Role of Dopaminergic Descending Neurons in the Control of Locomotion in Drosophila

Thursday, September 26, 2024

2:00 PM-4:00 PM

BIOMED PhD Research Proposal

Title:
Role of Dopaminergic Descending Neurons in the Control of Locomotion in Drosophila

Speaker:
Ninghan Wang, PhD Candidate
School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems
Drexel University

Advisor:
Vikas Bhandawat, PhD
Associate Professor
School of Biomedical Engineering, Science and Health Systems
Drexel University

Details:
Dopaminergic neurons (DANs) play a crucial role in various brain functions, including reward, cognition, sensory processing and locomotion. DANs in the hypothalamus that project directly to the spinal cord, known as dopaminergic descending neurons (DADNs), have been found to be related to locomotion. However, in mammalian system, these DADNs are not well-studied due to the difficulty of performing in vivo recordings, as they are embedded in the hard-to-access nuclei. Thus, the specifics of how DADNs modulate the spinal motor circuit remain poorly understood.

Therefore, I chose to address this problem in Drosophila melanogaster, as DADNs in flies are accessible for in vivo recordings. Remarkably, there are only two DADNs with cell bodies in the brain and axons project to the ventral nerve cord (VNC) - the equivalent of the vertebrate spinal cord, which makes understanding their role in motor control tractable. In the proposed research, I will measure neural activity in DADNs using in vivo whole-cell patch-clamp techniques and investigate how their activity relates to behavior. I will also activate and inactivate DADNs to assess how perturbations in these neurons impact behavior. Finally, I will measure dopamine dynamics and examine the mechanism of dopamine action in the VNC.

Contact Information

Natalia Broz
njb33@drexel.edu