Molecular basis of fatty acid taste in <i>Drosophila</i>.
basic_science · Level V
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 29231818.
- Also identified by DOI 10.7554/eLife.30115 and PMC identifier 5747521.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Behavioral studies have established that <i>Drosophila</i> appetitive taste responses towards fatty acids are mediated by sweet sensing Gustatory Receptor Neurons (GRNs). Here we show that sweet GRN activation requires the function of the <i>Ionotropic Receptor</i> genes <i>IR25a</i>, <i>IR76b</i> and <i>IR56d</i>. The former two <i>IR</i> genes are expressed in several neurons per sensillum, while <i>IR56d</i> expression is restricted to sweet GRNs. Importantly, loss of appetitive behavioral responses to fatty acids in <i>IR25a</i> and <i>IR76b</i> mutant flies can be completely rescued by expression of respective transgenes in sweet GRNs. Interestingly, appetitive behavioral responses of wild type flies to hexanoic acid reach a plateau at ~1%, but decrease with higher concentration, a property mediated through IR25a/IR76b independent activation of bitter GRNs. With our previous report on sour taste, our studies suggest that IR-based receptors mediate different taste qualities through cell-type specific IR subunits.
Medical subject headings
- Drosophila Proteins
- Drosophila melanogaster
- Fatty Acids
- Receptors, Ionotropic Glutamate
- Sensory Receptor Cells
- Sodium Channels
- Sugars
- Taste