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Synaptic organization of lobula plate tangential cells in Drosophila : γ‐Aminobutyric acid receptors and chemical release sites
Author(s) -
Raghu Shamprasad Varija,
Joesch Maximilian,
Borst Alexander,
Reiff Dierk F.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
journal of comparative neurology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.855
H-Index - 209
eISSN - 1096-9861
pISSN - 0021-9967
DOI - 10.1002/cne.21319
Subject(s) - biology , postsynaptic potential , inhibitory postsynaptic potential , gabaergic , neuroscience , drosophila melanogaster , axon , microbiology and biotechnology , gamma aminobutyric acid , receptor , genetics , gene
In flies, the large tangential cells of the lobula plate represent an important processing center for visual navigation based on optic flow. Although the visual response properties of these cells have been well studied in blowflies, information on their synaptic organization is mostly lacking. Here we study the distribution of presynaptic release and postsynaptic inhibitory sites in the same set of cells in Drosophila melanogaster . By making use of transgenic tools and immunohistochemistry, our results suggest that HS and VS cells of Drosophila express γ‐aminobutyric acid (GABA) receptors in their dendritic region within the lobula plate, thus being postsynaptic to inhibitory input there. At their axon terminals in the protocerebrum, both cell types express synaptobrevin, suggesting the presence of presynaptic specializations there. HS‐ and VS‐cell terminals additionally show evidence for postsynaptic GABAergic input, superimposed on this synaptic polarity. Our findings are in line with the general circuit for visual motion detection and receptive field properties as postulated from electrophysiological and optical recordings in blowflies, suggesting a similar functional organization of lobula plate tangential cells in the two species. J. Comp. Neurol. 502:598–610, 2007. © 2007 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.