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SubmittedCC BY-NC-ND V4.0, Open
Preprint
Visual projection neuron convergence and compensation in developing sensorimotor circuits in the Drosophila optic glomeruli
bioRxiv
22 Aug 2022
Abstract
Visual features detected by the early visual system must be combined into higher order representations to guide behavioral decision. Although key developmental mechanisms that enable the separation of visual feature channels in early visual circuits have been discovered, relatively little is known about the mechanisms that underlie their convergence in later stages of visual processing. Here we explore the development of a functionally well-characterized sensorimotor circuit in Drosophila melanogaster, the convergence of visual projection neurons (VPNs) onto the dendrites of a large descending neuron called the giant fiber (GF). We find two VPNs encoding different visual features that target the same giant fiber dendrite establish their territories on the dendrite, in part, through sequential axon arrival during development prior to synaptogenesis. Physical occupancy is important to maintain territories, as we find the ablation of one VPN results in expanded dendrite territory of the remaining VPN, and that this compensation enables the GF to remain responsive to ethologically relevant visual stimuli. Our data highlight temporal mechanisms for visual feature convergence and promote the GF circuit, and the Drosophila optic glomeruli where VPN to GF connectivity resides, as an ideal developmental model for investigating complex wiring programs and plasticity in visual feature convergence. Competing Interest Statement The authors have declared no competing interest.
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Details
- Title
- Visual projection neuron convergence and compensation in developing sensorimotor circuits in the Drosophila optic glomeruli
- Creators
- Brennan Mcfarland - Drexel UniversityHyojong Jang - Drexel UniversityNatalie Smolin - Drexel UniversityTanja Godenschwege - Florida Atlantic UniversityAljoscha Nern - Howard Hughes Medical InstituteYerbol Kurmangaliyev - Howard Hughes Medical InstituteCatherine Von Reyn - Drexel University
- Publication Details
- bioRxiv
- Publisher
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory Press; Cold Spring Harbor
- Number of pages
- 79
- Resource Type
- Preprint
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- School of Biomedical Engineering, Science, and Health Systems
- Other Identifier
- 991019415663404721