Identification of a GABAergic neuroblast lineage modulating sweet and bitter taste sensitivity

Yunpo Zhao; Jianli Duan; Zhe Han; Ylva Engström; Volker Hartenstein

doi:10.1016/j.cub.2022.10.029

Identification of a GABAergic neuroblast lineage modulating sweet and bitter taste sensitivity

Curr Biol. 2022 Dec 19;32(24):5354-5363.e3. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.10.029. Epub 2022 Nov 7.

Authors

Yunpo Zhao¹, Jianli Duan², Zhe Han³, Ylva Engström⁴, Volker Hartenstein⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden; Biozentrum, University of Basel, 4056 Basel, Switzerland; Center for Precision Disease Modeling, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore 21201, USA. Electronic address: ypzhao0407@gmail.com.
² Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden; Center for Precision Disease Modeling, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore 21201, USA.
³ Center for Precision Disease Modeling, University of Maryland School of Medicine, Baltimore 21201, USA.
⁴ Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, 106 91 Stockholm, Sweden.
⁵ Department of Molecular, Cell and Developmental Biology, University of California, Los Angeles 90095-1606, USA. Electronic address: volkerh@mcdb.ucla.edu.

Abstract

In Drosophila melanogaster, processing of gustatory information and controlling feeding behavior are executed by neural circuits located in the subesophageal zone (SEZ) of the brain.¹ Gustatory receptor neurons (GRNs) project their axons in the primary gustatory center (PGC), which is located in the SEZ.¹^,²^,³^,⁴ To address the function of the PGC, we need detailed information about the different classes of gustatory interneurons that frame the PGC. In this work, we screened large collections of driver lines for SEZ interneuron-specific labeling and subsequently used candidate lines to access the SEZ neuroblast lineages. We converted 130 Gal4 lines to LexA drivers and carried out functional screening using calcium imaging. We found one neuroblast lineage, TRdm, whose neurons responded to both sweet and bitter tastants, and formed green fluorescent protein (GFP) reconstitution across synaptic partners (GRASP)-positive synapses with sweet sensory neurons. TRdm neurons express the inhibitory transmitter GABA, and silencing these neurons increases appetitive feeding behavior. These results demonstrate that TRdm generates a class of inhibitory local neurons that control taste sensitivity in Drosophila.

Keywords: Drosophila; GABAergic; feeding behavior; gustatory center; inhibition; local interneuron.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Animals
Drosophila / metabolism
Drosophila Proteins* / genetics
Drosophila Proteins* / metabolism
Drosophila melanogaster / physiology
Sensory Receptor Cells / physiology
Taste* / physiology

Substances

Drosophila Proteins

Grants and funding

R01 HL134940/HL/NHLBI NIH HHS/United States