Abstract

We have translated a powerful genetic tool, designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs (DREADDs), from mammalian systems to Drosophila melanogaster to selectively, rapidly, reversibly, and dose-dependently control behaviors and physiological processes in the fly. DREADDs are muscarinic acetylcholine G protein-coupled receptors evolved for loss of affinity to acetylcholine and for the ability to be fully activated by an otherwise biologically inert chemical, clozapine-N-oxide. We demonstrate its ability to control a variety of behaviors and processes in larvae and adults, including heart rate, sensory processing, diurnal behavior, learning and memory, and courtship. The advantages of this particular technology include the dose-responsive control of behaviors, the lack of a need for specialized equipment, and the capacity to remotely control signaling in essentially all neuronal and nonneuronal fly tissues.

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

9-12-2013

Notes/Citation Information

Published in Cell Reports, v. 4, no. 5, p. 1049-1059.

This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-No Derivative Works License, which permits non-commercial use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.celrep.2013.08.003

mmc1.mp4 (33935 kB)
Movie S1. hM4Di Activation in the Larval Heart Disrupts Heart Rate, Related to Table 1.

mmc2.pdf (1887 kB)
Document S1. Article plus Supplemental Information.

Included in

Biology Commons

Share

COinS