Gustatory Perception and Behavior in Drosophila melanogaster

Amrein, Hubert; Thorne, Natasha

doi:10.1016/j.cub.2005.08.021

Cited by 150 publications

(119 citation statements)

References 89 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

115

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Neurons responsive to soluble chemicals such as sugars, amino acids and repulsive (bitter-tasting) compounds, as well as carbon dioxide (Jones et al, 2007) and pheromones (Bray and Amrein, 2003), express distinct subsets of GR genes. These gustatory sensory neurons connect to different ganglia in the Drosophila brain (Amrein and Thorne, 2005).…”

Section: Insect Chemosensory Gene Family Evolutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular evolution of the major chemosensory gene families in insects

2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Chemoreception is a crucial biological process that is essential for the survival of animals. In insects, olfaction allows the organism to recognise volatile cues that allow the detection of food, predators and mates, whereas the sense of taste commonly allows the discrimination of soluble stimulants that elicit feeding behaviours and can also initiate innate sexual and reproductive responses. The most important proteins involved in the recognition of chemical cues comprise moderately sized multigene families. These families include odorant-binding proteins (OBPs) and chemosensory proteins (CSPs), which are involved in peripheral olfactory processing, and the chemoreceptor superfamily formed by the olfactory receptor (OR) and gustatory receptor (GR) families. Here, we review some recent evolutionary genomic studies of chemosensory gene families using the data from fully sequenced insect genomes, especially from the 12 newly available Drosophila genomes. Overall, the results clearly support the birth-and-death model as the major mechanism of evolution in these gene families. Namely, new members arise by tandem gene duplication, progressively diverge in sequence and function, and can eventually be lost from the genome by a deletion or pseudogenisation event. Adaptive changes fostered by environmental shifts are also observed in the evolution of chemosensory families in insects and likely involve reproductive, ecological or behavioural traits. Consequently, the current size of these gene families is mainly a result of random gene gain and loss events. This dynamic process may represent a major source of genetic variation, providing opportunities for FUTURE specific adaptations.

show abstract

Section: Insect Chemosensory Gene Family Evolutionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular evolution of the major chemosensory gene families in insects

2009

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The pair of labial palps, located at the end of the proboscis, form the main taste structure and contains 31 bristles each, which are classified into three types (L, S, and I type) based on their shape and location ( Fig. 1) [1,5,15]. L-and S-type sensillum contain four GRNs, and the I type contains two GRNs.…”

Section: The Drosophila Taste Systemmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Thus, GRs within a subfamily are thought to detect structurally similar taste compounds. For example, the Gr5a subfamily, which consist of Gr5a (encoding a trehalose receptor) [49][50][51], Gr61a, and Gr64a-f share sequence similarity in the range of 60% and are thought to encode receptors that detect diverse sugars [15]. Likewise, a subfamily comprising six genes, Gr39a.a, Gr39a.b, Gr39a.c, Gr39a.d, and Gr68a, has been proposed to encode receptors for various pheromones, most likely long-chain HCs, because of the critical involvement of Gr68a in female pheromone sensing during male courtship [5,52].…”

Section: Gustatory Receptor Familymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Boxes indicated branches with 75-100% bootstrap support. Modified after [43] and [15] variable combinations of other Gr genes, which implies that possibly every Gr66a-expressing neuron may respond to overlapping, albeit distinct sets of chemical ligands. Although coexpression of these genes has not been investigated in detail outside the labial palps, there is at least one gene, Gr22e, that is expressed in GRNs of the wing that do not express Gr66a [36].…”

Section: Gustatory Receptor Familymentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

Taste and pheromone perception in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster

Ebbs

Amrein

2007

Pflugers Arch - Eur J Physiol

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Taste is an essential sense for detection of nutrient-rich food and avoidance of toxic substances. The Drosophila melanogaster gustatory system provides an excellent model to study taste perception and taste-elicited behaviors. "The fly" is unique in the animal kingdom with regard to available experimental tools, which include a wide repertoire of molecular-genetic analyses (i.e., efficient production of transgenics and gene knockouts), elegant behavioral assays, and the possibility to conduct electrophysiological investigations. In addition, fruit flies, like humans, recognize sugars as a food source, but avoid bitter tasting substances that are often toxic to insects and mammals alike. This paper will present recent research progress in the field of taste and contact pheromone perception in the fruit fly. First, we shall describe the anatomical properties of the Drosophila gustatory system and survey the family of taste receptors to provide an appropriate background. We shall then review taste and pheromone perception mainly from a molecular genetic perspective that includes behavioral, electrophysiological and imaging analyses of wild type flies and flies with genetically manipulated taste cells. Finally, we shall provide an outlook of taste research in this elegant model system for the next few years.Keywords Drosophila . Gustatory receptor neurons . GTP-binding protein-coupled receptors Like most animals, Drosophila monitor their chemical world with two distinct senses: the olfactory system, which is used for the detection of volatile chemicals, and the gustatory (taste) system, which enables the fly to detect soluble compounds. The olfactory sensory system (or the fly nose) is comprised of two pairwise head appendages, the third segments of the antennae, and the maxillary palps (Fig. 1). These appendages are covered with hundreds of sensory hairs, each of which contains two to four olfactory sensory neurons (OSNs) [1]. In contrast, the gustatory system is widely distributed over the animal's body. The main taste organ, the proboscis or labial palps (i.e., the fly tongue), is located on the distal end of the labellum (also a head appendage), but flies, like many other insects, have taste sensilla on legs and wings and, in females, on the genitalia [1,2].The roles of the olfactory and taste systems are clearly separated with regard to the physical state of chemicals they detect (volatile vs solubilized). However, the two systems often cooperate to fulfill specific functions in related processes and behaviors, the most obvious of them being the location and identification of food. For example, chemical cues such as the specific odor of a flower and the sugar compounds present in its nectar are by nature associated with one another. Thus, the odor cue provides a primary sensory input for an insect such as a honeybee to locate a food source (nectar), whose particular chemical composition is subsequently verified by the taste system. Similarly, the typical odor of yeast, which produces high amounts of t...

show abstract

“…Moreover, like the nematode C. elegans, a sophisticated array of genetic and molecular tools have been developed that makes analysis of gene function in this multi-cellular organism especially feasible. Drosophila have been used as a robust model system to gain insights into many of the cellular and molecular aspects of vision, gustation, and olfaction (for review see [27][28][29]). However, it has only recently been employed to elucidate the basis of thermosensation.…”

Section: Drosophila Thermosensationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Temperature sensing across species

McKemy

2007

Pflugers Arch - Eur J Physiol

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The ability to detect changes in temperature is a fundamental sensory mechanism for every species and provides organisms with a detailed view of the environment. This review focuses on what is known of the neuronal and molecular substrates for thermosensation across species, focusing on the three robust model systems extensively used to study sensory signaling, the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans, the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, and the laboratory mouse. Nematodes migrate to thermal climes that are amenable to their survival, a behavior that is regulated primarily through a single sensory neuron. Additionally, nematodes "learn" to seek out this temperate zone based upon their prior experience, a robust model of learning and memory. Drosophila larvae also prefer select thermal zones that are optimal for growth and have also developed vigorous mechanisms to avoid unfavorable conditions. In mammals, the transduction mechanisms for thermosensation have been identified primarily due to the fact that naturally occurring plant products evoke distinct psychophysical sensation of temperature change. More remarkably, the elucidation of the molecular sensors in mammals, along with those in Drosophila, has demonstrated conservation in the molecular mediators of temperature sensation across diverse species.

show abstract

Gustatory Perception and Behavior in Drosophila melanogaster

Cited by 150 publications

References 89 publications

Molecular evolution of the major chemosensory gene families in insects

Molecular evolution of the major chemosensory gene families in insects

Taste and pheromone perception in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster

Temperature sensing across species

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About