CAREER: Neural Mechanisms for Acoustic Communication in Drosophila

职业：果蝇声音交流的神经机制

• 批准号: 1054578
• 负责人: Mala Murthy
• 金额: $ 65万
• 依托单位: Princeton University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2011
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2011-03-01 至 2017-02-28
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1054578&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: CAREER; Neural; Mechanisms; Acoustic; Communication

Neural tuning for species-specific acoustic signals is a conserved feature of auditory systems; it is found from insects to humans. This proposal takes advantage of the genetic tools available in Drosophila to investigate, at the level of individual neurons and patterns of electrical activity, how such tuning arises and how it relates to behavioral outputs. Research findings will contribute to a larger understanding of how nervous systems process auditory information. Flies communicate via species-specific courtship songs during their mating ritual. Songs are typically produced by males; females are faced with the task of recognizing song, based on its species-specific parameters, and choosing a particular mate, based in part on differences in song between conspecific individuals. The PI proposes to characterize the circuits that underlie this behavior by i) resolving the features of courtship song that drive mating, ii) characterizing, using in vivo imaging and electrophysiology methods, neural responses along the auditory pathway, and iii) determining the relationship between neural tunings and song preference by exploiting cross-species comparisons. As the fly auditory pathway remains unmapped past the receptor neurons, these studies will be among the first to reveal how sound is processed by the Drosophila brain. Ultimately, these results may shed light on mechanisms underlying acoustic perception in more complex nervous systems and may benefit studies of disorders (e.g., autism spectrum) that alter this process.The research proposal is complemented by an education plan that is directed at inspiring the next generation of neuroscientists at the middle school, high school, and undergraduate levels, and at fostering the entrance and advancement of women in science. The PI will i) develop a new neuroscience course on the genetic and neural basis for behavior for Princeton undergraduates, ii) create a Fly Songs demonstration for area middle school students participating in the Princeton Science and Engineering Expo, and iii) initiate a new and intimate Science Scholars Workshop at Princeton for high school girls from nearby economically-underprivileged areas, providing them exposure to cutting edge research at the university level and encouragement to pursue careers in science, particularly in more computational disciplines.

对物种特定声音信号的神经调节是听觉系统的一个保守特征；从昆虫到人类都有它的存在。该提案利用果蝇中可用的遗传工具，在单个神经元和电活动模式的水平上研究这种调谐是如何产生的以及它与行为输出的关系。研究结果将有助于更好地理解神经系统如何处理听觉信息。苍蝇在交配仪式期间通过特定物种的求偶歌曲进行交流。歌曲通常由男性创作；雌性面临着根据物种特定参数识别歌曲的任务，并部分根据同种个体之间歌曲的差异来选择特定的配偶。 PI 建议通过 i) 解析驱动交配的求爱歌曲的特征，ii) 使用体内成像和电生理学方法表征听觉通路上的神经反应，以及 iii) 通过利用跨物种比较确定神经调谐和歌曲偏好之间的关系来表征这种行为背后的回路。由于果蝇听觉通路经过受体神经元仍未被绘制出来，这些研究将是首批揭示果蝇大脑如何处理声音的研究之一。最终，这些结果可能揭示更复杂的神经系统中声感知的潜在机制，并可能有益于改变这一过程的疾病（例如自闭症谱系）的研究。该研究提案得到了一项教育计划的补充，该计划旨在激励初中、高中和本科阶段的下一代神经科学家，并促进女性在科学领域的进入和进步。 PI 将 i) 为普林斯顿本科生开发一门关于行为的遗传和神经基础的新神经科学课程，ii) 为参加普林斯顿科学与工程博览会的地区中学生制作飞歌演示，以及 iii) 在普林斯顿为来自附近经济贫困地区的高中女生发起一个新的、亲密的科学学者研讨会，让她们接触大学水平的前沿研究，并鼓励她们 追求科学事业，特别是更多计算学科。