Differentiation of Theta Visual Motion from Fourier Motion Requires LC16 and R18C12 Neurons in Drosophila
Xiaoxiao Ji,
Deliang Yuan,
Hongying Wei,
Yaxin Cheng,
Xinwei Wang,
Jihua Yang,
Pengbo Hu,
Julia Yvonne Gestrich,
Li Liu,
Yan Zhu
Affiliations
Xiaoxiao Ji
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
Deliang Yuan
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
Hongying Wei
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
Yaxin Cheng
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
Xinwei Wang
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
Jihua Yang
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
Pengbo Hu
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
Julia Yvonne Gestrich
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China
Li Liu
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China; CAS Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; Corresponding author
Yan Zhu
State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Science, CAS Center for Excellence in Biomacromolecules, Institute of Biophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 15 Datun Road, Chaoyang District, Beijing 100101, P. R. China; College of Life Sciences, University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, P. R. China; Corresponding author
Summary: Many animals perceive features of higher-order visual motion that are beyond the spatiotemporal correlations of luminance defined in first-order motion. Although the neural mechanisms of first-order motion detection have become understood in recent years, those underlying higher-order motion perception remain unclear. Here, we established a paradigm to assess the detection of theta motion—a type of higher-order motion—in freely walking Drosophila. Behavioral screening using this paradigm identified two clusters of neurons in the central brain, designated as R18C12, which were required for perception of theta motion but not for first-order motion. Furthermore, theta motion-activated R18C12 neurons were structurally and functionally located downstream of visual projection neurons in lobula, lobula columnar cells LC16, which activated R18C12 neurons via interactions of acetylcholine (ACh) and muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAChRs). The current study provides new insights into LC neurons and the neuronal mechanisms underlying visual information processing in complex natural scenes. : Biological Sciences; Neuroscience; Molecular Neuroscience; Sensory Neuroscience Subject Areas: Biological Sciences, Neuroscience, Molecular Neuroscience, Sensory Neuroscience