Auditory responses of engrailed and invected-expressing Johnston's Organ neurons in Drosophila melanogaster. 2013

Adeline Pézier, and Jonathan M Blagburn
Institute of Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico, United States of America.

The roles of the transcription factor Engrailed (En), and its paralogue Invected (Inv), in adult Drosophila Johnston's Organ sensory neurons are unknown. We used en-GAL4 driven CD8-GFP and antibody staining to characterize these neurons in the pedicel (second antennal segment). The majority of En and Inv-expressing Johnston's Organ neurons (En-JONs) are located in the ventral part of the posterior group of JONs, with only a few in the medial group. Anatomical classification of En-JON axon projections shows they are mainly type A and E, with a few type B. Extracellular recording of sound-evoked potentials (SEPs) from the antennal nerve was used along with Kir2.1 silencing to assess the contribution that En-JONs make to the auditory response to pure-tone sound stimuli. Silencing En-JONs reduces the SEP amplitude at the onset of the stimulus by about half at 100, 200 and 400 Hz, and also reduces the steady-state response to 200 Hz. En-JONs respond to 82 dB and 92 dB sounds but not 98 dB. Despite their asymmetrical distribution in the Johnston's Organ they respond equally strongly to both directions of movement of the arista. This implies that individual neurons are excited in both directions, a conclusion supported by reanalysis of the morphology of the pedicel-funicular joint. Other methods of silencing the JONs were also used: RNAi against the voltage-gated Na⁺ channel encoded by the para gene, expression of attenuated diphtheria toxin, and expression of a modified influenza toxin M2(H37A). Only the latter was found to be more effective than Kir2.1. Three additional JON subsets were characterized using Flylight GAL4 lines. inv-GAL4 88B12 and Gycβ100B-GAL4 12G03 express in different subsets of A group neurons and CG12484-GAL4 91G04 is expressed in B neurons. All three contribute to the auditory response to 200 Hz tones.

UI MeSH Term Description Entries
D011984 Sensory Receptor Cells Specialized afferent neurons capable of transducing sensory stimuli into NERVE IMPULSES to be transmitted to the CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM. Sometimes sensory receptors for external stimuli are called exteroceptors; for internal stimuli are called interoceptors and proprioceptors. Nerve Endings, Sensory,Neurons, Sensory,Neuroreceptors,Receptors, Neural,Neural Receptors,Receptors, Sensory,Sensory Neurons,Sensory Receptors,Nerve Ending, Sensory,Neural Receptor,Neuron, Sensory,Neuroreceptor,Receptor Cell, Sensory,Receptor Cells, Sensory,Receptor, Neural,Receptor, Sensory,Sensory Nerve Ending,Sensory Nerve Endings,Sensory Neuron,Sensory Receptor,Sensory Receptor Cell
D004331 Drosophila melanogaster A species of fruit fly frequently used in genetics because of the large size of its chromosomes. D. melanogaster,Drosophila melanogasters,melanogaster, Drosophila
D005072 Evoked Potentials, Auditory The electric response evoked in the CEREBRAL CORTEX by ACOUSTIC STIMULATION or stimulation of the AUDITORY PATHWAYS. Auditory Evoked Potentials,Auditory Evoked Response,Auditory Evoked Potential,Auditory Evoked Responses,Evoked Potential, Auditory,Evoked Response, Auditory,Evoked Responses, Auditory,Potentials, Auditory Evoked
D000161 Acoustic Stimulation Use of sound to elicit a response in the nervous system. Auditory Stimulation,Stimulation, Acoustic,Stimulation, Auditory
D000818 Animals Unicellular or multicellular, heterotrophic organisms, that have sensation and the power of voluntary movement. Under the older five kingdom paradigm, Animalia was one of the kingdoms. Under the modern three domain model, Animalia represents one of the many groups in the domain EUKARYOTA. Animal,Metazoa,Animalia
D001307 Auditory Perception The process whereby auditory stimuli are selected, organized, and interpreted by the organism. Auditory Processing,Perception, Auditory,Processing, Auditory
D012679 Sense Organs Specialized organs adapted for the reception of stimuli by the NERVOUS SYSTEM. Sensory System,Organ, Sense,Sense Organ,Sensory Systems,System, Sensory
D014157 Transcription Factors Endogenous substances, usually proteins, which are effective in the initiation, stimulation, or termination of the genetic transcription process. Transcription Factor,Factor, Transcription,Factors, Transcription
D049452 Green Fluorescent Proteins Protein analogs and derivatives of the Aequorea victoria green fluorescent protein that emit light (FLUORESCENCE) when excited with ULTRAVIOLET RAYS. They are used in REPORTER GENES in doing GENETIC TECHNIQUES. Numerous mutants have been made to emit other colors or be sensitive to pH. Green Fluorescent Protein,Green-Fluorescent Protein,Green-Fluorescent Proteins,Fluorescent Protein, Green,Fluorescent Proteins, Green,Protein, Green Fluorescent,Protein, Green-Fluorescent,Proteins, Green Fluorescent,Proteins, Green-Fluorescent
D057506 Arthropod Antennae Paired sense organs connected to the anterior segments of ARTHROPODS that help them navigate through the environment. Antennae, Arthropod,Antennae, Insect,Arthropod Antenna,Insect Antenna,Insect Antennae,Antenna, Arthropod,Antenna, Insect,Antennas, Arthropod,Antennas, Insect,Arthropod Antennas,Insect Antennas

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