Dataset Information

Nutrient Sensor in the Brain Directs the Action of the Brain-Gut Axis in Drosophila.

ABSTRACT: Animals can detect and consume nutritive sugars without the influence of taste. However, the identity of the taste-independent nutrient sensor and the mechanism by which animals respond to the nutritional value of sugar are unclear. Here, we report that six neurosecretory cells in the Drosophila brain that produce Diuretic hormone 44 (Dh44), a homolog of the mammalian corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), were specifically activated by nutritive sugars. Flies in which the activity of these neurons or the expression of Dh44 was disrupted failed to select nutritive sugars. Manipulation of the function of Dh44 receptors had a similar effect. Notably, artificial activation of Dh44 receptor-1 neurons resulted in proboscis extensions and frequent episodes of excretion. Conversely, reduced Dh44 activity led to decreased excretion. Together, these actions facilitate ingestion and digestion of nutritive foods. We propose that the Dh44 system directs the detection and consumption of nutritive sugars through a positive feedback loop.

SUBMITTER: Dus M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4697866 | biostudies-literature | 2015 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Publications

Nutrient Sensor in the Brain Directs the Action of the Brain-Gut Axis in Drosophila.

Dus Monica M Lai Jason Sih-Yu JS Gunapala Keith M KM Min Soohong S Tayler Timothy D TD Hergarden Anne C AC Geraud Eliot E Joseph Christina M CM Suh Greg S B GS

Neuron 20150611 1

Animals can detect and consume nutritive sugars without the influence of taste. However, the identity of the taste-independent nutrient sensor and the mechanism by which animals respond to the nutritional value of sugar are unclear. Here, we report that six neurosecretory cells in the Drosophila brain that produce Diuretic hormone 44 (Dh44), a homolog of the mammalian corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH), were specifically activated by nutritive sugars. Flies in which the activity of these neur ...[more]

PMID: 26074004

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Project description:Drosophila melanogaster gut microbes play important roles in host nutritional physiology. However, these associations are often indirect, and studies typically are in the context of specialized nutritional conditions, making it difficult to discern how microbiome-mediated impacts translate to physiologically relevant conditions, in the laboratory or nature. In this study, we quantified changes in dietary nutrients due to D. melanogaster gut bacteria on three artificial diets and a natural diet of grapes. We show that under all four diet conditions, bacteria altered the protein, carbohydrates, and moisture of the food substrate. An in-depth analysis of one diet revealed that bacteria also increased the levels of tryptophan, an essential amino acid encountered scarcely in nature. These nutrient changes result in an increased protein-to-carbohydrate (P:C) ratio in all diets, which we hypothesized to be a significant determinant of microbiome-mediated host nutritional physiology. To test this, we compared life history traits of axenic flies reared on the three artificial diets with increased P:C ratios or continuous bacterial inoculation. We found that while on some diets, an environment of nutritional plenitude had impacts on life history, it did not fully explain all microbiome-associated phenotypes. This suggests that other factors, such as micronutrients and feeding behavior, likely also contribute to life history traits in a diet-dependent manner. Thus, while some bacterial impacts on nutrition occur across diets, others are dictated by unique dietary environments, highlighting the importance of diet-microbiome interactions in D. melanogaster nutritional physiology.IMPORTANCE Both in the laboratory and in nature, D. melanogaster-associated microbes serve as nutritional effectors, either through the production of metabolites or as direct sources of protein biomass. The relationship between the microbiome and the resulting host nutritional physiology is significantly impacted by diet composition, yet studies involving D. melanogaster are performed using a wide range of artificial diets, making it difficult to discern which aspects of host-microbe interactions may be universal or diet dependent. In this study, we utilized three standard D. melanogaster diets and a natural grape diet to form a comprehensive understanding of the quantifiable nutritional changes mediated by the host microbial community. We then altered these artificial diets based on the observed microbe-mediated changes to demonstrate their potential to influence host physiology, allowing us to identify nutritional factors whose effects were either universal for the three artificial diets or dependent on host diet composition.

Dataset Information

Nutrient Sensor in the Brain Directs the Action of the Brain-Gut Axis in Drosophila.

Publications

Nutrient Sensor in the Brain Directs the Action of the Brain-Gut Axis in Drosophila.

Similar Datasets

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