Motor Control of Flight Maneuvers

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Based on the number of extant species, insects are arguably the most successful group of animals on earth and the ability to fly is central to their eminence. Although past research has made great progress in understanding the basic aerodynamic mechanisms employed by insects, we know much less about how these animals control the motion of their flapping wings, which is the basis of their remarkable agility. Insects such as flies are endowed with only a dozen or so tiny muscles at the base of the wing with which to control wing motion. This research project will use a combination of genetic and optical techniques to directly observe how insects use their muscles to adjust the flapping pattern of their wings. The investigations will help uncover one of the greatest mysteries about these extraordinarily successful creatures and provide insight for the design and fabrication of miniature mechanical devices such as insect-sized flying robots. In addition, the outreach and training effort of the project will include support of undergraduate research during the academic year.This proposal will focus on fruit flies (Drosophila melanogaster), which are capable of rapid aerial maneuvers and are amenable to many genetic approaches for recording and manipulating muscles and motor neurons. In particular, by expressing the genetically-encoded, optical calcium sensor GCaMP, the investigators will directly observe the activity of the entire steering muscle system while animals perform visually-elicited flight maneuvers. The functional role of muscles used for different maneuvers will be investigated with high spatial and temporal resolution by combining electrophysiology with high speed videography. The project will also explicitly test the role of specific muscles using optogenetic reagents to activate motor neurons in intact animals. Collectively, these approaches will determine how insects perform flight maneuvers using such a limited set of muscles and expand our knowledge of the general principles of motor control employed by a group of earth's most successful creatures. Results from the studies will be disseminated through publication in peer-reviewed journals and through presentations at scientific meetings.