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Environmental effects on Drosophila brain development and learning.
Xia Wang1, Amei Amei2, J Steven de Belle3
1School of Life Sciences, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, NV 89154, USA.
The Journal of Experimental Biology
|October 25, 2017
Summary
Environmental factors like heat stress impact brain development and learning in fruit flies. Mushroom bodies (MBs) are vulnerable to heat, affecting odor learning, while other brain areas show varied sensitivity to crowding and enrichment.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Environmental Science
- Behavioral Biology
Background:
- Brain development and behavior are influenced by environmental factors such as social interactions and stressors.
- The combined effects of multiple environmental influences on brain anatomy, circuits, and cognitive function are not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the individual and combined effects of thermal stress, larval density, and spatial enrichment on fruit fly brain anatomy and olfactory learning.
- To determine how different brain structures respond to various environmental inputs.
Main Methods:
- Adult *Drosophila melanogaster* were exposed to sub-adult thermal stress, varying larval densities, and early-adult spatial enrichment.
- Brain anatomy (specifically mushroom bodies, antennal lobes, optic lobes, and central complex) and olfactory associative learning were assessed.
Main Results:
- Heat stress significantly reduced mushroom body volume, correlating with impaired odor learning.
- Larval crowding decreased the volume of antennal lobes, optic lobes, and central complex, but did not affect olfactory learning.
- Mushroom bodies were not sensitive to larval density or spatial enrichment; olfactory learning was unaffected by crowding or enrichment.
Conclusions:
- Different brain structures exhibit distinct sensitivities to environmental factors.
- Mushroom body development and olfactory learning are highly sensitive to pre-adult hyperthermia but resistant to larval crowding and spatial enrichment.
