Mechanisms of multimodal sensory integration and decision making in Drosophila higher brain centers

2020 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18K14813
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Early-Career Scientists
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Review Section: Basic Section 46010:Neuroscience-general-related
• Research Institution: Kanazawa University
• Principal Investigator: Takayanagi-Kiya Seika 金沢大学, 生命理工学系, 研究協力員 (40793196)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2021-03-31
• Keywords: 神経科学 / 性行動 / 初期応答遺伝子 / 即初期遺伝子

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Animals continuosly make decisions based on sensory information they receive from the environment. In the current study, I aimed to investigate the neural basis of this decision-making process by using sexual behavior of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as a model. Here I focused on a cluster of neurons termed aSP2 (which we previously reported as a cluster activated when males exhibit courtship), located in the higher order brain region of males, which receives multimodal sensory information. aSP2-silenced males were not able to sustain courtship towards a female, suggesting that aSP2 is involved in the decision-making process of whether or not to continue courting, and/or the regulation of courtship vigor. In addition, I found that the activity level of aSP2 neurons changes when a male touches a female by his front leg.

Free Research Field

神経分子生物学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

ショウジョウバエの脳高次中枢に存在するaSP2神経は雄で構成細胞数が多く、発達した雌雄差のある神経回路であることは知られていたが、その性行動における機能は不明であった。本研究はaSP2神経が雌由来の感覚情報に応答し、雄の性行動モチベーション維持に関わることを初めて示した。これは昆虫の脳における行動決定機構の一端を明らかにするものである。昆虫における感覚情報統合と、性行動制御の詳細がさらに解明されれば、将来的には昆虫の産業的利用の拡大や新たな害虫防除法の開発に貢献すると考えられる。