Understanding the neural mechanisms of color vision in the central nervous system

• Project/Area Number: 25870768
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Research Field: Animal physiology/Animal behavior; Neurophysiology / General neuroscience
• Research Institution: Tokyo University of Pharmacy and Life Science
• Principal Investigator: SEKI Yoichi 東京薬科大学, 生命科学部, 助教 (30634472)
• Project Period (FY): 2013-04-01 – 2015-03-31
• Project Status: Completed (Fiscal Year 2014)
• Budget Amount: ¥4,420,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,400,000、Indirect Cost: ¥1,020,000); Fiscal Year 2014: ¥520,000 (Direct Cost: ¥400,000、Indirect Cost: ¥120,000); Fiscal Year 2013: ¥3,900,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,000,000、Indirect Cost: ¥900,000)
• Keywords: ショウジョウバエ / 色覚 / 電気生理 / パッチクランプ / 色識別 / 行動 / 神経行動学 / 感覚生理学 / 光受容体 / 色 / 脳

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Many animals can discriminate color based on the activities of several photoreceptor classes that have a distinct spectral sensitivity. However, neural mechanisms underlying color vision are not yet fully understood. Drosophila melanogaster offers a good model system for deciphering the neural basis of color vision due to the similarity of the early visual circuits with humans, the numerical simplicity of the circuits and the availability of rich genetic tools. In this study, as a first step toward understanding the neural mechanisms of color vision, we aimed to establish electrophysiological recordings from CNS neurons of the fly brain involved in color vision. In addition to the electrophysiological approach, we established a behavioral experiment to evaluate the color discrimination ability of the fly.

Research Products

• [Presentation] Electrophysiological Approaches to Understanding Color Vision Processing in Drosophila melanogaster (2015)
  • Author(s): Yonekura T, Miyakawa H, Morimoto T, Seki Y
  • Organizer: 第38回日本神経科学大会
  • Place of Presentation: 神戸
  • Year and Date: 2015-07-28 – 2015-07-31
• [Presentation] Electrophysiological and behavioral approaches to understanding the neural basis of color vision in Drosophila melanogaster (2014)
  • Author(s): Seki Y, Nakamura N, Yonekura T, Yamada R, Nitta H, Miyakawa H, Morimoto T
  • Organizer: 第37回日本神経科学大会
  • Place of Presentation: 横浜
  • Year and Date: 2014-09-11 – 2014-09-13
• [Presentation] Electrophysiological and behavioral approaches to understanding color vision in Drosophila melanogaster (2014)
  • Author(s): Seki Y, Nakamura N, Yonekura T, Yamada R, Nitta H, Miyakawa H, Morimoto T
  • Organizer: 11th International Congress of Neuroethology and 36th Annual Meeting of The Japanese Society for Comparative Physiology and Biochemistry
  • Place of Presentation: 札幌
  • Year and Date: 2014-07-28 – 2014-08-02
• [Presentation] Evaluation of color discrimination in Drosophila melanogaster using an appetitive conditioning assay (2014)
  • Author(s): Nakamura N, Yamada R, Miyakawa H, Morimoto T, Seki Y
  • Organizer: 第11回日本ショウジョウバエ研究会(JDRC11)
  • Place of Presentation: 金沢
  • Year and Date: 2014-06-04 – 2014-06-06