Title

Circadian rhythm of temperature preference and its neural control in Drosophila

UMMS Affiliation

Department of Neurobiology; Emery Lab; Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Neuroscience Program

Publication Date

10-9-2012

Document Type

Article

Subjects

Drosophila; Body Temperature; Circadian Rhythm

Disciplines

Behavioral Neurobiology

Abstract

A daily body temperature rhythm (BTR) is critical for the maintenance of homeostasis in mammals. Whereas mammals use internal energy to regulate body temperature, ectotherms typically regulate body temperature behaviorally [1]. Some ectotherms maintain homeostasis via a daily temperature preference rhythm (TPR) [2], but the underlying mechanisms are largely unknown. Here, we show that Drosophila exhibit a daily circadian clock-dependent TPR that resembles mammalian BTR. Pacemaker neurons critical for locomotor activity are not necessary for TPR; instead, the dorsal neuron 2 s (DN2s), whose function was previously unknown, is sufficient. This indicates that TPR, like BTR, is controlled independently from locomotor activity. Therefore, the mechanisms controlling temperature fluctuations in fly TPR and mammalian BTR may share parallel features. Taken together, our results reveal the existence of a novel DN2-based circadian neural circuit that specifically regulates TPR; thus, understanding the mechanisms of TPR will shed new light on the function and neural control of circadian rhythms.

DOI of Published Version

10.1016/j.cub.2012.08.006

Source

Curr Biol. 2012 Oct 9;22(19):1851-7. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2012.08.006. Link to article on publisher's site

Journal/Book/Conference Title

Current biology : CB

Comments

Co-author Jinli Ling is a doctoral student in the Neuroscience Program in the Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences (GSBS) at UMass Medical School.

Related Resources

Link to Article in PubMed

PubMed ID

22981774

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