Role of neural activity during synaptogenesis in Drosophila

This article reveals a novel aspect in the regulation of synaptic connectivity in Drosophila. Reducing neural activity genetically or pharmacologically disrupts the normally precise embryonic and larval neuromuscular connections. In third instar larvae with mutations that affect sodium channel function or expression such as no action potential, temperature-induced paralysis E, or seizure1, foreign neuromuscular synapses, arising from inappropriate nerve sources, are observed on muscle fibers throughout the abdominal body wall. Their frequencies increase as neural activity is further reduced in double mutant combinations. These foreign connections are first observed during late embryogenesis as filopodial-like contacts, but critical period analysis suggests that neural activity must be reduced during both late embryogenesis and the first larval instar to promote the differentiation of these embryonic contacts into foreign motor synapses. In addition, the loss of electrical activity in the motoneuron, as opposed to the loss of postsynaptic potentials in the muscle fibers, appears to be responsible for these changes in connectivity. Our experiments suggest that neural activity may function during development by preventing inappropriate connections and thereby maintaining the precise connectivity achieved during nerve outgrowth and target selection.