Aversive conditioning information transmission in Drosophila

• Published in: Cell reports (Cambridge) 2023-10, Vol.42 (10), p.113207-113207, Article 113207
• Main Authors: Wu, Meng-Shiun, Liao, Ting-Wei, Wu, Chun-Yuan, Hsieh, Tzu-Han, Kuo, Ping-Chung, Li, Yue-Chiun, Cheng, Kuan-Chung, Chiang, Hsueh-Cheng
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: CP: Neuroscience; Drosophila; learning and memory; social interaction; social learning
• ISSN: 2211-1247; 2211-1247
• DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2023.113207

Animals rapidly acquire surrounding information to perform the appropriate behavior. Although social learning is more efficient and accessible than self-learning for animals, the detailed regulatory mechanism of social learning remains unknown, mainly because of the complicated information transfer between animals, especially for aversive conditioning information transmission. The current study revealed that, during social learning, the neural circuit in observer flies used to process acquired aversive conditioning information from demonstrator flies differs from the circuit used for self-learned classic aversive conditioning. This aversive information transfer is species dependent. Solitary flies cannot learn this information through social learning, suggesting that this ability is not an innate behavior. Neurons used to process and execute avoidance behavior to escape from electrically shocked flies are all in the same brain region, indicating that the fly brain has a common center for integrating external stimuli with internal states to generate flight behavior. [Display omitted] •Information of aversive conditioning is transmittable•Electric shock stimulates oenocytes to release repulsive chemicals•KCα′β′ and KCγ in observer flies are required to process social learning information•Processed information is temporally stored in KCγ in observer flies Wu et al. show that self-learned aversive conditioning information transmission between Drosophila is partly utilizing a built-up innate stress/fear circuit within the mushroom body that drives observer animals to avoid electrically shocked animals and odor cues. KCα′β′’ and KCγ are important to integrate the external stimulation and conduct behaviors accordingly.