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Nanami T, Yamada D, Someya M, Hige T, Kazama H, Kohno T. A lightweight data-driven spiking neuronal network model of Drosophila olfactory nervous system with dedicated hardware support. Front Neurosci 2024; 18:1384336. [PMID: 38994271 PMCID: PMC11238178 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2024.1384336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2024] [Accepted: 06/05/2024] [Indexed: 07/13/2024] Open
Abstract
Data-driven spiking neuronal network (SNN) models enable in-silico analysis of the nervous system at the cellular and synaptic level. Therefore, they are a key tool for elucidating the information processing principles of the brain. While extensive research has focused on developing data-driven SNN models for mammalian brains, their complexity poses challenges in achieving precision. Network topology often relies on statistical inference, and the functions of specific brain regions and supporting neuronal activities remain unclear. Additionally, these models demand huge computing facilities and their simulation speed is considerably slower than real-time. Here, we propose a lightweight data-driven SNN model that strikes a balance between simplicity and reproducibility. The model is built using a qualitative modeling approach that can reproduce key dynamics of neuronal activity. We target the Drosophila olfactory nervous system, extracting its network topology from connectome data. The model was successfully implemented on a small entry-level field-programmable gate array and simulated the activity of a network in real-time. In addition, the model reproduced olfactory associative learning, the primary function of the olfactory system, and characteristic spiking activities of different neuron types. In sum, this paper propose a method for building data-driven SNN models from biological data. Our approach reproduces the function and neuronal activities of the nervous system and is lightweight, acceleratable with dedicated hardware, making it scalable to large-scale networks. Therefore, our approach is expected to play an important role in elucidating the brain's information processing at the cellular and synaptic level through an analysis-by-construction approach. In addition, it may be applicable to edge artificial intelligence systems in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takuya Nanami
- Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, Meguro Ku, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Daichi Yamada
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Makoto Someya
- RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Wako, Saitama, Japan
| | - Toshihide Hige
- Department of Biology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
- Integrative Program for Biological and Genome Sciences, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, United States
| | - Hokto Kazama
- RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Wako, Saitama, Japan
| | - Takashi Kohno
- Institute of Industrial Science, The University of Tokyo, Meguro Ku, Tokyo, Japan
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2
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Chen Y, Zhang C, Li W, Lan R, Chen R, Hu J, Yang C, Wang P, Tang B, Wang S. Residues of chlorpyrifos in the environment induce resistance in Aedes albopictus by affecting its olfactory system and neurotoxicity. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 930:172425. [PMID: 38643874 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2024.172425] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2023] [Revised: 04/09/2024] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/23/2024]
Abstract
Aedes albopictus, a virus-vector pest, is primarily controlled through the use of insecticides. In this study, we investigated the mechanisms of resistance in Ae. albopictus in terms of chlorpyrifos neurotoxicity to Ae. albopictus and its effects on the olfactory system. We assessed Ca2+-Mg2+-ATP levels, choline acetyltransferase (ChAT), Monoamine oxidase (MAO), odorant-binding proteins (OBPs), and olfactory receptor (OR7) gene expression in Ae. albopictus using various assays including Y-shaped tube experiments and DanioVision analysis to evaluate macromotor behavior. Our findings revealed that cumulative exposure to chlorpyrifos reduced the activity of neurotoxic Ca2+-Mg2+-ATPase and ChAT enzymes in Ae. albopictus to varying degrees, suppressed MAO-B enzyme expression, altered OBPs and OR7 expression patterns, as well as affected evasive response, physical mobility, and cumulative locomotor time under chlorpyrifos stress conditions for Ae. albopictus individuals. Consequently, these changes led to decreased feeding ability, reproductive capacity, and avoidance behavior towards natural enemies in Ae. albopictus populations exposed to chlorpyrifos stressors over time. To adapt to unfavorable living environments, Ae. albopictus may develop certain tolerance mechanisms against organophosphorus pesticides. This study provides valuable insights for guiding rational insecticide usage or dosage adjustments targeting the nervous system of Ae. albopictus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yanrong Chen
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Chen Zhang
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Wen Li
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Ruoyun Lan
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Rufei Chen
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Jingchao Hu
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Chenyu Yang
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Ping Wang
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Bin Tang
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China
| | - Shigui Wang
- College of life and Environmental Sciences, Hangzhou Normal University, Hangzhou 311121, People's Republic of China.
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3
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Eckstein N, Bates AS, Champion A, Du M, Yin Y, Schlegel P, Lu AKY, Rymer T, Finley-May S, Paterson T, Parekh R, Dorkenwald S, Matsliah A, Yu SC, McKellar C, Sterling A, Eichler K, Costa M, Seung S, Murthy M, Hartenstein V, Jefferis GSXE, Funke J. Neurotransmitter classification from electron microscopy images at synaptic sites in Drosophila melanogaster. Cell 2024; 187:2574-2594.e23. [PMID: 38729112 PMCID: PMC11106717 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2024.03.016] [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: 04/02/2023] [Revised: 10/04/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
High-resolution electron microscopy of nervous systems has enabled the reconstruction of synaptic connectomes. However, we do not know the synaptic sign for each connection (i.e., whether a connection is excitatory or inhibitory), which is implied by the released transmitter. We demonstrate that artificial neural networks can predict transmitter types for presynapses from electron micrographs: a network trained to predict six transmitters (acetylcholine, glutamate, GABA, serotonin, dopamine, octopamine) achieves an accuracy of 87% for individual synapses, 94% for neurons, and 91% for known cell types across a D. melanogaster whole brain. We visualize the ultrastructural features used for prediction, discovering subtle but significant differences between transmitter phenotypes. We also analyze transmitter distributions across the brain and find that neurons that develop together largely express only one fast-acting transmitter (acetylcholine, glutamate, or GABA). We hope that our publicly available predictions act as an accelerant for neuroscientific hypothesis generation for the fly.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nils Eckstein
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, USA; Institute of Neuroinformatics UZH/ETHZ, Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Alexander Shakeel Bates
- Neurobiology Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK; Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, The University of Oxford, Tinsley Building, Mansfield Road, Oxford OX1 3SR, UK; Department of Neurobiology and Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Andrew Champion
- Drosophila Connectomics Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Michelle Du
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, USA
| | - Yijie Yin
- Drosophila Connectomics Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Philipp Schlegel
- Neurobiology Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK; Drosophila Connectomics Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Sven Dorkenwald
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Arie Matsliah
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Szi-Chieh Yu
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Claire McKellar
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Amy Sterling
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Katharina Eichler
- Drosophila Connectomics Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Marta Costa
- Drosophila Connectomics Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK
| | - Sebastian Seung
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Mala Murthy
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, USA
| | - Volker Hartenstein
- Department of Molecular Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Gregory S X E Jefferis
- Neurobiology Division, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge, UK; Drosophila Connectomics Group, Department of Zoology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, UK.
| | - Jan Funke
- HHMI Janelia Research Campus, Ashburn, VA, USA.
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4
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Eichler K, Hampel S, Alejandro-García A, Calle-Schuler SA, Santana-Cruz A, Kmecova L, Blagburn JM, Hoopfer ED, Seeds AM. Somatotopic organization among parallel sensory pathways that promote a grooming sequence in Drosophila. eLife 2024; 12:RP87602. [PMID: 38634460 PMCID: PMC11026096 DOI: 10.7554/elife.87602] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Mechanosensory neurons located across the body surface respond to tactile stimuli and elicit diverse behavioral responses, from relatively simple stimulus location-aimed movements to complex movement sequences. How mechanosensory neurons and their postsynaptic circuits influence such diverse behaviors remains unclear. We previously discovered that Drosophila perform a body location-prioritized grooming sequence when mechanosensory neurons at different locations on the head and body are simultaneously stimulated by dust (Hampel et al., 2017; Seeds et al., 2014). Here, we identify nearly all mechanosensory neurons on the Drosophila head that individually elicit aimed grooming of specific head locations, while collectively eliciting a whole head grooming sequence. Different tracing methods were used to reconstruct the projections of these neurons from different locations on the head to their distinct arborizations in the brain. This provides the first synaptic resolution somatotopic map of a head, and defines the parallel-projecting mechanosensory pathways that elicit head grooming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Eichler
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences CampusSan JuanPuerto Rico
| | - Stefanie Hampel
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences CampusSan JuanPuerto Rico
| | - Adrián Alejandro-García
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences CampusSan JuanPuerto Rico
| | - Steven A Calle-Schuler
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences CampusSan JuanPuerto Rico
| | - Alexis Santana-Cruz
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences CampusSan JuanPuerto Rico
| | - Lucia Kmecova
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences CampusSan JuanPuerto Rico
| | - Jonathan M Blagburn
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences CampusSan JuanPuerto Rico
| | - Eric D Hoopfer
- Neuroscience Program, Carleton CollegeNorthfieldUnited States
| | - Andrew M Seeds
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences CampusSan JuanPuerto Rico
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5
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Khanal S, de Cruz M, Strickland B, Mansfield K, Lai E, Flynt A. A tailed mirtron promotes longevity in Drosophila. Nucleic Acids Res 2024; 52:1080-1089. [PMID: 38048325 PMCID: PMC10853799 DOI: 10.1093/nar/gkad1158] [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: 04/03/2023] [Revised: 11/09/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 12/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Thousands of atypical microRNAs (miRNAs) have been described in the genomes of animals; however, it is unclear if many of these non-canonical miRNAs can measurably influence phenotypes. Mirtrons are the largest class of non-canonical miRNAs that are produced from hairpins excised by splicing, which after debranching become substrates for Dicer and load into RISC. Most mirtrons require additional processing after splicing to remove 'tail' residues interposed between one of the host intron splice sites and base of the hairpin precursor structure. Despite most mirtrons requiring tail removal no function has been elucidated for a tailed species, indeed for all mirtrons identified function has only been assigned to a single species. Here we study miR-1017, a mirtron with a 3' tail, which is well expressed and conserved in Drosophila species. We found that miR-1017 can extend lifespan when ectopically expressed in the neurons, which seems partly due to this miRNA targeting its host transcript, acetylcholine receptor Dα2. Unexpectedly we found that not only did miR-1017 function in trans but also in cis by affecting splicing of Dα2. This suggests a mechanism for mirtron evolution where initial roles of structural elements in splicing lead to secondary acquisition of trans-regulatory function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sweta Khanal
- Cellular and Molecular Biology, School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences University of Southern Mississippi, USA
| | - Matthew de Cruz
- Cellular and Molecular Biology, School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences University of Southern Mississippi, USA
| | - Britton Strickland
- Cellular and Molecular Biology, School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences University of Southern Mississippi, USA
| | - Kody Mansfield
- Cellular and Molecular Biology, School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences University of Southern Mississippi, USA
| | - Eric C Lai
- Department of Developmental Biology, Sloan Kettering Institute, USA
| | - Alex Flynt
- Cellular and Molecular Biology, School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences University of Southern Mississippi, USA
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6
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Eichler K, Hampel S, Alejandro-García A, Calle-Schuler SA, Santana-Cruz A, Kmecova L, Blagburn JM, Hoopfer ED, Seeds AM. Somatotopic organization among parallel sensory pathways that promote a grooming sequence in Drosophila. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.02.11.528119. [PMID: 36798384 PMCID: PMC9934617 DOI: 10.1101/2023.02.11.528119] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/14/2023]
Abstract
Mechanosensory neurons located across the body surface respond to tactile stimuli and elicit diverse behavioral responses, from relatively simple stimulus location-aimed movements to complex movement sequences. How mechanosensory neurons and their postsynaptic circuits influence such diverse behaviors remains unclear. We previously discovered that Drosophila perform a body location-prioritized grooming sequence when mechanosensory neurons at different locations on the head and body are simultaneously stimulated by dust (Hampel et al., 2017; Seeds et al., 2014). Here, we identify nearly all mechanosensory neurons on the Drosophila head that individually elicit aimed grooming of specific head locations, while collectively eliciting a whole head grooming sequence. Different tracing methods were used to reconstruct the projections of these neurons from different locations on the head to their distinct arborizations in the brain. This provides the first synaptic resolution somatotopic map of a head, and defines the parallel-projecting mechanosensory pathways that elicit head grooming.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Eichler
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Contributed equally
| | - Stefanie Hampel
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Contributed equally
| | - Adrián Alejandro-García
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Contributed equally
| | - Steven A Calle-Schuler
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Alexis Santana-Cruz
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Lucia Kmecova
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
- Neuroscience Program, Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota
- Contributed equally
| | - Jonathan M Blagburn
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
| | - Eric D Hoopfer
- Neuroscience Program, Carleton College, Northfield, Minnesota
| | - Andrew M Seeds
- Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico-Medical Sciences Campus, San Juan, Puerto Rico
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7
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Ohashi TS, Ishikawa Y, Awasaki T, Su MP, Yoneyama Y, Morimoto N, Kamikouchi A. Evolutionary conservation and diversification of auditory neural circuits that process courtship songs in Drosophila. Sci Rep 2023; 13:383. [PMID: 36611081 PMCID: PMC9825394 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-27349-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/16/2022] [Accepted: 12/30/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023] Open
Abstract
Acoustic communication signals diversify even on short evolutionary time scales. To understand how the auditory system underlying acoustic communication could evolve, we conducted a systematic comparison of the early stages of the auditory neural circuit involved in song information processing between closely-related fruit-fly species. Male Drosophila melanogaster and D. simulans produce different sound signals during mating rituals, known as courtship songs. Female flies from these species selectively increase their receptivity when they hear songs with conspecific temporal patterns. Here, we firstly confirmed interspecific differences in temporal pattern preferences; D. simulans preferred pulse songs with longer intervals than D. melanogaster. Primary and secondary song-relay neurons, JO neurons and AMMC-B1 neurons, shared similar morphology and neurotransmitters between species. The temporal pattern preferences of AMMC-B1 neurons were also relatively similar between species, with slight but significant differences in their band-pass properties. Although the shift direction of the response property matched that of the behavior, these differences are not large enough to explain behavioral differences in song preferences. This study enhances our understanding of the conservation and diversification of the architecture of the early-stage neural circuit which processes acoustic communication signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takuro S. Ohashi
- grid.27476.300000 0001 0943 978XGraduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602 Japan
| | - Yuki Ishikawa
- Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi, 464-8602, Japan.
| | - Takeshi Awasaki
- grid.411205.30000 0000 9340 2869School of Medicine, Kyorin University, Tokyo, 181-8611 Japan
| | - Matthew P. Su
- grid.27476.300000 0001 0943 978XGraduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602 Japan ,grid.27476.300000 0001 0943 978XInstitute for Advanced Research, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8601 Japan
| | - Yusuke Yoneyama
- grid.27476.300000 0001 0943 978XGraduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602 Japan
| | - Nao Morimoto
- grid.39158.360000 0001 2173 7691Institute for Genetic Medicine, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-0815 Japan
| | - Azusa Kamikouchi
- Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi, 464-8602, Japan. .,Graduate School of Life Sciences, Tohoku University, Sendai, Miyagi, 980-8577, Japan.
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8
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Bolshakova OI, Borisenkova AA, Golomidov IM, Komissarov AE, Slobodina AD, Ryabova EV, Ryabokon IS, Latypova EM, Slepneva EE, Sarantseva SV. Fullerenols Prevent Neuron Death and Reduce Oxidative Stress in Drosophila Huntington's Disease Model. Cells 2022; 12:cells12010170. [PMID: 36611963 PMCID: PMC9818496 DOI: 10.3390/cells12010170] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 12/23/2022] [Accepted: 12/28/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Huntington's disease (HD) is one of the human neurodegenerative diseases for which there is no effective treatment. Therefore, there is a strong demand for a novel neuroprotective agent that can alleviate its course. Fullerene derivatives are considered to be such agents; however, they need to be comprehensively investigated in model organisms. In this work, neuroprotective activity of C60(OH)30 and C120O(OH)44 fullerenols was analyzed for the first time in a Drosophila transgenic model of HD. Lifespan, behavior, oxidative stress level and age-related neurodegeneration were assessed in flies with the pathogenic Huntingtin protein expression in nerve cells. Feed supplementation with hydroxylated C60 fullerene and C120O dimer oxide molecules was shown to diminish the oxidative stress level and neurodegenerative processes in the flies' brains. Thus, fullerenes displayed neuroprotective activity in this model.
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9
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Sabandal PR, Saldes EB, Han KA. Acetylcholine deficit causes dysfunctional inhibitory control in an aging-dependent manner. Sci Rep 2022; 12:20903. [PMID: 36463374 PMCID: PMC9719532 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-25402-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Accepted: 11/29/2022] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Inhibitory control is a key executive function that limits unnecessary thoughts and actions, enabling an organism to appropriately execute goal-driven behaviors. The efficiency of this inhibitory capacity declines with normal aging or in neurodegenerative dementias similar to memory or other cognitive functions. Acetylcholine signaling is crucial for executive function and also diminishes with aging. Acetylcholine's contribution to the aging- or dementia-related decline in inhibitory control, however, remains elusive. We addressed this in Drosophila using a Go/No-Go task that measures inhibition capacity. Here, we report that inhibition capacity declines with aging in wild-type flies, which is mitigated by lessening acetylcholine breakdown and augmented by reducing acetylcholine biosynthesis. We identified the mushroom body (MB) γ neurons as a chief neural site for acetylcholine's contribution to the aging-associated inhibitory control deficit. In addition, we found that the MB output neurons MBON-γ2α'1 having dendrites at the MB γ2 and α'1 lobes and axons projecting to the superior medial protocerebrum and the crepine is critical for sustained movement suppression per se. This study reveals, for the first time, the central role of acetylcholine in the aging-associated loss of inhibitory control and provides a framework for further mechanistic studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul Rafael Sabandal
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, 79968, USA.
| | - Erick Benjamin Saldes
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, 79968, USA
| | - Kyung-An Han
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Texas at El Paso, El Paso, TX, 79968, USA.
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10
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Nitta Y, Sugie A. Studies of neurodegenerative diseases using Drosophila and the development of novel approaches for their analysis. Fly (Austin) 2022; 16:275-298. [PMID: 35765969 PMCID: PMC9336468 DOI: 10.1080/19336934.2022.2087484] [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] [Indexed: 02/09/2023] Open
Abstract
The use of Drosophila in neurodegenerative disease research has contributed to the identification of modifier genes for the pathology. The basis for neurodegenerative disease occurrence in Drosophila is the conservation of genes across species and the ability to perform rapid genetic analysis using a compact brain. Genetic findings previously discovered in Drosophila can reveal molecular pathologies involved in human neurological diseases in later years. Disease models using Drosophila began to be generated during the development of genetic engineering. In recent years, results of reverse translational research using Drosophila have been reported. In this review, we discuss research on neurodegenerative diseases; moreover, we introduce various methods for quantifying neurodegeneration in Drosophila.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yohei Nitta
- Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan
| | - Atsushi Sugie
- Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan,CONTACT Atsushi Sugie Brain Research Institute, Niigata University, Niigata, Japan
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11
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Damulewicz M, Tyszka A, Pyza E. Light exposure during development affects physiology of adults in Drosophila melanogaster. Front Physiol 2022; 13:1008154. [PMID: 36505068 PMCID: PMC9732085 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2022.1008154] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/31/2022] [Accepted: 11/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Light is one of most important factors synchronizing organisms to day/night cycles in the environment. In Drosophila it is received through compound eyes, Hofbauer-Buchner eyelet, ocelli, using phospholipase C-dependent phototransduction and by deep brain photoreceptors, like Cryptochrome. Even a single light pulse during early life induces larval-time memory, which synchronizes the circadian clock and maintains daily rhythms in adult flies. In this study we investigated several processes in adult flies after maintaining their embryos, larvae and pupae in constant darkness (DD) until eclosion. We found that the lack of external light during development affects sleep time, by reduction of night sleep, and in effect shift to the daytime. However, disruption of internal CRY- dependent photoreception annuls this effect. We also observed changes in the expression of genes encoding neurotransmitters and their receptors between flies kept in different light regime. In addition, the lack of light during development results in decreasing size of mushroom bodies, involved in sleep regulation. Taking together, our results show that presence of light during early life plays a key role in brain development and affects adult behavior.
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12
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Reddy DS, Abeygunaratne HN. Experimental and Clinical Biomarkers for Progressive Evaluation of Neuropathology and Therapeutic Interventions for Acute and Chronic Neurological Disorders. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:11734. [PMID: 36233034 PMCID: PMC9570151 DOI: 10.3390/ijms231911734] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Revised: 09/27/2022] [Accepted: 09/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022] Open
Abstract
This article describes commonly used experimental and clinical biomarkers of neuronal injury and neurodegeneration for the evaluation of neuropathology and monitoring of therapeutic interventions. Biomarkers are vital for diagnostics of brain disease and therapeutic monitoring. A biomarker can be objectively measured and evaluated as a proxy indicator for the pathophysiological process or response to therapeutic interventions. There are complex hurdles in understanding the molecular pathophysiology of neurological disorders and the ability to diagnose them at initial stages. Novel biomarkers for neurological diseases may surpass these issues, especially for early identification of disease risk. Validated biomarkers can measure the severity and progression of both acute neuronal injury and chronic neurological diseases such as epilepsy, migraine, Alzheimer's disease, Parkinson's disease, Huntington's disease, traumatic brain injury, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, multiple sclerosis, and other brain diseases. Biomarkers are deployed to study progression and response to treatment, including noninvasive imaging tools for both acute and chronic brain conditions. Neuronal biomarkers are classified into four core subtypes: blood-based, immunohistochemical-based, neuroimaging-based, and electrophysiological biomarkers. Neuronal conditions have progressive stages, such as acute injury, inflammation, neurodegeneration, and neurogenesis, which can serve as indices of pathological status. Biomarkers are critical for the targeted identification of specific molecules, cells, tissues, or proteins that dramatically alter throughout the progression of brain conditions. There has been tremendous progress with biomarkers in acute conditions and chronic diseases affecting the central nervous system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Doodipala Samba Reddy
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, TX 77807, USA
- Institute of Pharmacology and Neurotherapeutics, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, TX 77807, USA
- Intercollegiate School of Engineering Medicine, Texas A&M University, Houston, TX 77030, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, College of Engineering, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
- Department of Veterinary Integrative Biosciences, College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX 77843, USA
| | - Hasara Nethma Abeygunaratne
- Department of Neuroscience and Experimental Therapeutics, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, TX 77807, USA
- Institute of Pharmacology and Neurotherapeutics, College of Medicine, Texas A&M University Health Science Center, Bryan, TX 77807, USA
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13
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Machado FR, Araujo SM, Funguetto ACR, Bortolotto VC, Fernandes EJ, Mustafa Dahleh Mustafa M, Haas SE, Guerra GP, Prigol M, Boeira SP. Relationship between toxicity and oxidative stress of the nanoencapsulated colchicine in a model of Drosophila melanogaster. Free Radic Res 2022; 56:577-594. [PMID: 36641780 DOI: 10.1080/10715762.2022.2146500] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Drug repurposing allows searching for new biological targets, especially against emerging diseases such as Covid-19. Drug colchicine (COL) presents recognized anti-inflammatory action, while the nanotechnology purpose therapies with low doses, efficacy, and decrease the drug's side-effects. This study aims to evaluate the effects of COL and colchicine nanocapsules (NCCOL) on survival, LC50, activity locomotor, and oxidative stress parameters, elucidating the toxicity profile in acute and chronic exposure in Drosophila melanogaster. Three-day-old flies were investigated into groups: Control, 0.001, 0.0025, 0.005, and 0.010 mg/mL of COL or NCCOL. The survival rate, open field test, LC50, oxidative stress markers (reactive species (RS) production, thiobarbituric acid reactive substances), antioxidant enzyme activity (catalase (CAT), superoxide dismutase (SOD), glutathione S-transferase), protein thiols, nonprotein thiols, acetylcholinesterase activity, and cell viability were measured. As a result, acute exposure to the COL decreases the number of crosses in the open field and increases CAT activity. NCCOL reduced RS levels, increased lipoperoxidation and SOD activity. Chronic exposure to the COL and NCCOL in high concentrations implied high mortality and enzymatic inhibition of the CAT and AChE, and only the COL caused locomotor damage in the open field test. Thus, NCCOL again reduced the formation of RS while COL increased. In this comparative study, NCCOL was less toxic to the antioxidant system than COL and showed notable involvement of oxidative stress as one of their toxicity mechanisms. Future studies are needed to elucidate all aspects of nanosafety related to the NCCOL.
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Affiliation(s)
- Franciéle Romero Machado
- Laboratory of Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluations Applied to Bioactives Molecules - LaftamBio, Federal University of Pampa, Itaqui, Brazil
| | - Stífani Machado Araujo
- Laboratory of Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluations Applied to Bioactives Molecules - LaftamBio, Federal University of Pampa, Itaqui, Brazil
| | | | - Vandreza Cardoso Bortolotto
- Laboratory of Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluations Applied to Bioactives Molecules - LaftamBio, Federal University of Pampa, Itaqui, Brazil
| | - Eliana Jardim Fernandes
- Laboratory of Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluations Applied to Bioactives Molecules - LaftamBio, Federal University of Pampa, Itaqui, Brazil
| | - Munir Mustafa Dahleh Mustafa
- Laboratory of Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluations Applied to Bioactives Molecules - LaftamBio, Federal University of Pampa, Itaqui, Brazil
| | - Sandra Elisa Haas
- Pharmacology Laboratory - LABFAR, Federal University of Pampa, Uruguaiana, Brazil
| | - Gustavo Petri Guerra
- Laboratory of Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluations Applied to Bioactives Molecules - LaftamBio, Federal University of Pampa, Itaqui, Brazil
| | - Marina Prigol
- Laboratory of Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluations Applied to Bioactives Molecules - LaftamBio, Federal University of Pampa, Itaqui, Brazil
| | - Silvana Peterini Boeira
- Laboratory of Pharmacological and Toxicological Evaluations Applied to Bioactives Molecules - LaftamBio, Federal University of Pampa, Itaqui, Brazil
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14
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Palavicino-Maggio CB, Sengupta S. The Neuromodulatory Basis of Aggression: Lessons From the Humble Fruit Fly. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:836666. [PMID: 35517573 PMCID: PMC9062135 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.836666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Aggression is an intrinsic trait that organisms of almost all species, humans included, use to get access to food, shelter, and mating partners. To maximize fitness in the wild, an organism must vary the intensity of aggression toward the same or different stimuli. How much of this variation is genetic and how much is externally induced, is largely unknown but is likely to be a combination of both. Irrespective of the source, one of the principal physiological mechanisms altering the aggression intensity involves neuromodulation. Any change or variation in aggression intensity is most likely governed by a complex interaction of several neuromodulators acting via a meshwork of neural circuits. Resolving aggression-specific neural circuits in a mammalian model has proven challenging due to the highly complex nature of the mammalian brain. In that regard, the fruit fly model Drosophila melanogaster has provided insights into the circuit-driven mechanisms of aggression regulation and its underlying neuromodulatory basis. Despite morphological dissimilarities, the fly brain shares striking similarities with the mammalian brain in genes, neuromodulatory systems, and circuit-organization, making the findings from the fly model extremely valuable for understanding the fundamental circuit logic of human aggression. This review discusses our current understanding of how neuromodulators regulate aggression based on findings from the fruit fly model. We specifically focus on the roles of Serotonin (5-HT), Dopamine (DA), Octopamine (OA), Acetylcholine (ACTH), Sex Peptides (SP), Tachykinin (TK), Neuropeptide F (NPF), and Drosulfakinin (Dsk) in fruit fly male and female aggression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caroline B Palavicino-Maggio
- Basic Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, McLean Hospital, Boston, MA, United States.,Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, United States
| | - Saheli Sengupta
- Basic Neuroscience Division, Department of Psychiatry, Harvard Medical School, McLean Hospital, Boston, MA, United States
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15
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Banzai K, Izumi S. Cis-regulatory elements of the cholinergic gene locus in the silkworm Bombyx mori. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2022; 31:73-84. [PMID: 34549831 DOI: 10.1111/imb.12739] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2021] [Revised: 09/14/2021] [Accepted: 09/17/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Genes of choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and vesicular acetylcholine transporter are encoded in the same gene locus, called the cholinergic gene locus. They are essential in cholinergic neurons to maintain their functional phenotype. The genomic structure of the cholinergic gene locus is conserved among invertebrates to mammals. However, the cholinergic gene expression in a specific subset of neurons is unknown in insects except for Drosophila melanogaster. In this study, we analysed the upstream sequence of cholinergic gene locus in the silkworm Bombyx mori to identify specific cis-regulatory regions. We found multiple enhancer regions that are localized within 1 kb upstream of the cholinergic gene locus. The combination of promoter assays using small deletions and bioinformatic analysis among insect species illuminates two conserved sequences in the cis-regulatory region: TGACGTA and CCAAT, which are known as the cAMP response element and CAAT box, respectively. We found that dibutyryl-cAMP, an analogue of cAMP, influences the expression of ChAT in B. mori. Tissue-specific expression analysis of transcriptional factors identified potential candidates that control the cholinergic gene locus expression. Our investigation provides new insight into the regulation mechanism of cholinergic neuron-specific gene machinery in this lepidopteran insect.
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Affiliation(s)
- K Banzai
- Department of Biological Sciences, Kanagawa University, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - S Izumi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Kanagawa University, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa, Japan
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16
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Hamid R, Sant HS, Kulkarni MN. Choline Transporter regulates olfactory habituation via a neuronal triad of excitatory, inhibitory and mushroom body neurons. PLoS Genet 2021; 17:e1009938. [PMID: 34914708 PMCID: PMC8675691 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pgen.1009938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [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: 04/13/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Choline is an essential component of Acetylcholine (ACh) biosynthesis pathway which requires high-affinity Choline transporter (ChT) for its uptake into the presynaptic terminals of cholinergic neurons. Previously, we had reported a predominant expression of ChT in memory processing and storing region of the Drosophila brain called mushroom bodies (MBs). It is unknown how ChT contributes to the functional principles of MB operation. Here, we demonstrate the role of ChT in Habituation, a non-associative form of learning. Odour driven habituation traces are laid down in ChT dependent manner in antennal lobes (AL), projection neurons (PNs), and MBs. We observed that reduced habituation due to knock-down of ChT in MBs causes hypersensitivity towards odour, suggesting that ChT also regulates incoming stimulus suppression. Importantly, we show for the first time that ChT is not unique to cholinergic neurons but is also required in inhibitory GABAergic neurons to drive habituation behaviour. Our results support a model in which ChT regulates both habituation and incoming stimuli through multiple circuit loci via an interplay between excitatory and inhibitory neurons. Strikingly, the lack of ChT in MBs shows characteristics similar to the major reported features of Autism spectrum disorders (ASD), including attenuated habituation, sensory hypersensitivity as well as defective GABAergic signalling. Our data establish the role of ChT in habituation and suggest that its dysfunction may contribute to neuropsychiatric disorders like ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Runa Hamid
- Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, India
| | - Hitesh Sonaram Sant
- Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, India
| | - Mrunal Nagaraj Kulkarni
- Centre for Cellular and Molecular Biology, Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR-CCMB), Hyderabad, India
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17
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Glial glucose fuels the neuronal pentose phosphate pathway for long-term memory. Cell Rep 2021; 36:109620. [PMID: 34433052 PMCID: PMC8411112 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2021.109620] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/31/2020] [Revised: 07/22/2021] [Accepted: 08/05/2021] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Brain function relies almost solely on glucose as an energy substrate. The main model of brain metabolism proposes that glucose is taken up and converted into lactate by astrocytes to fuel the energy-demanding neuronal activity underlying plasticity and memory. Whether direct neuronal glucose uptake is required for memory formation remains elusive. We uncover, in Drosophila, a mechanism of glucose shuttling to neurons from cortex glia, an exclusively perisomatic glial subtype, upon formation of olfactory long-term memory (LTM). In vivo imaging reveals that, downstream of cholinergic activation of cortex glia, autocrine insulin signaling increases glucose concentration in glia. Glucose is then transferred from glia to the neuronal somata in the olfactory memory center to fuel the pentose phosphate pathway and allow LTM formation. In contrast, our results indicate that the increase in neuronal glucose metabolism, although crucial for LTM formation, is not routed to glycolysis. Neuronal glucose metabolism is increased upon long-term memory formation Glial cells shuttle glucose to neurons following insulin signaling activation Glucose fuels the neuronal pentose phosphate pathway
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18
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Tracking Single Molecule Dynamics in the Adult Drosophila Brain. eNeuro 2021; 8:ENEURO.0057-21.2021. [PMID: 33875453 PMCID: PMC8174007 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0057-21.2021] [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: 02/08/2021] [Revised: 03/24/2021] [Accepted: 03/26/2021] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Super-resolution microscopy provides valuable insight for understanding the nanoscale organization within living tissue, although this method is typically restricted to cultured or dissociated cells. Here, we develop a method to track the mobility of individual proteins in ex vivo adult Drosophila melanogaster brains, focusing on a key component of the presynaptic release machinery, syntaxin1A (Sx1a). We show that individual Sx1a dynamics can be reliably tracked within neurons in the whole fly brain, and that the mobility of Sx1a molecules increases following conditional neural stimulation. We then apply this preparation to the problem of general anesthesia, to address how different anesthetics might affect single molecule dynamics in intact brain synapses. We find that propofol, etomidate, and isoflurane significantly impair Sx1a mobility, while ketamine and sevoflurane have little effect. Resolving single molecule dynamics in intact fly brains provides a novel approach to link localized molecular effects with systems-level phenomena such as general anesthesia.
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19
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Daack CW, Yeh D, Busch M, Kliethermes CL. GABAergic regulation of locomotion before and during an ethanol exposure in Drosophila melanogaster. Behav Brain Res 2021; 410:113369. [PMID: 34015397 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2021.113369] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2021] [Revised: 04/30/2021] [Accepted: 05/14/2021] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Ethanol at low doses induces a locomotor stimulant response across a range of phylogenetically diverse species. In rodents, this response is commonly used as an index of ethanol's disinhibitory, anxiolytic, or reinforcing effects, and its expression is regulated by signaling through a number of conserved neurotransmitter systems. In the current experiments, we asked whether ethanol-induced locomotor stimulation in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster might be mediated by ionotropic GABA receptors. We measured basal and ethanol-stimulated locomotion in flies expressing RNAi directed against three known subunits of ionotropic GABA receptors, and also examined the effects of picrotoxin feeding on these behaviors. We found that RNAi-mediated knockdown of a subunit of fly ionotropic GABA receptors, RDL, in all neurons resulted in an increased ethanol-induced locomotor stimulant response, while knockdown of two other subunits, LCCH3 and GRD, did not affect the responses. The effect of pan neuronal RDL knockdown was recapitulated with selective RDL knockdown in cholinergic neurons, and increased ethanol-induced locomotor stimulation was also seen by feeding the GABAA antagonist picrotoxin to flies prior to behavioral testing. However, the increase in ethanol-stimulated locomotion in each of these experiments was largely accounted for by decreased baseline activity. Our results indicate that ionotropic GABA receptors might be a conserved mediator of the locomotor stimulant effects of ethanol, but that alternative experimental approaches will be necessary to disentangle effects of GABAergic manipulations on baseline and ethanol-stimulated locomotion in flies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Calvin W Daack
- Drake University, 318 Olin Hall, 1344 27thStreet, Des Moines, IA, 50311, United States
| | - Derek Yeh
- Drake University, 318 Olin Hall, 1344 27thStreet, Des Moines, IA, 50311, United States
| | - Marc Busch
- Drake University, 318 Olin Hall, 1344 27thStreet, Des Moines, IA, 50311, United States
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20
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Toscano-Márquez B, Oboti L, Harvey-Girard E, Maler L, Krahe R. Distribution of the cholinergic nuclei in the brain of the weakly electric fish, Apteronotus leptorhynchus: Implications for sensory processing. J Comp Neurol 2020; 529:1810-1829. [PMID: 33089503 DOI: 10.1002/cne.25058] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2020] [Revised: 10/14/2020] [Accepted: 10/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Acetylcholine acts as a neurotransmitter/neuromodulator of many central nervous system processes such as learning and memory, attention, motor control, and sensory processing. The present study describes the spatial distribution of cholinergic neurons throughout the brain of the weakly electric fish, Apteronotus leptorhynchus, using in situ hybridization of choline acetyltransferase mRNA. Distinct groups of cholinergic cells were observed in the telencephalon, diencephalon, mesencephalon, and hindbrain. These included cholinergic cell groups typically identified in other vertebrate brains, for example, motor neurons. Using both in vitro and ex vivo neuronal tracing methods, we identified two new cholinergic connections leading to novel hypotheses on their functional significance. Projections to the nucleus praeeminentialis (nP) arise from isthmic nuclei, possibly including the nucleus lateralis valvulae (nLV) and the isthmic nucleus (nI). The nP is a central component of all electrosensory feedback pathways to the electrosensory lateral line lobe (ELL). We have previously shown that some neurons in nP, TS, and tectum express muscarinic receptors. We hypothesize that, based on nLV/nI cell responses in other teleosts and isthmic connectivity in A. leptorhynchus, the isthmic connections to nP, TS, and tectum modulate responses to electrosensory and/or visual motion and, in particular, to looming/receding stimuli. In addition, we found that the octavolateral efferent (OE) nucleus is the likely source of cholinergic fibers innervating the ELL. In other teleosts, OE inhibits octavolateral hair cells during locomotion. In gymnotiform fish, OE may also act on the first central processing stage and, we hypothesize, implement corollary discharge modulation of electrosensory processing during locomotion.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Livio Oboti
- Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institut für Biologie, Berlin, Germany
| | - Erik Harvey-Girard
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Leonard Maler
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Medicine, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
| | - Rüdiger Krahe
- Department of Biology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec.,Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, Institut für Biologie, Berlin, Germany
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21
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Ehrhardt E, Boyan G. Evidence for the cholinergic markers ChAT and vAChT in sensory cells of the developing antennal nervous system of the desert locust Schistocerca gregaria. INVERTEBRATE NEUROSCIENCE 2020; 20:19. [PMID: 33090291 PMCID: PMC7581592 DOI: 10.1007/s10158-020-00252-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2020] [Accepted: 10/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Sensory and motor systems in insects with hemimetabolous development must be ready to mediate adaptive behavior directly on hatching from the egg. For the desert locust S. gregaria, cholinergic transmission from antennal sensillae to olfactory or mechanosensory centers in the brain requires that choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and the vesicular acetylcholine transporter (vAChT) already be present in sensory cells in the first instar. In this study, we used immunolabeling to demonstrate that ChAT and vAChT are both expressed in sensory cells from identifiable sensilla types in the immature antennal nervous system. We observed ChAT expression in dendrites, neurites and somata of putative basiconic-type sensillae at the first instar stage. We also detected vAChT in the sensory axons of these sensillae in a major antennal nerve tract. We then examined whether evidence for cholinergic transmission is present during embryogenesis. Immunolabeling confirms that vAChT is expressed in somata typical of campaniform sensillae, as well as in small sensory cell clusters typically associated with either a large basiconic or coeloconic sensilla, at 99% of embryogenesis. The vAChT is also expressed in the somata of these sensilla types in multiple antennal regions at 90% of embryogenesis, but not at earlier (70%) embryonic stages. Neuromodulators are known to appear late in embryogenesis in neurons of the locust central complex, and the cholinergic system of the antenna may also only reach maturity shortly before hatching.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erica Ehrhardt
- Graduate School of Systemic Neuroscience, Biocenter, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Grosshadernerstrasse 2, 82152, Planegg, Martinsried, Germany.,Institute of Zoology, Universität Köln, Zülpicher Str 47b, 50674, Cologne, Germany
| | - George Boyan
- Graduate School of Systemic Neuroscience, Biocenter, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Grosshadernerstrasse 2, 82152, Planegg, Martinsried, Germany.
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22
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Mazzotta GM, Damulewicz M, Cusumano P. Better Sleep at Night: How Light Influences Sleep in Drosophila. Front Physiol 2020; 11:997. [PMID: 33013437 PMCID: PMC7498665 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2020.00997] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2020] [Accepted: 07/22/2020] [Indexed: 01/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Sleep-like states have been described in Drosophila and the mechanisms and factors that generate and define sleep-wake profiles in this model organism are being thoroughly investigated. Sleep is controlled by both circadian and homeostatic mechanisms, and environmental factors such as light, temperature, and social stimuli are fundamental in shaping and confining sleep episodes into the correct time of the day. Among environmental cues, light seems to have a prominent function in modulating the timing of sleep during the 24 h and, in this review, we will discuss the role of light inputs in modulating the distribution of the fly sleep-wake cycles. This phenomenon is of growing interest in the modern society, where artificial light exposure during the night is a common trait, opening the possibility to study Drosophila as a model organism for investigating shift-work disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Milena Damulewicz
- Department of Cell Biology and Imaging, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Paola Cusumano
- Department of Biology, University of Padova, Padua, Italy
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23
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Damulewicz M, Ispizua JI, Ceriani MF, Pyza EM. Communication Among Photoreceptors and the Central Clock Affects Sleep Profile. Front Physiol 2020; 11:993. [PMID: 32848895 PMCID: PMC7431659 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2020.00993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2020] [Accepted: 07/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Light is one of the most important factors regulating rhythmical behavior of Drosophila melanogaster. It is received by different photoreceptors and entrains the circadian clock, which controls sleep. The retina is known to be essential for light perception, as it is composed of specialized light-sensitive cells which transmit signal to deeper parts of the brain. In this study we examined the role of specific photoreceptor types and peripheral oscillators located in these cells in the regulation of sleep pattern. We showed that sleep is controlled by the visual system in a very complex way. Photoreceptors expressing Rh1, Rh3 are involved in night-time sleep regulation, while cells expressing Rh5 and Rh6 affect sleep both during the day and night. Moreover, Hofbauer-Buchner (HB) eyelets which can directly contact with s-LN v s and l-LN v s play a wake-promoting function during the day. In addition, we showed that L2 interneurons, which receive signal from R1-6, form direct synaptic contacts with l-LN v s, which provides new light input to the clock network.
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Affiliation(s)
- Milena Damulewicz
- Department of Cell Biology and Imaging, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
| | - Juan I. Ispizua
- Laboratorio de Genética del Comportamiento, Fundación Instituto Leloir, IIBBA-CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Maria F. Ceriani
- Laboratorio de Genética del Comportamiento, Fundación Instituto Leloir, IIBBA-CONICET, Buenos Aires, Argentina
| | - Elzbieta M. Pyza
- Department of Cell Biology and Imaging, Jagiellonian University, Kraków, Poland
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24
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Location and arrangement of campaniform sensilla in
Drosophila melanogaster. J Comp Neurol 2020; 529:905-925. [DOI: 10.1002/cne.24987] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/24/2020] [Revised: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 07/01/2020] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
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25
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Effect of Circuit Structure on Odor Representation in the Insect Olfactory System. eNeuro 2020; 7:ENEURO.0130-19.2020. [PMID: 32345734 PMCID: PMC7292731 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0130-19.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2019] [Revised: 02/10/2020] [Accepted: 02/23/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
In neuroscience, the structure of a circuit has often been used to intuit function—an inversion of Louis Kahn’s famous dictum, “Form follows function” (Kristan and Katz, 2006). However, different brain networks may use different network architectures to solve the same problem. The olfactory circuits of two insects, the locust, Schistocerca americana, and the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, serve the same function—to identify and discriminate odors. The neural circuitry that achieves this shows marked structural differences. Projection neurons (PNs) in the antennal lobe innervate Kenyon cells (KCs) of the mushroom body. In locust, each KC receives inputs from ∼50% of PNs, a scheme that maximizes the difference between inputs to any two of ∼50,000 KCs. In contrast, in Drosophila, this number is only 5% and appears suboptimal. Using a computational model of the olfactory system, we show that the activity of KCs is sufficiently high-dimensional that it can separate similar odors regardless of the divergence of PN–KC connections. However, when temporal patterning encodes odor attributes, dense connectivity outperforms sparse connections. Increased separability comes at the cost of reliability. The disadvantage of sparse connectivity can be mitigated by incorporating other aspects of circuit architecture seen in Drosophila. Our simulations predict that Drosophila and locust circuits lie at different ends of a continuum where the Drosophila gives up on the ability to resolve similar odors to generalize across varying environments, while the locust separates odor representations but risks misclassifying noisy variants of the same odor.
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26
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Qin B, Humberg TH, Kim A, Kim HS, Short J, Diao F, White BH, Sprecher SG, Yuan Q. Muscarinic acetylcholine receptor signaling generates OFF selectivity in a simple visual circuit. Nat Commun 2019; 10:4093. [PMID: 31501438 PMCID: PMC6733798 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12104-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/19/2018] [Accepted: 08/21/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
ON and OFF selectivity in visual processing is encoded by parallel pathways that respond to either light increments or decrements. Despite lacking the anatomical features to support split channels, Drosophila larvae effectively perform visually-guided behaviors. To understand principles guiding visual computation in this simple circuit, we focus on investigating the physiological properties and behavioral relevance of larval visual interneurons. We find that the ON vs. OFF discrimination in the larval visual circuit emerges through light-elicited cholinergic signaling that depolarizes a cholinergic interneuron (cha-lOLP) and hyperpolarizes a glutamatergic interneuron (glu-lOLP). Genetic studies further indicate that muscarinic acetylcholine receptor (mAchR)/Gαo signaling produces the sign-inversion required for OFF detection in glu-lOLP, the disruption of which strongly impacts both physiological responses of downstream projection neurons and dark-induced pausing behavior. Together, our studies identify the molecular and circuit mechanisms underlying ON vs. OFF discrimination in the Drosophila larval visual system. Drosophila larvae are able to perform visually-guided behaviours yet the molecular and circuit mechanisms for discriminating changes in light intensity are not known. Here, the authors report that ON versus OFF discrimination results from opposing cholinergic and glutamatergic mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Qin
- National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | | | - Anna Kim
- National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Hyong S Kim
- National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Jacob Short
- National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Fengqiu Diao
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Benjamin H White
- National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
| | - Simon G Sprecher
- Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, 1700, Fribourg, Switzerland
| | - Quan Yuan
- National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA.
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Malloy CA, Somasundaram E, Omar A, Bhutto U, Medley M, Dzubuk N, Cooper RL. Pharmacological identification of cholinergic receptor subtypes: modulation of locomotion and neural circuit excitability in Drosophila larvae. Neuroscience 2019; 411:47-64. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2019.05.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2019] [Revised: 04/16/2019] [Accepted: 05/07/2019] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
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Bielopolski N, Amin H, Apostolopoulou AA, Rozenfeld E, Lerner H, Huetteroth W, Lin AC, Parnas M. Inhibitory muscarinic acetylcholine receptors enhance aversive olfactory learning in adult Drosophila. eLife 2019; 8:48264. [PMID: 31215865 PMCID: PMC6641838 DOI: 10.7554/elife.48264] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2019] [Accepted: 06/18/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Olfactory associative learning in Drosophila is mediated by synaptic plasticity between the Kenyon cells of the mushroom body and their output neurons. Both Kenyon cells and their inputs from projection neurons are cholinergic, yet little is known about the physiological function of muscarinic acetylcholine receptors in learning in adult flies. Here, we show that aversive olfactory learning in adult flies requires type A muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChR-A), particularly in the gamma subtype of Kenyon cells. mAChR-A inhibits odor responses and is localized in Kenyon cell dendrites. Moreover, mAChR-A knockdown impairs the learning-associated depression of odor responses in a mushroom body output neuron. Our results suggest that mAChR-A function in Kenyon cell dendrites is required for synaptic plasticity between Kenyon cells and their output neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noa Bielopolski
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Hoger Amin
- Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | | | - Eyal Rozenfeld
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Hadas Lerner
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Wolf Huetteroth
- Institute for Biology, University of Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
| | - Andrew C Lin
- Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Moshe Parnas
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel.,Sagol School of Neuroscience, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
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29
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Joel AC, Adamova H, Bräunig P. Mechanoreceptive sensillum fields at the tarsal tip of insect legs. J Morphol 2018; 279:1654-1664. [DOI: 10.1002/jmor.20898] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/06/2018] [Revised: 07/28/2018] [Accepted: 08/21/2018] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anna-Christin Joel
- Institute of Biology II, Unit of Developmental Biology and Morphology of Animals; RWTH Aachen University; Aachen Germany
| | - Hana Adamova
- Institute of Biology II, Unit of Developmental Biology and Morphology of Animals; RWTH Aachen University; Aachen Germany
| | - Peter Bräunig
- Institute of Biology II, Unit of Developmental Biology and Morphology of Animals; RWTH Aachen University; Aachen Germany
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30
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Morris M, Shaw A, Lambert M, Perry HH, Lowenstein E, Valenzuela D, Velazquez-Ulloa NA. Developmental nicotine exposure affects larval brain size and the adult dopaminergic system of Drosophila melanogaster. BMC DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY 2018; 18:13. [PMID: 29898654 PMCID: PMC6001141 DOI: 10.1186/s12861-018-0172-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2017] [Accepted: 05/21/2018] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Pregnant women may be exposed to nicotine if they smoke or use tobacco products, nicotine replacement therapy, or via e-cigarettes. Prenatal nicotine exposure has been shown to have deleterious effects on the nervous system in mammals including changes in brain size and in the dopaminergic system. The genetic and molecular mechanisms for these changes are not well understood. A Drosophila melanogaster model for these effects of nicotine exposure could contribute to faster identification of genes and molecular pathways underlying these effects. The purpose of this study was to determine if developmental nicotine exposure affects the nervous system of Drosophila melanogaster, focusing on changes to brain size and the dopaminergic system at two developmental stages. RESULTS We reared flies on control or nicotine food from egg to 3rd instar larvae or from egg to adult and determined effectiveness of the nicotine treatment. We used immunohistochemistry to visualize the whole brain and dopaminergic neurons, using tyrosine hydroxylase as the marker. We measured brain area, tyrosine hydroxylase fluorescence, and counted the number of dopaminergic neurons in brain clusters. We detected an increase in larval brain hemisphere area, a decrease in tyrosine hydroxylase fluorescence in adult central brains, and a decrease in the number of neurons in the PPM3 adult dopaminergic cluster. We tested involvement of Dα7, one of the nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits, and found it was involved in eclosion, as previously described, but not involved in brain size. CONCLUSIONS We conclude that developmental nicotine exposure in Drosophila melanogaster affects brain size and the dopaminergic system. Prenatal nicotine exposure in mammals has also been shown to have effects on brain size and in the dopaminergic system. This study further establishes Drosophila melanogaster as model organism to study the effects of developmental nicotine exposure. The genetic and molecular tools available for Drosophila research will allow elucidation of the mechanisms underlying the effects of nicotine exposure during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Melanie Morris
- School of Medicine, University of Washington, Seattle, USA
| | - Ariel Shaw
- Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology Program, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, USA
| | | | | | - Eve Lowenstein
- Biology Department, Lewis & Clark College, Portland, USA
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31
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Ly S, Pack AI, Naidoo N. The neurobiological basis of sleep: Insights from Drosophila. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2018; 87:67-86. [PMID: 29391183 PMCID: PMC5845852 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2018.01.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2017] [Revised: 01/22/2018] [Accepted: 01/24/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Sleep is a biological enigma that has raised numerous questions about the inner workings of the brain. The fundamental question of why our nervous systems have evolved to require sleep remains a topic of ongoing scientific deliberation. This question is largely being addressed by research using animal models of sleep. Drosophila melanogaster, also known as the common fruit fly, exhibits a sleep state that shares common features with many other species. Drosophila sleep studies have unearthed an immense wealth of knowledge about the neuroscience of sleep. Given the breadth of findings published on Drosophila sleep, it is important to consider how all of this information might come together to generate a more holistic understanding of sleep. This review provides a comprehensive summary of the neurobiology of Drosophila sleep and explores the broader insights and implications of how sleep is regulated across species and why it is necessary for the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Ly
- Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology, 125 South 31st St., Philadelphia, PA, 19104-3403, United States.
| | - Allan I Pack
- Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology, 125 South 31st St., Philadelphia, PA, 19104-3403, United States; Division of Sleep Medicine/Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, 125 South 31st St., Philadelphia, PA, 19104-3403, United States
| | - Nirinjini Naidoo
- Center for Sleep and Circadian Neurobiology, 125 South 31st St., Philadelphia, PA, 19104-3403, United States; Division of Sleep Medicine/Department of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania Perelman School of Medicine, 125 South 31st St., Philadelphia, PA, 19104-3403, United States.
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32
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Nässel DR. Substrates for Neuronal Cotransmission With Neuropeptides and Small Molecule Neurotransmitters in Drosophila. Front Cell Neurosci 2018; 12:83. [PMID: 29651236 PMCID: PMC5885757 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2018.00083] [Citation(s) in RCA: 64] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/15/2018] [Accepted: 03/08/2018] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
It has been known for more than 40 years that individual neurons can produce more than one neurotransmitter and that neuropeptides often are colocalized with small molecule neurotransmitters (SMNs). Over the years much progress has been made in understanding the functional consequences of cotransmission in the nervous system of mammals. There are also some excellent invertebrate models that have revealed roles of coexpressed neuropeptides and SMNs in increasing complexity, flexibility, and dynamics in neuronal signaling. However, for the fly Drosophila there are surprisingly few functional studies on cotransmission, although there is ample evidence for colocalization of neuroactive compounds in neurons of the CNS, based both on traditional techniques and novel single cell transcriptome analysis. With the hope to trigger interest in initiating cotransmission studies, this review summarizes what is known about Drosophila neurons and neuronal circuits where different neuropeptides and SMNs are colocalized. Coexistence of neuroactive substances has been recorded in different neuron types such as neuroendocrine cells, interneurons, sensory cells and motor neurons. Some of the circuits highlighted here are well established in the analysis of learning and memory, circadian clock networks regulating rhythmic activity and sleep, as well as neurons and neuroendocrine cells regulating olfaction, nociception, feeding, metabolic homeostasis, diuretic functions, reproduction, and developmental processes. One emerging trait is the broad role of short neuropeptide F in cotransmission and presynaptic facilitation in a number of different neuronal circuits. This review also discusses the functional relevance of coexisting peptides in the intestine. Based on recent single cell transcriptomics data, it is likely that the neuronal systems discussed in this review are just a fraction of the total set of circuits where cotransmission occurs in Drosophila. Thus, a systematic search for colocalized neuroactive compounds in further neurons in anatomically defined circuits is of interest for the near future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dick R Nässel
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
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33
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Fedotov SA, Bragina JV, Besedina NG, Danilenkova LV, Kamysheva EA, Kamyshev NG. Gene CG15630 (fipi) is involved in regulation of the interpulse interval in Drosophila courtship song. J Neurogenet 2017; 32:15-26. [PMID: 29191114 DOI: 10.1080/01677063.2017.1405000] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
To study the central pattern generators functioning, previously we identified genes, whose neurospecific knockdowns led to deviations in the courtship song of Drosophila melanogaster males. Reduced expression of the gene CG15630 caused a decrease in the interpulse interval. To investigate the role of CG15630, which we have called here fipi (factor of interpulse interval), in the courtship song production, at first, we have characterized fipi transcripts and protein (FIPI) in the mutant flies carrying P insertion and deletions in this gene and in flies with its RNAi knockdown. FIPI is homologous to the mammalian NCAM2 protein, an important factor of neuronal development in the olfactory system. In this study, we have revealed that local fipi knockdown in the antennal olfactory sensory neurons (OR67d and IR84a), which are responsible for reception of chemosignals modulating courtship behavior, alters the interpulse interval in the opposite directions. Thus, a proper fipi expression seems to be necessary for perception of sexual chemosignals, and the effect of fipi knockdown on IPI value depends on the type of chemoreceptor neurons affected.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergey A Fedotov
- a Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences , St. Petersburg , Russia
| | - Julia V Bragina
- a Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences , St. Petersburg , Russia
| | - Natalia G Besedina
- a Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences , St. Petersburg , Russia
| | - Larisa V Danilenkova
- a Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences , St. Petersburg , Russia
| | - Elena A Kamysheva
- a Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences , St. Petersburg , Russia
| | - Nikolai G Kamyshev
- a Pavlov Institute of Physiology, Russian Academy of Sciences , St. Petersburg , Russia
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34
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Azevedo AW, Wilson RI. Active Mechanisms of Vibration Encoding and Frequency Filtering in Central Mechanosensory Neurons. Neuron 2017; 96:446-460.e9. [PMID: 28943231 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2017.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/22/2017] [Revised: 07/26/2017] [Accepted: 09/05/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
To better understand biophysical mechanisms of mechanosensory processing, we investigated two cell types in the Drosophila brain (A2 and B1 cells) that are postsynaptic to antennal vibration receptors. A2 cells receive excitatory synaptic currents in response to both directions of movement: thus, twice per vibration cycle. The membrane acts as a low-pass filter, so that voltage and spiking mainly track the vibration envelope rather than individual cycles. By contrast, B1 cells are excited by only forward or backward movement, meaning they are sensitive to vibration phase. They receive oscillatory synaptic currents at the stimulus frequency, and they bandpass filter these inputs to favor specific frequencies. Different cells prefer different frequencies, due to differences in their voltage-gated conductances. Both Na+ and K+ conductances suppress low-frequency synaptic inputs, so cells with larger voltage-gated conductances prefer higher frequencies. These results illustrate how membrane properties and voltage-gated conductances can extract distinct stimulus features into parallel channels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony W Azevedo
- Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Rachel I Wilson
- Department of Neurobiology, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
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35
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A Neural Network Underlying Circadian Entrainment and Photoperiodic Adjustment of Sleep and Activity in Drosophila. J Neurosci 2017; 36:9084-96. [PMID: 27581451 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0992-16.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 84] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2016] [Accepted: 07/09/2016] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED A sensitivity of the circadian clock to light/dark cycles ensures that biological rhythms maintain optimal phase relationships with the external day. In animals, the circadian clock neuron network (CCNN) driving sleep/activity rhythms receives light input from multiple photoreceptors, but how these photoreceptors modulate CCNN components is not well understood. Here we show that the Hofbauer-Buchner eyelets differentially modulate two classes of ventral lateral neurons (LNvs) within the Drosophila CCNN. The eyelets antagonize Cryptochrome (CRY)- and compound-eye-based photoreception in the large LNvs while synergizing CRY-mediated photoreception in the small LNvs. Furthermore, we show that the large LNvs interact with subsets of "evening cells" to adjust the timing of the evening peak of activity in a day length-dependent manner. Our work identifies a peptidergic connection between the large LNvs and a group of evening cells that is critical for the seasonal adjustment of circadian rhythms. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT In animals, circadian clocks have evolved to orchestrate the timing of behavior and metabolism. Consistent timing requires the entrainment these clocks to the solar day, a process that is critical for an organism's health. Light cycles are the most important external cue for the entrainment of circadian clocks, and the circadian system uses multiple photoreceptors to link timekeeping to the light/dark cycle. How light information from these photorecptors is integrated into the circadian clock neuron network to support entrainment is not understood. Our results establish that input from the HB eyelets differentially impacts the physiology of neuronal subgroups. This input pathway, together with input from the compound eyes, precisely times the activity of flies under long summer days. Our results provide a mechanistic model of light transduction and integration into the circadian system, identifying new and unexpected network motifs within the circadian clock neuron network.
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36
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Larderet I, Fritsch PM, Gendre N, Neagu-Maier GL, Fetter RD, Schneider-Mizell CM, Truman JW, Zlatic M, Cardona A, Sprecher SG. Organization of the Drosophila larval visual circuit. eLife 2017; 6:28387. [PMID: 30726702 PMCID: PMC5577918 DOI: 10.7554/elife.28387] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/05/2017] [Accepted: 08/07/2017] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Visual systems transduce, process and transmit light-dependent environmental cues. Computation of visual features depends on photoreceptor neuron types (PR) present, organization of the eye and wiring of the underlying neural circuit. Here, we describe the circuit architecture of the visual system of Drosophila larvae by mapping the synaptic wiring diagram and neurotransmitters. By contacting different targets, the two larval PR-subtypes create two converging pathways potentially underlying the computation of ambient light intensity and temporal light changes already within this first visual processing center. Locally processed visual information then signals via dedicated projection interneurons to higher brain areas including the lateral horn and mushroom body. The stratified structure of the larval optic neuropil (LON) suggests common organizational principles with the adult fly and vertebrate visual systems. The complete synaptic wiring diagram of the LON paves the way to understanding how circuits with reduced numerical complexity control wide ranges of behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ivan Larderet
- Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
| | | | - Nanae Gendre
- Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
| | | | - Richard D Fetter
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | | | - 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
| | - Albert Cardona
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Simon G Sprecher
- Department of Biology, University of Fribourg, Fribourg, Switzerland
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37
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Zhang X, Li S, Wang C, Tian H, Wang W, Ru S. Effects of monocrotophos pesticide on cholinergic and dopaminergic neurotransmitter systems during early development in the sea urchin Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2017; 328:46-53. [PMID: 28479505 DOI: 10.1016/j.taap.2017.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2016] [Revised: 04/26/2017] [Accepted: 05/04/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
During early development in sea urchins, classical neurotransmitters, including acetylcholine (ACh), dopamine (DA), and serotonin (5-HT), play important roles in the regulation of morphogenesis and swimming behavior. However, the underlying mechanisms of how organophosphate pesticides cause developmental neurotoxicity by interfering with different neurotransmitter systems are unclear. In this study, we investigated the effects of 0.01, 0.10, and 1.00mg/L monocrotophos (MCP) pesticide on the activity of acetyltransferase (ChAT), acetylcholinesterase (AChE), monoamine oxidase, the concentration of DA, dopamine transporter, and the transcription activity of DA receptor D1 and tyrosine hydroxylase, during critical periods in cholinergic and dopaminergic nervous system development in sea urchin (Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus) embryos and larvae. At the blastula stages, MCP disrupted DA metabolism but not 5-HT metabolism, resulting in abnormal development. High ChAT and AChE activity were observed at the gastrulation-completed stage and the two-armed pluteus stage, respectively, MCP inhibited ChAT activity and AChE activity/distribution and resulted in developmental defects of the plutei. From the gastrula stage to the two-armed pluteus stage, we found ubiquitous disrupting effects of MCP on ACh, DA, and 5-HT metabolism, particularly at critical periods during the development of these neurotransmitter systems. Therefore, we propose that this disruption is one of the main mechanisms of MCP-related developmental neurotoxicity, which would contribute better understanding insight into the mechanism of MCP pesticide's toxic effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaona Zhang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266003, China
| | - Shuman Li
- Nansi Lake Water Quality Monitoring Center of Shandong Province, Jining 272100, China
| | - Cuicui Wang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266003, China
| | - Hua Tian
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266003, China
| | - Wei Wang
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266003, China
| | - Shaoguo Ru
- College of Marine Life Sciences, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266003, China.
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38
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Fabian-Fine R, Anderson CM, Roush MA, Johnson JAG, Liu H, French AS, Torkkeli PH. The distribution of cholinergic neurons and their co-localization with FMRFamide, in central and peripheral neurons of the spider Cupiennius salei. Cell Tissue Res 2017; 370:71-88. [PMID: 28687927 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-017-2652-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2016] [Accepted: 05/23/2017] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The spider Cupiennius salei is a well-established model for investigating information processing in arthropod sensory systems. Immunohistochemistry has shown that several neurotransmitters exist in the C. salei nervous system, including GABA, glutamate, histamine, octopamine and FMRFamide, while electrophysiology has found functional roles for some of these transmitters. There is also evidence that acetylcholine (ACh) is present in some C. salei neurons but information about the distribution of cholinergic neurons in spider nervous systems is limited. Here, we identify C. salei genes that encode enzymes essential for cholinergic transmission: choline ACh transferase (ChAT) and vesicular ACh transporter (VAChT). We used in-situ hybridization with an mRNA probe for C. salei ChAT gene to locate somata of cholinergic neurons in the central nervous system and immunohistochemistry with antisera against ChAT and VAChT to locate these proteins in cholinergic neurons. All three markers labeled similar, mostly small neurons, plus a few mid-sized neurons, in most ganglia. In the subesophageal ganglia, labeled neurons are putative efferent, motor or interneurons but the largest motor and interneurons were unlabeled. Groups of anti-ChAT labeled small neurons also connect the optic neuropils in the spider protocerebrum. Differences in individual cell labeling intensities were common, suggesting a range of ACh expression levels. Double-labeling found a subpopulation of anti-VAChT-labeled central and mechanosensory neurons that were also immunoreactive to antiserum against FMRFamide-like peptides. Our findings suggest that ACh is an important neurotransmitter in the C. salei central and peripheral nervous systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ruth Fabian-Fine
- Department of Biology, Saint Michael's College, One Winooski Park, Box 283, Colchester, VT, 05439, USA.
| | - Carly M Anderson
- Department of Biology, Saint Michael's College, One Winooski Park, Box 283, Colchester, VT, 05439, USA
| | - Molly A Roush
- Department of Biology, Saint Michael's College, One Winooski Park, Box 283, Colchester, VT, 05439, USA
| | - Jessica A G Johnson
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Dalhousie University, PO Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada
| | - Hongxia Liu
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Dalhousie University, PO Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada
| | - Andrew S French
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Dalhousie University, PO Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada
| | - Päivi H Torkkeli
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Dalhousie University, PO Box 15000, Halifax, NS, B3H 4R2, Canada
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Ishikawa Y, Okamoto N, Nakamura M, Kim H, Kamikouchi A. Anatomic and Physiologic Heterogeneity of Subgroup-A Auditory Sensory Neurons in Fruit Flies. Front Neural Circuits 2017; 11:46. [PMID: 28701929 PMCID: PMC5487475 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2017.00046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2017] [Accepted: 06/08/2017] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
The antennal ear of the fruit fly detects acoustic signals in intraspecific communication, such as the courtship song and agonistic sounds. Among the five subgroups of mechanosensory neurons in the fly ear, subgroup-A neurons respond maximally to vibrations over a wide frequency range between 100 and 1,200 Hz. The functional organization of the neural circuit comprised of subgroup-A neurons, however, remains largely unknown. In the present study, we used 11 GAL4 strains that selectively label subgroup-A neurons and explored the diversity of subgroup-A neurons by combining single-cell anatomic analysis and Ca2+ imaging. Our findings indicate that the subgroup-A neurons that project into various combinations of subareas in the brain are more anatomically diverse than previously described. Subgroup-A neurons were also physiologically diverse, and some types were tuned to a narrow frequency range, suggesting that the response of subgroup-A neurons to sounds of a wide frequency range is due to the existence of several types of subgroup-A neurons. Further, we found that an auditory behavioral response to the courtship song of flies was attenuated when most subgroup-A neurons were silenced. Together, these findings characterize the heterogeneous functional organization of subgroup-A neurons, which might facilitate species-specific acoustic signal detection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuki Ishikawa
- Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya UniversityNagoya, Japan
| | - Natsuki Okamoto
- Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya UniversityNagoya, Japan
| | - Mizuki Nakamura
- Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya UniversityNagoya, Japan
| | - Hyunsoo Kim
- Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya UniversityNagoya, Japan
| | - Azusa Kamikouchi
- Division of Biological Science, Graduate School of Science, Nagoya UniversityNagoya, Japan
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40
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Lin WH, Giachello CNG, Baines RA. Seizure control through genetic and pharmacological manipulation of Pumilio in Drosophila: a key component of neuronal homeostasis. Dis Model Mech 2016; 10:141-150. [PMID: 28067623 PMCID: PMC5312004 DOI: 10.1242/dmm.027045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/08/2016] [Accepted: 12/05/2016] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Epilepsy is a significant disorder for which approximately one-third of patients do not respond to drug treatments. Next-generation drugs, which interact with novel targets, are required to provide a better clinical outcome for these individuals. To identify potential novel targets for antiepileptic drug (AED) design, we used RNA sequencing to identify changes in gene transcription in two seizure models of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster The first model compared gene transcription between wild type (WT) and bangsenseless1 (parabss), a gain-of-function mutant in the sole fly voltage-gated sodium channel (paralytic). The second model compared WT with WT fed the proconvulsant picrotoxin (PTX). We identified 743 genes (FDR≤1%) with significant altered expression levels that are common to both seizure models. Of these, 339 are consistently upregulated and 397 downregulated. We identify pumilio (pum) to be downregulated in both seizure models. Pum is a known homeostatic regulator of action potential firing in both flies and mammals, achieving control of neuronal firing through binding to, and regulating translation of, the mRNA transcripts of voltage-gated sodium channels (Nav). We show that maintaining expression of pum in the CNS of parabss flies is potently anticonvulsive, whereas its reduction through RNAi-mediated knockdown is proconvulsive. Using a cell-based luciferase reporter screen, we screened a repurposed chemical library and identified 12 compounds sufficient to increase activity of pum Of these compounds, we focus on avobenzone, which significantly rescues seizure behaviour in parabss flies. The mode of action of avobenzone includes potentiation of pum expression and mirrors the ability of this homeostatic regulator to reduce the persistent voltage-gated Na+ current (INaP) in an identified neuron. This study reports a novel approach to suppress seizure and highlights the mechanisms of neuronal homeostasis as potential targets for next-generation AEDs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wei-Hsiang Lin
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester M13 9PT, UK
| | - 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, UK
| | - 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, UK
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41
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Schlegel P, Texada MJ, Miroschnikow A, Schoofs A, Hückesfeld S, Peters M, Schneider-Mizell CM, Lacin H, Li F, Fetter RD, Truman JW, Cardona A, Pankratz MJ. Synaptic transmission parallels neuromodulation in a central food-intake circuit. eLife 2016; 5:16799. [PMID: 27845623 PMCID: PMC5182061 DOI: 10.7554/elife.16799] [Citation(s) in RCA: 85] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2016] [Accepted: 11/14/2016] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
NeuromedinU is a potent regulator of food intake and activity in mammals. In Drosophila, neurons producing the homologous neuropeptide hugin regulate feeding and locomotion in a similar manner. Here, we use EM-based reconstruction to generate the entire connectome of hugin-producing neurons in the Drosophila larval CNS. We demonstrate that hugin neurons use synaptic transmission in addition to peptidergic neuromodulation and identify acetylcholine as a key transmitter. Hugin neuropeptide and acetylcholine are both necessary for the regulatory effect on feeding. We further show that subtypes of hugin neurons connect chemosensory to endocrine system by combinations of synaptic and peptide-receptor connections. Targets include endocrine neurons producing DH44, a CRH-like peptide, and insulin-like peptides. Homologs of these peptides are likewise downstream of neuromedinU, revealing striking parallels in flies and mammals. We propose that hugin neurons are part of an ancient physiological control system that has been conserved at functional and molecular level. DOI:http://dx.doi.org/10.7554/eLife.16799.001
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Affiliation(s)
- Philipp Schlegel
- Department of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Michael J Texada
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Anton Miroschnikow
- Department of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Andreas Schoofs
- Department of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Sebastian Hückesfeld
- Department of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | - Marc Peters
- Department of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
| | | | - Haluk Lacin
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Feng Li
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Richard D Fetter
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - James W Truman
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Albert Cardona
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Michael J Pankratz
- Department of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, Germany
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42
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Pavlou HJ, Lin AC, Neville MC, Nojima T, Diao F, Chen BE, White BH, Goodwin SF. Neural circuitry coordinating male copulation. eLife 2016; 5:e20713. [PMID: 27855059 PMCID: PMC5114013 DOI: 10.7554/elife.20713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/18/2016] [Accepted: 09/28/2016] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Copulation is the goal of the courtship process, crucial to reproductive success and evolutionary fitness. Identifying the circuitry underlying copulation is a necessary step towards understanding universal principles of circuit operation, and how circuit elements are recruited into the production of ordered action sequences. Here, we identify key sex-specific neurons that mediate copulation in Drosophila, and define a sexually dimorphic motor circuit in the male abdominal ganglion that mediates the action sequence of initiating and terminating copulation. This sexually dimorphic circuit composed of three neuronal classes - motor neurons, interneurons and mechanosensory neurons - controls the mechanics of copulation. By correlating the connectivity, function and activity of these neurons we have determined the logic for how this circuitry is coordinated to generate this male-specific behavior, and sets the stage for a circuit-level dissection of active sensing and modulation of copulatory behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hania J Pavlou
- Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Andrew C Lin
- Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
- Department of Biomedical Science, University of Sheffield, Sheffield, United Kingdom
| | - Megan C Neville
- Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Tetsuya Nojima
- Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Fengqiu Diao
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Brian E Chen
- Department of Medicine, McGill University, Montréal, Canada
- Department of Neurology and Neurosurgery, McGill University, Montréal, Canada
| | - Benjamin H White
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology, National Institute of Mental Health, Bethesda, United States
| | - Stephen F Goodwin
- Centre for Neural Circuits and Behaviour, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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43
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Eck S, Helfrich-Förster C, Rieger D. The Timed Depolarization of Morning and Evening Oscillators Phase Shifts the Circadian Clock of Drosophila. J Biol Rhythms 2016; 31:428-42. [PMID: 27269519 DOI: 10.1177/0748730416651363] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Phase response curves (PRCs) for light or temperature stimuli have been shown to be most valuable in understanding how circadian clocks are entrained to daily environmental cycles. Nowadays, PRC experiments in which clock neurons are manipulated in a temporally restricted manner by thermogenetic or optogenetic tools are also useful to comprehend clock network properties. Here, we temporally depolarized specific clock neurons of Drosophila melanogaster by activating temperature-sensitive dTrpA1 channels to unravel their role in phase shifting the flies' activity rhythm. The depolarization of all clock neurons caused a PRC resembling the flies' light PRC, with strong phase delays in the first half of the subjective night and modest phase advances in its second half. However, the activation of the flies' pigment-dispersing factor (PDF)-positive morning (M) neurons (s-LNvs) only induced phase advances, and these reached into the subjective day, where the light PRC has its dead zone. This indicates that the M neurons are very potent in accelerating the clock, which is in line with previous observations. In contrast, the evening (E) neurons together with the PDF-positive l-LNvs appear to mediate phase delays. Most interestingly, the molecular clock (Period protein cycling) of the depolarized clock neurons was shifted in parallel to the behavior, and this shift was already visible within the first cycle after the temperature pulse. We identified cAMP response element binding protein B (CREB) as a putative link between membrane depolarization and the molecular clock.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saskia Eck
- Neurobiology and Genetics, Theodor-Boveri Institute, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Germany
| | | | - Dirk Rieger
- Neurobiology and Genetics, Theodor-Boveri Institute, Biocenter, University of Würzburg, Germany
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44
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Hsu CT, Bhandawat V. Organization of descending neurons in Drosophila melanogaster. Sci Rep 2016; 6:20259. [PMID: 26837716 PMCID: PMC4738306 DOI: 10.1038/srep20259] [Citation(s) in RCA: 66] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2015] [Accepted: 12/31/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Neural processing in the brain controls behavior through descending neurons (DNs) - neurons which carry signals from the brain to the spinal cord (or thoracic ganglia in insects). Because DNs arise from multiple circuits in the brain, the numerical simplicity and availability of genetic tools make Drosophila a tractable model for understanding descending motor control. As a first step towards a comprehensive study of descending motor control, here we estimate the number and distribution of DNs in the Drosophila brain. We labeled DNs by backfilling them with dextran dye applied to the neck connective and estimated that there are ~1100 DNs distributed in 6 clusters in Drosophila. To assess the distribution of DNs by neurotransmitters, we labeled DNs in flies in which neurons expressing the major neurotransmitters were also labeled. We found DNs belonging to every neurotransmitter class we tested: acetylcholine, GABA, glutamate, serotonin, dopamine and octopamine. Both the major excitatory neurotransmitter (acetylcholine) and the major inhibitory neurotransmitter (GABA) are employed equally; this stands in contrast to vertebrate DNs which are predominantly excitatory. By comparing the distribution of DNs in Drosophila to those reported previously in other insects, we conclude that the organization of DNs in insects is highly conserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cynthia T Hsu
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA.,Deparment of Neurobiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA
| | - Vikas Bhandawat
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA.,Deparment of Neurobiology, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA.,Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, Duke University, Durham, North Carolina 27708, USA
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45
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Cash F, Vernon SW, Phelan P, Goodchild J, Baines RA. Central cholinergic synaptic vesicle loading obeys the set-point model in Drosophila. J Neurophysiol 2016; 115:843-50. [PMID: 26655826 DOI: 10.1152/jn.01053.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2015] [Accepted: 12/09/2015] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Experimental evidence shows that neurotransmitter release, from presynaptic terminals, can be regulated by altering transmitter load per synaptic vesicle (SV) and/or through change in the probability of vesicle release. The vesicular acetylcholine transporter (VAChT) loads acetylcholine into SVs at cholinergic synapses. We investigated how the VAChT affects SV content and release frequency at central synapses in Drosophila melanogaster by using an insecticidal compound, 5Cl-CASPP, to block VAChT and by transgenic overexpression of VAChT in cholinergic interneurons. Decreasing VAChT activity produces a decrease in spontaneous SV release with no change to quantal size and no decrease in the number of vesicles at the active zone. This suggests that many vesicles are lacking in neurotransmitter. Overexpression of VAChT leads to increased frequency of SV release, but again with no change in quantal size or vesicle number. This indicates that loading of central cholinergic SVs obeys the "set-point" model, rather than the "steady-state" model that better describes loading at the vertebrate neuromuscular junction. However, we show that expression of a VAChT polymorphism lacking one glutamine residue in a COOH-terminal polyQ domain leads to increased spontaneous SV release and increased quantal size. This effect spotlights the poly-glutamine domain as potentially being important for sensing the level of neurotransmitter in cholinergic SVs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Cash
- Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Samuel W Vernon
- Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom
| | - Pauline Phelan
- School of Biosciences, University of Kent, Kent, United Kingdom; and
| | - Jim Goodchild
- Syngenta Crop Protection Research, Bracknell, Berkshire, United Kingdom
| | - Richard A Baines
- Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Manchester, Manchester, United Kingdom;
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46
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Gambardella C, Morgana S, Bari GD, Ramoino P, Bramini M, Diaspro A, Falugi C, Faimali M. Multidisciplinary screening of toxicity induced by silica nanoparticles during sea urchin development. CHEMOSPHERE 2015; 139:486-495. [PMID: 26291678 DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2015.07.072] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2015] [Revised: 07/13/2015] [Accepted: 07/24/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
The aim of this study was to investigate the potential toxicity of Silica nanoparticles (SiO2 NPs) in seawater by using the sea urchin Paracentrotus lividus as biological model. SiO2 NPs exposure effects were identified on the sperm of the sea urchin through a multidisciplinary approach, combining developmental biology, ecotoxicology, biochemistry, and microscopy analyses. The following responses were measured: (i) percentage of eggs fertilized by exposed sperm; (ii) percentage of anomalies and undeveloped embryos and larvae; (iii) enzyme activity alterations (acetylcholinesterase, AChE) in the early developmental stages, namely gastrula and pluteus. Sperms were exposed to seawater containing SiO2 NPs suspensions ranging from 0.0001mg/L to 50mg/L. Fertilization ability was not affected at any concentration, whereas a significant percentage of anomalies in the offspring were observed and quantified by means of EC50 at gastrula stage, including undeveloped and anomalous embryos (EC50=0.06mg/L), and at pluteus stage, including skeletal anomalies and delayed larvae (EC50=0.27mg/L). Moreover, morphological anomalies were observed in larvae at pluteus stage, by immunolocalizing molecules involved in larval development and neurotoxicity effects - such as acetylated tubulin and choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) - and measuring AChE activity. Exposure of sea urchins to SiO2 NPs caused neurotoxic damage and a decrease of AChE expression in a non-dose-dependent manner. In conclusion, through the multidisciplinary approach used in this study SiO2 NPs toxicity in sea urchin offspring could be assessed. Therefore, the measured responses are suitable for detecting embryo- and larval- toxicity induced by these NPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chiara Gambardella
- Institute of Marine Science (ISMAR), National Council of Researches (CNR), Via De Marini 6, 16149 Genova, Italy.
| | - Silvia Morgana
- Institute of Marine Science (ISMAR), National Council of Researches (CNR), Via De Marini 6, 16149 Genova, Italy
| | - Gaetano Di Bari
- Institute of Marine Science (ISMAR), National Council of Researches (CNR), Via De Marini 6, 16149 Genova, Italy
| | - Paola Ramoino
- Department of Earth, Environment and Life Sciences (DISTAV), Università di Genova, Viale Benedetto XV 5, 16136 Genova, Italy
| | - Mattia Bramini
- IIT, Italian Institute of Technology, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Alberto Diaspro
- IIT, Italian Institute of Technology, Via Morego 30, 16163 Genova, Italy
| | - Carla Falugi
- Department of Life and Environmental Sciences (DISVA), Marche Polytechnic University, Via Brecce Bianche, 60131 Ancona, Italy
| | - Marco Faimali
- Institute of Marine Science (ISMAR), National Council of Researches (CNR), Via De Marini 6, 16149 Genova, Italy
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47
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Hampel S, Franconville R, Simpson JH, Seeds AM. A neural command circuit for grooming movement control. eLife 2015; 4:e08758. [PMID: 26344548 PMCID: PMC4599031 DOI: 10.7554/elife.08758] [Citation(s) in RCA: 81] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/17/2015] [Accepted: 09/05/2015] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Animals perform many stereotyped movements, but how nervous systems are organized for controlling specific movements remains unclear. Here we use anatomical, optogenetic, behavioral, and physiological techniques to identify a circuit in Drosophila melanogaster that can elicit stereotyped leg movements that groom the antennae. Mechanosensory chordotonal neurons detect displacements of the antennae and excite three different classes of functionally connected interneurons, which include two classes of brain interneurons and different parallel descending neurons. This multilayered circuit is organized such that neurons within each layer are sufficient to specifically elicit antennal grooming. However, we find differences in the durations of antennal grooming elicited by neurons in the different layers, suggesting that the circuit is organized to both command antennal grooming and control its duration. As similar features underlie stimulus-induced movements in other animals, we infer the possibility of a common circuit organization for movement control that can be dissected in Drosophila.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stefanie Hampel
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Romain Franconville
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
| | - Julie H Simpson
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States.,Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, United States
| | - Andrew M Seeds
- Janelia Research Campus, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Ashburn, United States
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48
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Tachibana SI, Touhara K, Ejima A. Modification of Male Courtship Motivation by Olfactory Habituation via the GABAA Receptor in Drosophila melanogaster. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0135186. [PMID: 26252206 PMCID: PMC4529276 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0135186] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/03/2015] [Accepted: 07/18/2015] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
A male-specific component, 11-cis-vaccenyl acetate (cVA) works as an anti-aphrodisiac pheromone in Drosophila melanogaster. The presence of cVA on a male suppresses the courtship motivation of other males and contributes to suppression of male-male homosexual courtship, while the absence of cVA on a female stimulates the sexual motivation of nearby males and enhances the male-female interaction. However, little is known how a male distinguishes the presence or absence of cVA on a target fly from either self-produced cVA or secondhand cVA from other males in the vicinity. In this study, we demonstrate that male flies have keen sensitivity to cVA; therefore, the presence of another male in the area reduces courtship toward a female. This reduced level of sexual motivation, however, could be overcome by pretest odor exposure via olfactory habituation to cVA. Real-time imaging of cVA-responsive sensory neurons using the neural activity sensor revealed that prolonged exposure to cVA decreased the levels of cVA responses in the primary olfactory center. Pharmacological and genetic screening revealed that signal transduction via GABAA receptors contributed to this olfactory habituation. We also found that the habituation experience increased the copulation success of wild-type males in a group. In contrast, transgenic males, in which GABA input in a small subset of local neurons was blocked by RNAi, failed to acquire the sexual advantage conferred by habituation. Thus, we illustrate a novel phenomenon in which olfactory habituation positively affects sexual capability in a competitive environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shin-Ichiro Tachibana
- Career-Path Promotion Unit for Young Life Scientists, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606–8501, Japan
- Department of Biology and Geosciences, Graduate School of Science, Osaka City University, Osaka, 558–8585, Japan
| | - Kazushige Touhara
- Department of Applied Biological Chemistry, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113–8657, Japan
- ERATO Touhara Chemosensory Signal Project, JST, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113–8657, Japan
| | - Aki Ejima
- Career-Path Promotion Unit for Young Life Scientists, Kyoto University, Kyoto, 606–8501, Japan
- Department of Applied Biological Chemistry, Graduate School of Agricultural and Life Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113–8657, Japan
- ERATO Touhara Chemosensory Signal Project, JST, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, 113–8657, Japan
- * E-mail:
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49
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Banzai K, Adachi T, Izumi S. Comparative analyses of the cholinergic locus of ChAT and VAChT and its expression in the silkworm Bombyx mori. Comp Biochem Physiol B Biochem Mol Biol 2015; 185:1-9. [PMID: 25770047 DOI: 10.1016/j.cbpb.2015.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2014] [Revised: 02/17/2015] [Accepted: 03/03/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Abstract
The cholinergic locus, which encodes choline acetyltransferase (ChAT) and vesicular acetylcholine transporter (VAChT), is specifically expressed in cholinergic neurons, maintaining the cholinergic phenotype. The organization of the locus is conserved in Bilateria. Here we examined the structure of cholinergic locus and cDNA coding for ChAT and VAChT in the silkworm, Bombyx mori. The B. mori ChAT (BmChAT) cDNA encodes a deduced polypeptide including a putative choline/carnitine O-acyltransferase domain and a conserved His residue required for catalysis. The B. mori VAChT (BmVAChT) cDNA encodes a polypeptide including a putative major facilitator superfamily domain and 10 putative transmembrane domains. BmChAT and BmVAChT cDNAs share the 5'-region corresponding to the first and second exon of cholinergic locus. Polymerase chain reaction analyses revealed that BmChAT and BmVAChT mRNAs were specifically expressed in the brain and segmental ganglia. The expression of BmChAT was detected 3 days after oviposition. The expression level was almost constant during the larval stage, decreased in the early pupal stage, and increased toward eclosion. The average ratios of BmChAT mRNA to BmVAChT mRNA in brain-subesophageal ganglion complexes were 0.54±0.10 in the larvae and 1.92±0.11 in adults. In addition, we examined promoter activity of the cholinergic locus and localization of cholinergic neurons, using a baculovirus-mediated gene transfer system. The promoter sequence, located 2kb upstream from the start of transcription, was essential for cholinergic neuron-specific gene õexpression. Cholinergic neurons were found in several regions of the brain and segmental ganglia in the larvae and pharate adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kota Banzai
- Department of Biological Sciences, Kanagawa University, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Takeshi Adachi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Kanagawa University, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Susumu Izumi
- Department of Biological Sciences, Kanagawa University, Hiratsuka, Kanagawa, Japan.
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50
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Selcho M, Wegener C. Immunofluorescence and Genetic Fluorescent Labeling Techniques in the Drosophila Nervous System. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015. [DOI: 10.1007/978-1-4939-2313-7_2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/04/2023]
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