Name: using linear agarose channels to study drosophila larval crawling behavior
Uploaded: 2016-11-26T14:00:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Using Linear Agarose Channels to Study Drosophila Larval Crawling Behavior at JoVE.com

We would like to thank Chris Wreden and Michelle Bland for comments on the manuscript and for technical help.

1. Preparation of Larvae
<ol>
	<li>One week before recording behavior, set up a cross (minimum of 25 virgins and 5 males). Maintain all crosses and progeny at 25 &#176;C. 
	NOTE: The temperature of culture conditions can be altered, but the time line described below would need to be adjusted to account for changes in developmental speed.</li>
	<li>5 days before recording, first thing in the morning, place the cross into a collection cage with an agar/juice cap and a dab (0.5-1 ml) of yeast paste in the center of t...

<ol>
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A microfluidic device was built to make linear agarose channels that can accommodate Drosophila larvae (Figure 1). When Drosophila larvae are placed in these linear agarose channels their behavioral repertoire is limited to crawling, which allows for detailed observation of the dynamics of larval structures over the crawl cycle.
A successful recording occurs when a larva perform a series of rhythmic strides (Figure 3). If this does not occur,...

The overall goal of this method is to study Drosophila larval crawling in detail. Experiments on locomotion have played an important role in developing and testing theories on motor control2. Traditionally locomotion has been studied in aquatic animals (e.g., leech, lamprey, tadpole)3. The repetitive nature of locomotion in these animals has allowed for the study of rhythmogenesis, for analysis of the biophysical events driving locomotion, and for monitoring the neural firing patterns that accompany locomotion.
The use of Drosophila larvae for studies of locomotion presents a unique combination of advantages over other model systems: facile genetics, well-characterized development, a body that is optically clear at first and second instars, and an ongoing transmission electron microscopic reconstruction of the entire nervous system4-6. However, Drosophila larval locomotion on flat open surfaces is somewhat complex including pauses, turns, and meandering crawls7. This publication presents a method to use linear agarose channels to guide Drosophila larval locomotor behavior such that larvae perform sustained, straight, rhythmic crawling behavior.
Studying Drosophila larval behavior in agarose channels, instead of behavior on flat open surfaces, has several advantages. First, it allows researchers to specifically select crawling behavior from the many movements that are part of the larval behavioral repertoire. Second, by adjusting the width of the channel versus the larval body size, crawling speed can be adjusted. Third, channels allow for the larva to be viewed from dorsal, ventral, or lateral side depending on how the larva is loaded and oriented within the channel. This versatility in larval orientation allows for any structure of interest to be continually visible during crawling. Fourth, channels are amenable for use with a wide variety of microscopes and objectives. For example, linear channels can be used for low-resolution imaging on bright-field stereoscopes and/or for high-resolution imaging on spinning-disc confocal microscopes1. Fifth, this method can be used in combination with optogenetic/thermogenetic neuronal manipulations in any genetic background. Finally, because both the larval body (at first and second instars) and agarose channels are optically clear, channels can be used when studying the dynamic movements, or changes in fluorescent intensity of larval structures labeled by genetically-encoded fluorescent probes.
The method described is appropriate for detailed kinematic studies of first and second instar Drosophila larval behavior. This publication analyzes the dynamic changes in fluorescent intensity of the CNS during forward larval crawling to demonstrate the use of channels and as a precursor to neuronal calcium imaging.

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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">6 oz square Drosophila bottle</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Scimart</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">DR-103</td>
			<td style="width:212px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">agar</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">sigma</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A1296</td>
			<td></td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">sucrose</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">sigma</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">S9378</td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">apple juice</td>
			<td></td>
			<td></td>
			<td>not from concentrate</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">Tegosept</td>
			<td>Fisher</td>
			<td>T2300</td>
			<td>methyl-p-hydroxybenzoate</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">35 x 10 mm round petri dish</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Fisher</td>
			<td align="right">351008</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">baker&#39;s yeast</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">PDMS casting mold</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">FlowJem</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td>can be requested from authors</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">isopropyl alcohol</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Fisher</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A417-1</td>
			<td></td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">laboratory wipes</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Fisher</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">06-666-11</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">canned air</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Fisher</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">18-431</td>
			<td></td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">10 cm petri dish</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">BioPioneer</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">GS82-1473-001</td>
			<td></td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">agarose</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Fisher</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">50-444-176</td>
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			<td style="width:119px;">12-640</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">forceps</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">FST</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">11241-40</td>
			<td></td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">22 x 40 cover glass, #1.5</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Fisher</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">50-365-605</td>
			<td></td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">Fiji (version 1.51d)</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">NIH</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td>fiji.sc</td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">Excel 2016</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Microsoft</td>
			<td></td>
			<td>www.microsoftstore.com</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:211px;">MATLAB R2016</td>
			<td style="width:101px;">Mathworks</td>
			<td style="width:119px;"></td>
			<td>www.mathworks.com</td>
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using linear agarose channels to study drosophila larval crawling behavior

Drosophila larval crawling is emerging as a powerful model to study neural control of sensorimotor behavior. However, larval crawling behavior on flat open surfaces is complex,&#160;including: pausing, turning, and meandering. This complexity in the repertoire of movement hinders detailed analysis of the events occurring during a single crawl stride cycle. To overcome this obstacle, linear agarose channels were made that constrain larval behavior to straight, sustained, rhythmic crawling. In principle, because agarose channels and the Drosophila larval body are both optically clear, the movement of larval structures labeled by genetically-encoded fluorescent probes can be monitored in intact, freely-moving larvae. In the past, larvae were placed in linear channels and crawling at the level of whole organism, segment, and muscle were analyzed1. In the future, larvae crawling in channels can be used for calcium imaging to monitor neuronal activity. Moreover, these methods can be used with larvae of any genotype and with any researcher-designed channel. Thus the protocol presented below is widely applicable for studies using the Drosophila larva as a model to understand motor control.

This article describes a method for guiding Drosophila larval behavior using agarose channels and for measuring the dynamics of larval structures over a crawl cycle. Larvae in linear channels perform sustained bouts of rhythmic crawling (Figure 3). Because both larvae and channels are optically clear, channels can be used with larvae expressing fluorescent probes expressed in any structure of interest. We recorded larvae expressing GFP in all neurons (elav-Ga...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Using Linear Agarose Channels to Study Drosophila Larval Crawling Behavior at JoVE.com

Using Linear Agarose Channels to Study Drosophila Larval Crawling Behavior

The Drosophila larva is a powerful model system to study neural control of behavior. This publication describes the use of linear agarose channels to elicit sustained bouts of linear crawling and methods to quantify the dynamics of larval structures during repetitive crawling behavior.

Using Linear Agarose Channels to Study Drosophila Larval Crawling Behavior

Drosophila larval crawling is emerging as a powerful model to study neural control of sensorimotor behavior. However, larval crawling behavior on flat ...

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