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Updated: Feb 7, 2026

Assaying Locomotor Activity to Study Circadian Rhythms and Sleep Parameters in Drosophila
Published on: September 28, 2010
NonA and CPX Link the Circadian Clockwork to Locomotor Activity in Drosophila
Weifei Luo1, Fang Guo1, Aoife McMahon2
1Department of Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute and National Center for Behavioral Genomics, Brandeis University, 415 South Street, Waltham, MA 02453, USA.
Abstract:
Drosophila NonA and its mammalian ortholog NONO are members of the Drosophila behavior and human splicing (DBHS) family. NONO also has a strong circadian connection: it associates with the circadian repressor protein PERIOD (PER) and contributes to circadian timekeeping. Here, we investigate NonA, which is required for proper levels of evening locomotor activity as well as a normal free-running period in Drosophila. NonA is associated with the positive transcription factor CLOCK/CYCLE (CLK/CYC), interacts directly with complexin (cpx) pre-mRNA, and upregulates gene expression, including the gene cpx. Downregulation of cpx expression in circadian neurons phenocopies NonA downregulation, whereas cpx overexpression rescues the nonA RNAi phenotypes, indicating that cpx is an important NonA target gene. As the cpx protein contributes to proper neurotransmitter and neuropeptide release in response to calcium, these results and others indicate that this control is important for the normal circadian regulation of locomotor activity.
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