In Vivo Forward Genetic Screen to Identify Novel Neuroprotective Genes in <em>Drosophila melanogaster</em>

Downregulation of oxidative stress-mediated glial innate immune response suppresses seizures in a fly epilepsy model

“…The fixation solution was replaced with 70% Ethanol the next day and the head paraffin embedding procedure, head sectioning (at 5 μ m) and hematoxylin and eosin (H&E) staining were followed as described in. 103 The presence of neurodegeneration was indicated by the appearance of holes in the brain neuropil and was scored blindly for each genotype using the 6-level (scale of 0,1,2,3,4 and 5) neurodegeneration index score as described in. 95 Images were acquired using a Camera-equipped Nikon Eclipse E100 light microscope using the Nikon NIS-Elements image acquisition software.…”

Insights from Drosophila on Aβ- and tau-induced mitochondrial dysfunction: mechanisms and tools

“…All these phenotypic outcomes are very easy to score under a dissecting microscope, making the Drosophila eye the preferred screening platform for modifiers of neurodegenerative processes. Apart from the eye, neurodegeneration can be also assessed based on vacuolization of the brain, locomotor performance such as climbing and flight assays, analysis of neuromuscular junction morphology, life span analysis, as well as assessment of learning and memory decline ( McGurk et al, 2015 ; Gevedon et al, 2019 ). Interestingly, the accumulation of amyloid aggregates and pathological tau, the main neuropathological hallmarks in AD, can be also assessed in the fly brain by staining with Thioflavin and with antibodies against phosphorylated and conformational tau ( Greeve et al, 2004 ).…”

Modeling Neurodegenerative Disorders in Drosophila melanogaster

“…Moreover, multiple rigorous assays to score neurodegeneration can be used in Drosophila, providing reliable measurements for the effects of the disease process. Such assays include examination of eye morphology and retinal structures by light microscopy, vacuolization of the central brain using histological staining, lifespan analysis, locomotor performance measurements using a climbing assay as well as assessment of neuromuscular junction morphology to determine potential synaptic abnormalities [18,19]. Immunohistochemical techniques can be used to label specific subtypes of brain cells such as dopaminergic neurons by using an anti-Tyrosine hydroxylase antibody, or to examine the accumulation of deposits such as amyloid plaques, which are a hallmark of the neuropathology accompanying Alzheimer's Disease using Thioflavin S labeling [18,20].…”