Neural circuits modulating feeding and locomotion in Drosophila larvae

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Studies in different model systems have identified various groups of neurons that regulate different aspects of food search and intake behaviors. However, efforts to interconnect these neurons into a functional network is just at the beginning stages. Our lab has been studying a group of neurons that expresses the neuropeptide hugin and which controls food intake and locomotion in Drosophila larvae. The class of hugin neurons that project to the protocerebrum is involved in feeding, whereas the one that projects to the ventral nerve cord is involved in locomotion. In this proposal, we will investigate the interaction of hugin neurons with previously characterized as well as newly identified neurons in controlling food intake and locomotive behaviors in response to appetitive and aversive sensory cues. This will be done using molecular genetic, connectomic and electrophysiological approaches, combined with imaging and behavioral assays, to elucidate the sensory-motor networks that underlie these fundamental behaviors.