Drosophila melanogaster, the fruit fly, has been used to study molecular mechanisms of a wide range of human diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and various neurological diseases 1 . We have optimized simple and robust behavioral assays for determining larval locomotion, adult climbing ability (RING assay), and courtship behaviors of Drosophila. These behavioral assays are widely applicable for studying the role of genetic and environmental factors on fly behavior. Larval crawling ability can be reliably used for determining early stage changes in the crawling abilities of Drosophila larvae and also for examining effect of drugs or human disease genes (in transgenic flies) on their locomotion. The larval crawling assay becomes more applicable if expression or abolition of a gene causes lethality in pupal or adult stages, as these flies do not survive to adulthood where they otherwise could be assessed. This basic assay can also be used in conjunction with bright light or stress to examine additional behavioral responses in Drosophila larvae. Courtship behavior has been widely used to investigate genetic basis of sexual behavior, and can also be used to examine activity and coordination, as well as learning and memory. Drosophila courtship behavior involves the exchange of various sensory stimuli including visual, auditory, and chemosensory signals between males and females that lead to a complex series of well characterized motor behaviors culminating in successful copulation. Traditional adult climbing assays (negative geotaxis) are tedious, labor intensive, and time consuming, with significant variation between different trials [2][3][4] . The rapid iterative negative geotaxis (RING) assay 5 has many advantages over more widely employed protocols, providing a reproducible, sensitive, and high throughput approach to quantify adult locomotor and negative geotaxis behaviors. In the RING assay, several genotypes or drug treatments can be tested simultaneously using large number of animals, with the high-throughput approach making it more amenable for screening experiments. Video LinkThe 3. Incubate bottle for 3-4 days, or until third instar larvae are visible. 4. Add 50 -100 ml of 20% sucrose to the bottle with larvae and let sit for 20 minutes. Larvae will float to the top. 5. Collect larvae using a 25 ml serological pipette with the tip cut off, and place into a mesh basket. 6. Wash larvae in the mesh basket two times with deionized H 2 O. Larvae are now ready for the experiments. To treat larvae with drug1. Use a brush to transport the desired number of larvae to a 5 ml beaker containing a solution 5% sucrose + drug. 2. Let larvae feed for at least 15 minutes. 3. Pour drug-treated larvae into a mesh basket and rinse. They are now ready to use. Locomotor Assay (measuring total distance travelled or body wall contractions)1. Use a brush to transport individual larva to a: 1. 15 cm Petri dish containing 2% agarose (previously poured and allowed to harden) over graph paper with a 0.2 cm 2 grid.

The G protein-coupled serotonin 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) 2A receptor is primarily recognized for its role in brain neurotransmission, where it mediates a wide variety of functions, including certain aspects of cognition. However, there is significant expression of this receptor in peripheral tissues, where its importance is largely unknown. We have now discovered that activation of 5-HT 2A receptors in primary aortic smooth muscle cells provides a previously unknown and extremely potent inhibition of tumor necrosis factor (TNF)-␣-mediated inflammation. 5-HT 2A receptor stimulation with the agonist (R)-1-(2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodophenyl)-2-aminopropane [(R)-DOI] rapidly inhibits a variety of TNF-␣-mediated proinflammatory markers, including intracellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1), vascular adhesion molecule 1 (VCAM-1), and interleukin (IL)-6 gene expression, nitric-oxide synthase activity, and nuclear translocation of nuclear factor B, with IC 50 values of only 10 to 20 pM.It is significant that proinflammatory markers can also be inhibited by (R)-DOI hours after treatment with TNF-␣. With the exception of a few natural toxins, no current drugs or small molecule therapeutics demonstrate a comparable potency for any physiological effect. TNF-␣-mediated inflammatory pathways have been strongly implicated in a number of diseases, including atherosclerosis, rheumatoid arthritis, psoriasis, type II diabetes, depression, schizophrenia, and Alzheimer's disease. Our results indicate that activation of 5-HT 2A receptors represents a novel, and extraordinarily potent, potential therapeutic avenue for the treatment of disorders involving TNF-␣-mediated inflammation. Note that because (R)-DOI can significantly inhibit the effects of TNF-␣ many hours after the administration of TNF-␣, potential therapies could be aimed not only at preventing inflammation but also treating inflammatory injury that has already occurred or is ongoing.Serotonin, 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT), is a small monoamine molecule primarily known for its role as a neurotransmitter. Within the brain, it modulates a variety of behaviors including cognition, mood, aggression, mating, feeding, and sleep . These behaviors are mediated through interactions at seven different receptor families (5-HT 1-7 ) comprised of 14 distinct subtypes . Each of these are G protein-coupled receptors, with the exception of the 5-HT 3 receptor, which is a ligandgated ion channel. Of all the serotonin receptors, the 5-HT 2A receptor, which is known to primarily couple to the G␣q effector pathway (Roth et al., 1986), has been the one most closely linked to complex behaviors. There is a high level of expression within the frontal cortex, with significant localization to the apical dendrites of cortical pyramidal cells (Willins et al., 1997), and further expression at lower levels PKC, protein kinase C; Gö 6976, 5,6,7,pyrrolo [3,4-c]carbazole-12-propanenitrile; PMA, phorbol 12-myristate 13-acetate; F-22, fragment 6 -22; LA-SS-Az, (2ЈS,4ЈS)-(ϩ)-9,10-didehydro-6-methylergoli...

The 5-HT7 receptor remains one of the less well characterized serotonin receptors. Although it has been demonstrated to be involved in the regulation of mood, sleep, and circadian rhythms, as well as relaxation of vascular smooth muscles in mammals, the precise mechanisms underlying these functions remain largely unknown. The fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, is an attractive model organism to study neuropharmacological, molecular, and behavioral processes that are largely conserved with mammals. Drosophila express a homolog of the mammalian 5-HT7 receptor, as well as homologs for the mammalian 5-HT1A, and 5-HT2, receptors. Each fly receptor couples to the same effector pathway as their mammalian counterpart and have been demonstrated to mediate similar behavioral responses. Here, we report on the expression and function of the 5-HT7Dro receptor in Drosophila. In the larval central nervous system, expression is detected postsynaptically in discreet cells and neuronal circuits. In the adult brain there is strong expression in all large-field R neurons that innervate the ellipsoid body, as well as in a small group of cells that cluster with the PDF-positive LNvs neurons that mediate circadian activity. Following both pharmacological and genetic approaches, we have found that 5-HT7Dro activity is essential for normal courtship and mating behaviors in the fly, where it appears to mediate levels of interest in both males and females. This is the first reported evidence of direct involvement of a particular serotonin receptor subtype in courtship and mating in the fly.

The plant cell wall is the structural basis of cellular form and thus forms a foundation on which morphogenesis builds organs and tissues. Enzymes capable of modifying major wall components are prominent candidates for regulating wall form and function. Xyloglucan endotransglucosylases/hydrolases (XTHs) are predicted to participate in xyloglucan integration and/or restructuring. XTHs are encoded by large gene families in plants; the Arabidopsis genome encodes 33 XTHs. To gain insight into the potential physiological relevance of the distinct members of this family, GUS reporter fusion genes were constructed, and plants expressing these transgenes were characterized to reveal spatial and temporal patterns of expression. In addition, Genevestigator sources were mined for comprehensive and comparative XTH expression regulation analysis. These data reveal that the Arabidopsis XTHs are likely expressed in every developmental stage from seed germination through flowering. All organs show XTH::GUS expression and most, if not all, are found to express multiple XTH::GUS genes. These data suggest that XTHs may contribute to morphogenesis at every developmental stage and in every plant organ. Different XTHs have remarkably diverse and distinct expression patterns indicating that paralogous genes have evolved differential expression regulation perhaps contributing to the maintenance of the large gene family. Extensive overlap in XTH expression patterns is evident; thus, XTHs may act combinatorially in determining wall properties of specific tissues or organs. Knowledge of gene-specific expression among family members yields evidence of where and when gene products may function and provides insights to guide rational approaches to investigate function through reverse genetics.

Insulin signaling regulates lifespan, reproduction, metabolic homeostasis, and resistance to stress in the adult organism. In Drosophila, there are seven insulin-like peptides (DILP1–7). Three of these (DILP2, 3 and 5) are produced in median neurosecretory cells of the brain, designated IPCs. Previous work has suggested that production or release of DILPs in IPCs can be regulated by a factor secreted from the fat body as well as by neuronal GABA or short neuropeptide F. There is also evidence that serotonergic neurons may regulate IPCs. Here, we investigated mechanisms by which serotonin may regulate the IPCs. We show that the IPCs in adult flies express the 5-HT1A, but not the 5-HT1B or 5-HT7 receptors, and that processes of serotonergic neurons impinge on the IPC branches. Knockdown of 5-HT1A in IPCs by targeted RNA interference (RNAi) leads to increased sensitivity to heat, prolonged recovery after cold knockdown and decreased resistance to starvation. Lipid metabolism is also affected, but no effect on growth was seen. Furthermore, we show that DILP2-immunolevels in IPCs increase after 5-HT1A knockdown; this is accentuated by starvation. Heterozygous 5-HT1A mutant flies display the same phenotype in all assays, as seen after targeted 5-HT1A RNAi, and flies fed the 5-HT1A antagonist WAY100635 display reduced life-span at starvation. Our findings suggest that serotonin acts on brain IPCs via the 5-HT1A receptor, thereby affecting their activity and probably insulin signaling. Thus, we have identified a second inhibitory pathway regulating IPC activity in the Drosophila brain.