Visual projection neurons in the Drosophila lobula link feature detection to distinct behavioral programs.
Elife
; 52016 12 28.
Article
in En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-28029094
ABSTRACT
Visual projection neurons (VPNs) provide an anatomical connection between early visual processing and higher brain regions. Here we characterize lobula columnar (LC) cells, a class of Drosophila VPNs that project to distinct central brain structures called optic glomeruli. We anatomically describe 22 different LC types and show that, for several types, optogenetic activation in freely moving flies evokes specific behaviors. The activation phenotypes of two LC types closely resemble natural avoidance behaviors triggered by a visual loom. In vivo two-photon calcium imaging reveals that these LC types respond to looming stimuli, while another type does not, but instead responds to the motion of a small object. Activation of LC neurons on only one side of the brain can result in attractive or aversive turning behaviors depending on the cell type. Our results indicate that LC neurons convey information on the presence and location of visual features relevant for specific behaviors.
Key words
Full text:
1
Collection:
01-internacional
Database:
MEDLINE
Main subject:
Visual Pathways
/
Drosophila
/
Neurons
Type of study:
Diagnostic_studies
Limits:
Animals
Language:
En
Journal:
Elife
Year:
2016
Document type:
Article
Affiliation country:
United States