Dendrite intercalation between epidermal cells tunes nociceptor sensitivity to mechanical stimuli in Drosophila larvae.

ABSTRACT: An animal's skin provides a first point of contact with the sensory environment, including noxious cues that elicit protective behavioral responses. Nociceptive somatosensory neurons densely innervate and intimately interact with epidermal cells to receive these cues, however the mechanisms by which epidermal interactions shape processing of noxious inputs is still poorly understood. Here, we identify a role for dendrite intercalation between epidermal cells in tuning sensitivity of Drosophila larvae to noxious mechanical stimuli. In wild-type larvae, dendrites of nociceptive class IV da neurons intercalate between epidermal cells at apodemes, which function as body wall muscle attachment sites, but not at other sites in the epidermis. From a genetic screen we identified miR-14 as a regula

SUBMITTER: Luedke KP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11075839 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature