Excessive energy expenditure due to acute physical restraint disrupts Drosophila motivational feeding response.

ABSTRACT: To study the behavior of Drosophila, it is often necessary to restrain and mount individual flies. This requires removal from food, additional handling, anesthesia, and physical restraint. We find a strong positive correlation between the length of time flies are mounted and their subsequent reflexive feeding response, where one hour of mounting is the approximate motivational equivalent to ten hours of fasting. In an attempt to explain this correlation, we rule out anesthesia side-effects, handling, additional fasting, and desiccation. We use respirometric and metabolic techniques coupled with behavioral video scoring to assess energy expenditure in mounted and free flies. We isolate a specific behavior capable of exerting large amounts of energy in mounted flies and identify it as an att

SUBMITTER: Gordon J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8683507 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature