barcelona, Spain.,Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.,Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology & Neuroscience Research Institute, University of California, Santa Barbara, United States.,Department of Physics, University of California Santa Barbara, California, United States
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