Details

Autor(en) / Beteiligte

• Bjordal, Marianne
• Arquier, Nathalie
• Kniazeff, Julie
• Pin, Jean Philippe
• Léopold, Pierre

Titel

Sensing of Amino Acids in a Dopaminergic Circuitry Promotes Rejection of an Incomplete Diet in Drosophila

Ist Teil von

• Cell, 2014-01, Vol.156 (3), p.510-521

Ort / Verlag

United States: Elsevier Inc

Erscheinungsjahr

2014

Quelle

MEDLINE

Beschreibungen/Notizen

• The brain is the central organizer of food intake, matching the quality and quantity of the food sources with organismal needs. To ensure appropriate amino acid balance, many species reject a diet lacking one or several essential amino acids (EAAs) and seek out a better food source. Here, we show that, in Drosophila larvae, this behavior relies on innate sensing of amino acids in dopaminergic (DA) neurons of the brain. We demonstrate that the amino acid sensor GCN2 acts upstream of GABA signaling in DA neurons to promote avoidance of the EAA-deficient diet. Using real-time calcium imaging in larval brains, we show that amino acid imbalance induces a rapid and reversible activation of three DA neurons that are necessary and sufficient for food rejection. Taken together, these data identify a central amino-acid-sensing mechanism operating in specific DA neurons and controlling food intake. [Display omitted] •Drosophila larvae reject a diet imbalanced in essential amino acids (EAAs)•EAA sensing takes place in three brain dopaminergic (DA) neurons•The GCN2 kinase acts as an amino acid sensor in DA neurons•GCN2 activation inhibits GABA signaling, resulting in DA neuron activation A small subset of dopaminergic neurons in the Drosophila larva CNS receives input from the amino acid sensor GCN2 to enable rejection of food lacking nutrient quality.