Two Pairs of Neurons in the Central Brain Control Drosophila Innate Light Preference

• DOI: 10.1126/science.1195993
• Publication Date: 2010-10-21T18:25:42Z
• Authors: Zhefeng Gong; Jiangqu Liu; Chao Guo; Yanqiong Zhou; Yan Teng; Li Liu
• Keywords: Neurons; Drosophila melanogaster; Behavior, Animal; Light; Larva; Green Fluorescent Proteins; Neural Pathways; Animals; Brain; 3. Good health

Light-Hating Target

Young larvae of the fruit fly Drosophila like to hide in the dark. Older larvae nearing pupation are less timorous.

Gong et al.

(p. 499 ; see the Perspective by

Vogt and Desplan

) have identified part of the neural circuit that links perception of light to behavior. The authors used targeted expression of the tetanus toxin to disable neurons selectively in the larval central nervous system. The results identified a neural circuit responsible for regulating the preference—or disinclination—for light. The circuit, which is composed of a bilateral pair of neurons, receives input from the larval visual circuit, and its activation strengthens photoavoidance behavior. The results give a glimmer into how the brain interprets perceptual inputs.