• Search Research Projects
  • Search Researchers
  • How to Use
  1. Back to project page

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

The analysis of synaptic plasticity induced by Pavlovian conditioning in Drosophila feeding neural circuits at the single cell level

Research Project

  • PDF
Project/Area Number 16K18375
Research Category

Grant-in-Aid for Young Scientists (B)

Allocation TypeMulti-year Fund
Research Field Neurophysiology / General neuroscience
Research InstitutionNational Institute of Information and Communications Technology

Principal Investigator

Sakurai Akira  国立研究開発法人情報通信研究機構, 未来ICT研究所フロンティア創造総合研究室, 主任研究員 (50749041)

Project Period (FY) 2016-04-01 – 2019-03-31
Keywordsシナプス可塑性 / 連合学習 / 記憶 / カルシウムイメージング / オプトジェネティクス / 摂食神経回路 / ショウジョウバエ
Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, we aimed at connecting synaptic plasticity to memory at the single cell level. For this purpose, we have established a novel conditioning protocol to associate somatosensory stimuli (CS) with a feeding behavior (proboscis extension) induced by sucrose stimulation (US) in Drosophila brain. After repeated pairing of the CS and US, a pair of command neurons that control feeding behavior (“Feeding neuron”) were activated to extend proboscis in response to the CS, whereas they were not before the conditioning. These results suggest that a new connection from the CS-conveying circuit to the feeding circuit was created at the Feeding neuron and/or upstream of the Feeding neuron. To pinpoint where the new connection is generated, we inactivated the Feeding neuron during conditioning, leading to suppression of the conditioned response. These results are consistent with an assumption that the new connection was formed, at least partly, on the Feeding neuron.

Free Research Field

神経科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

シナプス可塑性と記憶の因果関係の解明については、「現在、我々の前に立ちはだかっている最大の問題は、ミクロな研究と、マクロな脳機能の研究との間に横たわっている深い溝を、繋げていく方法が必ずしも明確でないことである(塚原仲晃、脳の可塑性と記憶)」と指摘されている。本研究では、Feeding neuronという同定された中枢単一神経細胞上のシナプス入力の変化によって記憶が形成されることが示唆された。そのため、遺伝子機能の操作を行いながら、そのシナプスをリアルタイム観察することで、連合学習の分子細胞メカニズムについて、ミクロからマクロまで横断的な理解が得られることが期待される。

URL: 

Published: 2020-03-30  

Information User Guide FAQ News Terms of Use Attribution of KAKENHI

Powered by NII kakenhi