Probing the Role of Glia in Neuronal Function and Behavior in Drosophila

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The primary potential benefit of this research is to help understand how brain cells (known as neurons and glia) work together to generate behavior. The researchers will use genetic techniques to identify small populations of glial cells in the fly brain and carry out experiments to determine how they regulate fly locomotion. Relative to humans, the fly brain has fewer cells and can be readily manipulated. Because fruit flies share similar genes and general principles of brain cell structure and function with other animals, insights gained from this project will increase our understanding of glial function in the brains of these animals, including humans. This project will train students and postdoctoral scholars, including students from underrepresented groups. The research team will participate in 'Brain Awareness Week,' a 'Saturday Morning Science' seminar series and other activities that serve the public in local communities. They will work with teachers to conduct fly genetics science projects in middle and high schools. Using a newly developed genetic method (FINGR, flippase-induced intersectional Gal80/Gal4 repression), the researchers will conduct a forward genetic screen to identify subsets of glial cells that modulate fly locomotion, refine broad glia into smaller units, map glial morphology, perturb glial function, correlate behavioral changes with specific subsets of glia, and examine the impact of the glial subset on neuronal function and morphology. The screen is unbiased, and thus, will provide unprecedented opportunities for studying the effects of specific subsets of glia on neuronal function. Results from this research will also be disseminated through scientific meetings and through publication of peer-reviewed journal articles.