| dc.description.abstract | How motor neurons are regulated by neuromodulatory inputs is still poorly understood. The objective of this research is to determine if aminergic (octopaminergic, dopaminergic, and serotonergic), neurons cause perturbation in larval locomotion as well identify what motor neurons are excited by them. To test this, we will silence different neuromodulatory neurons using an inwardly rectifying potassium channel known as Kir2.1. Following these perturbations, larval locomotion will be examined using a whole animal behavioral analysis and tracking software known as WrmTrck. This software measures variety of different parameters pertaining to larval behavior such as the length that a larva travels over a period of time and its average speed. Currently we are aiming to identify the motor neurons that fire in response to aminergic neuron’s release of dopamine, serotonin, or octopamine. Receptors for these neuromodulators will be tagged in different larval crosses and the larval brains were viewed under a confocal microscope. It was found that when silencing dopaminergic neurons, larvae decreased in both length traveled and average speed alluding to the contribution of dopamine as a necessary neurotransmitter for muscle induced locomotion. Octopamine silencing led to no observable changes in any parameters. When serotoninergic neuromodulatory inputs were silenced a similar decrease in all parameters to dopaminergic silencing was observed. As this research is ongoing, we anticipate further information to come to light. The results of this research could help us further understand the Drosophila larval nervous system to examine the importance of neuromodulators. A deeper understanding of how these neuromodulators act in Drosophila could have future implications in understanding how these same neuromodulators affect human locomotive movement and if they could potentially play a role in motor deficit related neurodegenerative diseases. | |
