We would like to thank members of the Tessier lab for critical reading of this manuscript and helpful suggestions during the preparation of this protocol.

1. Starvation
<ol>
	<li>Prepare fly starvation vials by saturating a cotton ball with 18.2 M&#937; water at the bottom of a standard fly vial. Alternatively, similarly saturate a small strip of filter paper with 18.2 M&#937; water and place at an angle within the vial.</li>
	<li>Collect flies into sets of ~100 animals on a CO2 pad and then add the flies to a prepared vial. 
	Note: Best results are obtained with animals that are less than 5 days old. However, the exact age of the animals can be controlled as an experimental variable to determine changes in taste preference over time.</li>
	<li>Use a cotton ball or foam stopper to secure the vials closed. Place vials on their side in an environmentally controlled incubator. Maintain the temperature at 25 &#176;C, and the humidity above 70%. Leave vials untouched for 24 hr.</li>
</ol>
2. Taste Preference Assay
<ol>
	<li>Prepare all tastants for the assay on the same day as testing. 
	Note: The exact tastants to be used will vary depending on experimental question being asked. The following are example tastants used in this protocol. See section 4 for optimizations.
	<ol>
		<li>Prepare control tastant (1 mM sucrose) by combining 10 &#181;l of 100 mM sucrose solution, 13 &#181;l of red food coloring, and 977 &#181;l of 18.2 M&#937; water.</li>
		<li>Prepare experimental tastant (5 mM sucrose) by combining 50 &#181;l of 100 mM sucrose solution, 10 &#181;l of blue food coloring, and 940 &#181;l of 18.2 M&#937; water.</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
	<li>Make assay chambers using a standard 100 mm x 15 mm plastic petri dish prepared in the following manner:
	<ol>
		<li>Place three 10 &#181;l drops of control tastant nearest the edge of the plate at 12 o&#39;clock and another 3 drops at 6 o&#39;clock. Ensure that the spacing between drops is similar.</li>
		<li>Place three 10 &#181;l drops of experimental tastant nearest the edge of the plate at 3 o&#39;clock and another 3 drops at 9 o&#39;clock. Ensure that the spacing between drops is similar.</li>
		<li>Repeat steps 2.2.1 and 2.2.2 for as many replicates as desired.</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
	<li>Empty 1 vial of ~100 starved flies onto a CO2 pad just long enough to anesthetize all animals (approximately 10 sec). Brush the animals into the middle of a prepared assay chamber and cover with the dish lid. 
	Note: Longer periods of CO2 exposure should be avoided to improve recovery time and limit interference with the feeding behavior. Exposure to ice (~5 min) may be used for anesthetizing to avoid CO2 behavioral effects that may arise from even limited exposure.</li>
	<li>Place the assay chamber in an opaque cardboard box. Be sure to label the outside of the box with the condition and genotype being tested.</li>
	<li>Place the entire setup (assay chamber contained within cardboard box from step 2.4) into a 25 &#176;C incubator with at least 70% humidity for 2 hr.</li>
	<li>Repeat steps 2.3 through 2.5 for all replicates.</li>
	<li>After 2 hours, place the assay chambers, still contained within cardboard boxes, directly into a -20 &#176;C freezer until ready for quantitation.</li>
</ol>
3. Taste Preference Assay Quantification
<ol>
	<li>Allow a single assay chamber to warm up to room temperature (approximately 5 min).</li>
	<li>Under a dissection microscope, using a brush or pair of forceps, group animals based on the color of their abdomen: red, blue, purple or clear (Figure 1).</li>
	<li>Record the number of animals in each grouping. Consider clear animals to have not participated in the assay and therefore do not include them in any calculations.</li>
	<li>Calculate the preference index according to one of the following equations:
	<ol>
		<li>If the experimental tastant of interest is added to the red dye, then use (Nred +0.5Npurple)/(Nred +Nblue + Npurple).</li>
		<li>If the experimental tastant is added to the blue dye, then adjust the equation to (Nblue +0.5Npurple)/(Nblue +Nred + Npurple).</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
	<li>Repeat the calculations for all experimental conditions and replicates.</li>
</ol>
4. Optimization of Taste Preference Assay
<ol>
	<li>Empirically determine the concentration of food coloring indicators to be used so food coloring does not affect the outcome of the taste assay, as follows:
	<ol>
		<li>Prepare 4 tastants using the same base compound (e.g. 5 mM sucrose) as indicated in step 2.1, but omit the food coloring.</li>
		<li>Add 1.3% red food coloring to one of the tastants. Make the remaining 3 tastants with blue food coloring of varying concentrations in each tube (e.g. 0.6%, 1%, and 1.3%).</li>
		<li>Complete protocol steps 2.2 through 3.4 for each tastant pair: 1.3% red vs. 0.6% blue; 1.3% red vs. 1% blue and 1.3% red vs. 1.3% blue.</li>
		<li>Repeat step 4.1.1-4.1.3 with different percentages of blue food coloring until the preference index averages a value of 0 (Figure 2). 
		Note: As a starting point, 1.3% red food coloring coupled with 1% blue food coloring typically yields good results. If no satisfactory concentration of blue food coloring can be matched to 1.3% dye, then step 4.1.1 through 4.1.3 can be repeated with varying concentrations of red coloring and a constant concentration of blue food coloring.</li>
		<li>Analyze all conditions to be tested with the same optimized food coloring concentrations.</li>
	</ol>
	</li>
</ol>

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The authors declare that they have no competing financial interests.

We have described a simple but effective protocol for determining taste preference in Drosophila. Versions of this assay are routinely used in experiments to determine the contributions of gustatory receptors (GRs) to perceiving the different qualities (bitter, sweet, sour, salty, and umami) of taste compounds. The Drosophila genome contains approximately 60 genes which encode 68 identified gustatory receptors by alternative splicing8,9. However, other proteins such as ionotropic glutamate re...

Animals use chemosensation to distinguish advantageous conditions apart from disadvantageous conditions. This perception can be critical for such things as determining the best food source, avoiding toxic substances or determining the best mating partner1. Chemosensation is often divided into two sensory components: olfactory senses and gustatory senses. A main distinguishing characteristic of these senses is that olfaction (smell) is used to sample the surrounding gaseous chemical environment while gustation (taste) requires physical contact with a nonvolatile substrate. Both sensory modalities stimulate neurological responses which are processed and decoded in the brain to produce the appropriate attractive or repulsive behavior2. These senses are therefore critical for animal survival.
The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster is a model organism which continues to grow in popularity for use in understanding how insects perceive smell and taste. Fruit flies offer tremendous advantages over other model systems due to the wealth of genetic tools available for the dissection of molecular, cellular, and behavioral pathways. Work over the last 15 years has been particularly instrumental in characterizing the specific cellular identities, neuronal receptors, and signaling mechanisms involved in both smell and taste. Now, the power of Drosophila genetics is being used to further elucidate how these processes are coded at the single neuron and single circuit level3-6. Therefore, assays which provide easily scored readouts of alterations to sensory pathways are vital to the continuing advance of these fields.
While a great deal is known about how olfactory signals are coded and processed in the brain, much less is understood about similar mechanisms in the gustatory pathway. We describe here a protocol which can be used to ascertain taste preference in Drosophila. Drosophila, like mammals, generally prefer sweet tasting compounds as opposed to bitter tasting compounds. Any combination of these food sources can be utilized in this experimental design to determine how known genetic alterations affect taste choice. In addition, pharmacological intervention strategies can similarly be assessed for their effects on animals&#39; taste preference. The ease and flexibility of this assay makes it a useful paradigm for understanding the nature of gustatory perception in Drosophila.

<table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="1031">
	<tbody>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;width:543px;">Blue Food Coloring (Water, Propylene Glycol, FD&#38;C Blue 1 and Red 40, Propylparaben)</td>
			<td style="width:128px;">McCormick</td>
			<td style="width:111px;">N/A</td>
			<td style="width:251px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;">Cryo/Freezer Boxes w/o Dividers</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>03-395-455</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;">Dumont #5 Forceps</td>
			<td>Fine Science Tools</td>
			<td>11251-20</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;">Glacial Acetic Acid</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>BP2401-500</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;">Leica S6 E Stereozoom 0.63x-4.0x microscope</td>
			<td>W. Nuhsbaum, Inc.</td>
			<td>10446294</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;">Petri Dish (100 x 15 mm)</td>
			<td>BD Falcon</td>
			<td>351029</td>
			<td>Reuseable if thoroughly washed and dried</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;">Quick-Snap Microtubes</td>
			<td>Alkali Scientific Inc.</td>
			<td>C3017</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;">Red Food Coloring (Water, Propylene Glycol, FD&#38;C Reds 40 and 3, Propylparaben)</td>
			<td>McCormick</td>
			<td>N/A</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="17">
			<td height="17" style="height:17px;">Sucrose</td>
			<td>IBI Scientific</td>
			<td>IB37160</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
</table>

taste preference assay for adult drosophila

Olfactory and gustatory perception of the environment is vital for animal survival. The most obvious application of these chemosenses is to be able to distinguish good food sources from potentially dangerous food sources. Gustation requires physical contact with a chemical compound which is able to signal through taste receptors that are expressed on the surface of neurons. In insects, these gustatory neurons can be located across the animal's body allowing taste to play an important role in many different behaviors. Insects typically prefer compounds containing sugars, while compounds that are considered bitter tasting are avoided. Given the basic biological importance of taste, there is intense interest in understanding the molecular mechanisms underlying this sensory modality. We describe an adult Drosophila taste assay which reflects the preference of the animals for a given tastant compound. This assay may be applied to animals of any genetic background to examine the taste preference for a desired soluble compound.

Some typical results from taste preference assays are shown below. In most experiments some variation in intensity of abdominal coloring will be seen (Figure 1). Any coloring in the abdomen whether intense or weak is considered a positive ingestion. It is therefore advisable for researchers to score animals while blind to the experimental condition so as to limit any potential biases.
It is also important to cho...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Taste Preference Assay for Adult Drosophila at JoVE.com

Taste Preference Assay for Adult Drosophila

Taste is an important sensory process which facilitates attraction to beneficial substances and avoidance of toxic substances. This protocol describes a simple ingestion assay for determining Drosophila gustatory preference for a given chemical compound.

Taste Preference Assay for Adult Drosophila

Olfactory and gustatory perception of the environment is vital for animal survival.  The most obvious application of these chemosenses is to be able to ...

taste-preference-assay-for-adult-drosophila

Research

JoVE Journal

Neuroscience

9.5K Views.  Indiana University School of Medicine-South Bend. Taste is an important sensory process which facilitates attraction to beneficial substances and avoidance of toxic substances. This protocol describes a simple ingestion assay for determining Drosophila gustatory preference for a given chemical compound.

Video: Taste Preference Assay for Adult Drosophila

Methods to Assay Drosophila Behavior

Drosophila melanogaster, the fruit fly, has been used to study molecular mechanisms of a wide range of human diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular disease and various neurological diseases1. We have optimized simple and robust behavioral assays for determining larval locomotion, adult climbing ability (RING assay), and courtship behaviors of Drosophila. These behavioral assays are widely applicable for studying the role of genetic and environmental factors on fly behavior. Larval crawling ability can be reliably used for determining early stage changes in the crawling abilities of Drosophila larvae and also for examining effect of drugs or human disease genes (in transgenic flies) on their locomotion. The larval crawling assay becomes more applicable if expression or abolition of a gene causes lethality in pupal or adult stages, as these flies do not survive to adulthood where they otherwise could be assessed. This basic assay can also be used in conjunction with bright light or stress to examine additional behavioral responses in Drosophila larvae. Courtship behavior has been widely used to investigate genetic basis of sexual behavior, and can also be used to examine activity and coordination, as well as learning and memory. Drosophila courtship behavior involves the exchange of various sensory stimuli including visual, auditory, and chemosensory signals between males and females that lead to a complex series of well characterized motor behaviors culminating in successful copulation. Traditional adult climbing assays (negative geotaxis) are tedious, labor intensive, and time consuming, with significant variation between different trials2-4. The rapid iterative negative geotaxis (RING) assay5 has many advantages over more widely employed protocols, providing a reproducible, sensitive, and high throughput approach to quantify adult locomotor and negative geotaxis behaviors. In the RING assay, several genotypes or drug treatments can be tested simultaneously using large number of animals, with the high-throughput approach making it more amenable for screening experiments.

Methods to Assay Drosophila Behavior

Drosophila melanogaster is a genetically and behaviorally tractable model system that has been used to understand the molecular and cellular basis of many important biological processes for over a century 1. Drosophila has been well exploited to gain insights into the genetic basis of fly behavior.

Drosophila melanogaster, the fruit fly, has been used to study molecular mechanisms of a wide range of human diseases such as cancer, cardiovascular ...

Drosophila Adult Olfactory Shock Learning

Drosophila have been used in classical conditioning experiments for over 40 years, thus greatly facilitating our understanding of memory, including the elucidation of the molecular mechanisms involved in cognitive diseases1-7. Learning and memory can be assayed in larvae to study the effect of neurodevelopmental genes8-10 and in flies to measure the contribution of adult plasticity genes1-7. Furthermore, the short lifespan of Drosophila facilitates the analysis of genes mediating age-related memory impairment5,11-13. The availability of many inducible promoters that subdivide the Drosophila nervous system makes it possible to determine when and where a gene of interest is required for normal memory as well as relay of different aspects of the reinforcement signal3,4,14,16.
Studying memory in adult Drosophila allows for a detailed analysis of the behavior and circuitry involved and a measurement of long-term memory15-17. The length of the adult stage accommodates longer-term genetic, behavioral, dietary and pharmacological manipulations of memory, in addition to determining the effect of aging and neurodegenerative disease on memory3-6,11-13,15-21.
Classical conditioning is induced by the simultaneous presentation of a neutral odor cue (conditioned stimulus, CS+) and a reinforcement stimulus, e.g., an electric shock or sucrose, (unconditioned stimulus, US), that become associated with one another by the animal1,16. A second conditioned stimulus (CS-) is subsequently presented without the US. During the testing phase, Drosophila are simultaneously presented with CS+ and CS- odors. After the Drosophila are provided time to choose between the odors, the distribution of the animals is recorded. This procedure allows associative aversive or appetitive conditioning to be reliably measured without a bias introduced by the innate preference for either of the conditioned stimuli. Various control experiments are also performed to test whether all genotypes respond normally to odor and reinforcement alone.

Drosophila Adult Olfactory Shock Learning

The method to measure adult Drosophila associative memory is described. The assay is based on the ability of the fly to associate an odor presented with a negative reinforcer (electric shock) and then recall this information at a later time, allowing memory to be measured.

Drosophila have been used in classical conditioning experiments for over 40 years, thus greatly facilitating our understanding of memory, including the ...

Light Preference Assay to Study Innate and Circadian Regulated Photobehavior in Drosophila Larvae

Light acts as environmental signal to control animal behavior at various levels. The Drosophila larval nervous system is used as a unique model to answer basic questions on how light information is processed and shared between rapid and circadian behaviors. Drosophila larvae display a stereotypical avoidance behavior when exposed to light. To investigate light dependent behaviors comparably simple light-dark preference tests can be applied. In vertebrates and arthropods the neural pathways involved in sensing and processing visual inputs partially overlap with those processing photic circadian information. The fascinating question of how the light sensing system and the circadian system interact to keep behavioral outputs coordinated remains largely unexplored. Drosophila is an impacting biological model to approach these questions, due to a small number of neurons in the brain and the availability of genetic tools for neuronal manipulation. The presented light-dark preference assay allows the investigation of a range of visual behaviors including circadian control of phototaxis.

Light Preference Assay to Study Innate and Circadian Regulated Photobehavior in Drosophila Larvae

Here we describe a light-dark preference test for Drosophila larva. This assay provides information about innate and circadian regulation of light sensing and processing photobehavior.

Light acts as environmental signal to control animal behavior at various levels. The Drosophila larval nervous system is used as a unique model to answer ...

A Single-fly Assay for Foraging Behavior in Drosophila

For many animals, hunger promotes changes in the olfactory system in a manner that facilitates the search for appropriate food sources. In this video article, we describe an automated assay to measure the effect of hunger or satiety on olfactory dependent food search behavior in the adult fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. In a light-tight box illuminated by red light that is invisible to fruit flies, a camera linked to custom data acquisition software monitors the position of six flies simultaneously. Each fly is confined to walk in individual arenas containing a food odor at the center. The testing arenas rest on a porous floor that functions to prevent odor accumulation. Latency to locate the odor source, a metric that reflects olfactory sensitivity under different physiological states, is determined by software analysis. Here, we discuss the critical mechanics of running this behavioral paradigm and cover specific issues regarding fly loading, odor contamination, assay temperature, data quality, and statistical analysis.

A Single-fly Assay for Foraging Behavior in Drosophila

In this video article, we describe an automated assay to measure the effect of hunger or satiety on olfactory dependent food search behavior in the adult fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster.

For many animals, hunger promotes changes in the olfactory system in a manner that facilitates the search for appropriate food sources. In this video ...

Membrane Potential Dye Imaging of Ventromedial Hypothalamus Neurons From Adult Mice to Study Glucose Sensing

Studies of neuronal activity are often performed using neurons from rodents less than 2 months of age due to the technical difficulties associated with increasing connective tissue and decreased neuronal viability that occur with age. Here, we describe a methodology for the dissociation of healthy hypothalamic neurons from adult-aged mice. The ability to study neurons from adult-aged mice allows the use of disease models that manifest at a later age and might be more developmentally accurate for certain studies. Fluorescence imaging of dissociated neurons can be used to study the activity of a population of neurons, as opposed to using electrophysiology to study a single neuron. This is particularly useful when studying a heterogeneous neuronal population in which the desired neuronal type is rare such as for hypothalamic glucose sensing neurons. We utilized membrane potential dye imaging of adult ventromedial hypothalamic neurons to study their responses to changes in extracellular glucose. Glucose sensing neurons are believed to play a role in central regulation of energy balance. The ability to study glucose sensing in adult rodents is particularly useful since the predominance of diseases related to dysfunctional energy balance (e.g.&#160;obesity) increase with age.

The activity of single neurons from adult-aged mice can be studied by dissociating neurons from specific brain regions and using fluorescent membrane potential dye imaging. By testing responses to changes in glucose, this technique can be used to study the glucose sensitivity of adult ventromedial hypothalamic neurons.

Studies of neuronal activity are often performed using neurons from rodents less than 2 months of age due to the technical difficulties associated with ...

Electrophysiological Recording From Drosophila Labellar Taste Sensilla

The peripheral taste response of insects can be powerfully investigated with electrophysiological techniques. The method described here allows the researcher to measure gustatory responses directly and quantitatively, reflecting the sensory input that the insect nervous system receives from taste stimuli in its environment. This protocol outlines all key steps in performing this technique. The critical steps in assembling an electrophysiology rig, such as selection of necessary equipment and a suitable environment for recording, are delineated. We also describe how to prepare for recording by making appropriate reference and recording electrodes, and tastant solutions. We describe in detail the method used for preparing the insect by insertion of a glass reference electrode into the fly in order to immobilize the proboscis. We show traces of the electrical impulses fired by taste neurons in response to a sugar and a bitter compound. Aspects of the protocol are technically challenging and we include an extensive description of some common technical challenges that may be encountered, such as lack of signal or excessive noise in the system, and potential solutions. The technique has limitations, such as the inability to deliver temporally complex stimuli, observe background firing immediately prior to stimulus delivery, or use water-insoluble taste compounds conveniently. Despite these limitations, this technique (including minor variations referenced in the protocol) is a standard, broadly accepted procedure for recording Drosophila neuronal responses to taste compounds.

Electrophysiological Recording From Drosophila Labellar Taste Sensilla

This protocol describes extracellular recording of the action potential responses fired by labellar taste neurons in Drosophila.

The peripheral taste response of insects can be powerfully investigated with electrophysiological techniques. The method described here allows the ...

Straightforward Assay for Quantification of Social Avoidance in Drosophila melanogaster

Drosophila melanogaster is an emerging model to study different aspects of social interactions. For example, flies avoid areas previously occupied by stressed conspecifics due to an odorant released during stress known as the Drosophila stress odorant (dSO). Through the use of the T-maze apparatus, one can quantify the avoidance of the dSO by responder flies in a very affordable and robust assay. Conditions necessary to obtain a strong performance are presented here. A stressful experience is necessary for the flies to emit dSO, as well as enough emitter flies to cause a robust avoidance response to the presence of dSO. Genetic background, but not their group size, strongly altered the avoidance of the dSO by the responder flies. Canton-S and Elwood display a higher performance in avoiding the dSO than Oregon and Samarkand strains. This behavioral assay will allow identification of mechanisms underlying this social behavior, and the assessment of the influence of genes and environmental conditions on both emission and avoidance of the dSO. Such an assay can be included in batteries of simple diagnostic tests used to identify social deficiencies of mutants or environmental conditions of interest.

Straightforward Assay for Quantification of Social Avoidance in Drosophila melanogaster

Here, we present a protocol to quantify the avoidance of stressed individuals. This paradigm is powerful yet user-friendly and can be used to assess the influence of genes and environment on one kind of social interaction in Drosophila melanogaster.

Drosophila melanogaster is an emerging model to study different aspects of social interactions. For example, flies avoid areas previously occupied by ...

A Simple One-step Dissection Protocol for Whole-mount Preparation of Adult Drosophila Brains

There is an increasing interest in using Drosophila to model human brain degenerative diseases, map neuronal circuitries in adult brains, and study the molecular and cellular basis of higher brain functions. A whole-mount preparation of adult brains with well-preserved morphology is critical for such whole brain-based studies, but can be technically challenging and time-consuming. This protocol describes an easy-to-learn, one-step dissection approach of an adult fly head in less than 10 s, while keeping the intact brain attached to the rest of the body to facilitate subsequent processing steps. The procedure helps remove most of the eye and tracheal tissues normally associated with the brain that can interfere with the later imaging step, and also places less demand on the quality of the dissecting forceps. Additionally, we describe a simple method that allows convenient flipping of the mounted brain samples on a coverslip, which is important for imaging both sides of the brains with similar signal intensity and quality. As an example of the protocol, we present an analysis of dopaminergic (DA) neurons in adult brains of WT (w1118) flies. The high efficacy of the dissection method makes it particularly useful for large-scale adult brain-based studies in Drosophila.

A Simple One-step Dissection Protocol for Whole-mount Preparation of Adult Drosophila Brains

The adult Drosophila brain is a valuable system for studying neuronal circuitry, higher brain functions, and complex disorders. An efficient method to dissect whole brain tissue from the small fly head will facilitate brain-based studies. Here we describe a simple, one-step dissection protocol of adult brains with well-preserved morphology.

There is an increasing interest in using Drosophila to model human brain degenerative diseases, map neuronal circuitries in adult brains, and study the ...

Novel Assay for Cold Nociception in Drosophila Larvae

How organisms sense and respond to noxious temperatures is still poorly understood. Further, the mechanisms underlying sensitization of the sensory machinery, such as in patients experiencing peripheral neuropathy or injury-induced sensitization, are not well characterized. The genetically tractable Drosophila model has been used to study the cells and genes required for noxious heat detection, which has yielded multiple conserved genes of interest. Little is known however about the cells and receptors important for noxious cold sensing. Although, Drosophila does not survive prolonged exposure to cold temperatures (&#8804;10 &#186;C), and will avoid cool, preferring warmer temperatures in behavioral preference assays, how they sense and possibly avoid noxious cold stimuli has only recently been investigated.
Here we describe and characterize the first noxious cold (&#8804;10 &#186;C) behavioral assay in Drosophila. Using this tool and assay, we show an investigator how to qualitatively and quantitatively assess cold nociceptive behaviors. This can be done under normal/healthy culture conditions, or presumably in the context of disease, injury or sensitization. Further, this assay can be applied to larvae selected for desired genotypes, which might impact thermosensation, pain, or nociceptive sensitization. Given that pain is a highly conserved process, using this assay to further study&#160;thermal nociception will likely glean important understanding of pain processes in other species, including vertebrates.

Novel Assay for Cold Nociception in Drosophila Larvae

Here we demonstrate a novel assay to study cold nociception in Drosophila larvae. This assay utilizes a custom-built Peltier probe capable of applying a focal noxious cold stimulus and results in quantifiable cold-specific behaviors. This technique will allow further cellular and molecular dissection of cold nociception.

How organisms sense and respond to noxious temperatures is still poorly understood. Further, the mechanisms underlying sensitization of the sensory ...

High-throughput Analysis of Locomotor Behavior in the Drosophila Island Assay

Advances in next-generation sequencing technologies contribute to the identification of (candidate) disease genes for movement disorders and other neurological diseases at an increasing speed. However, little is known about the molecular mechanisms that underlie these disorders. The genetic, molecular, and behavioral toolbox of Drosophila melanogaster makes this model organism particularly useful to characterize new disease genes and mechanisms in a high-throughput manner. Nevertheless, high-throughput screens require efficient and reliable assays that, ideally, are cost-effective and allow for the automatized quantification of traits relevant to these disorders. The island assay is a cost-effective and easily set-up method to evaluate Drosophila locomotor behavior. In this assay, flies are thrown onto a platform from a fixed height. This induces an innate motor response that enables the flies to escape from the platform within seconds. At present, quantitative analyses of filmed island assays are done manually, which is a laborious undertaking, particularly when performing large screens.
This manuscript describes the &#34;Drosophila Island Assay&#34; and &#34;Island Assay Analysis&#34; algorithms for&#160;high-throughput, automated data processing and quantification of island assay data. In the setup, a simple webcam connected to a laptop collects an image series of the platform while the assay is performed. The &#34;Drosophila Island Assay&#34; algorithm developed for the open-source software Fiji processes these image series and quantifies, for each experimental condition, the number of flies on the platform over time. The &#34;Island Assay Analysis&#34; script, compatible with the free software R, was developed to automatically process the obtained data and to calculate whether treatments/genotypes are statistically different. This greatly improves the efficiency of the island assay and makes it a powerful readout for basic locomotion and flight behavior. It can thus be applied to large screens investigating fly locomotor ability, Drosophila models of movement disorders, and drug efficacy.

High-throughput Analysis of Locomotor Behavior in the Drosophila Island Assay

The island assay is a relatively new, cost-effective assay that can be used to evaluate the basic locomotor behavior of Drosophila melanogaster. This manuscript describes algorithms for automatic data processing and objective quantification of island assay data, making this assay a sensitive, high-throughput readout for large genetic or pharmacological screens.