Neuronal substrates of egg-laying behaviour at the abdominal ganglion of Drosophila melanogaster

• Published in: Scientific reports 2023-12, Vol.13 (1), p.21941-21941, Article 21941
• Main Authors: Oliveira-Ferreira, Cristina, Gaspar, Miguel, Vasconcelos, Maria Luísa
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: 631/208/1515; 631/378/2632; 631/378/3920; Animals; Drosophila melanogaster - physiology; Egg laying; Humanities and Social Sciences; Insects; Mating; multidisciplinary; Neurons; Neurons - physiology; Oviposition - physiology; Science; Science (multidisciplinary)
• ISSN: 2045-2322; 2045-2322
• DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-48109-1

Egg-laying in Drosophila is the product of post-mating physiological and behavioural changes that culminate in a stereotyped sequence of actions. Egg-laying harbours a great potential as a paradigm to uncover how the appropriate motor circuits are organized and activated to generate behaviour. To study this programme, we first describe the different phases of the egg-laying programme and the specific actions associated with each phase. Using a combination of neuronal activation and silencing experiments, we identify neurons (OvAbg) in the abdominal ganglion as key players in egg-laying. To generate and functionally characterise subsets of OvAbg, we used an intersectional approach with neurotransmitter specific lines— VGlut , Cha and Gad1 . We show that OvAbg/VGlut neurons promote initiation of egg deposition in a mating status dependent way. OvAbg/Cha neurons are required in exploration and egg deposition phases, though activation leads specifically to egg expulsion. Experiments with the OvAbg/Gad1 neurons show they participate in egg deposition. We further show a functional connection of OvAbg neurons with brain neurons. This study provides insight into the organization of neuronal circuits underlying complex motor behaviour.