The gut microbiome promotes locomotion of Drosophila larvae via octopamine signaling  

作　　者：Juncheng Hu Ran Bi Yuxuan Luo Kaihong Wu Shan Jin Zhihua Liu Yicong Jia Chuan-Xi Mao 

机构地区：[1]State Key Laboratory of Biocatalysis and Enzyme Engineering,School of Life Sciences,Hubei University,Wuhan,China

出　　处：《Insect Science》2025年第1期277-289,共13页昆虫科学(英文版)

基　　金：upported by grants from the National Science Foundation of China(31500839 to C.M.and 81871121 to S.J.).

摘　　要：The gut microbiome is a key partner of animals,influencing various aspects of their physiology and behaviors.Among the diverse behaviors regulated by the gut microbiome,locomotion is vital for survival and reproduction,although the underlying mechanisms remain unclear.Here,we reveal that the gut microbiome modulates the locomotor behavior of Drosophila larvae via a specific neuronal type in the brain.The crawling speed of germ-free(GF)larvae was significantly reduced compared to the conventionally reared larvae,while feeding and excretion behaviors were unaffected.Recolonization with Acetobacter and Lactobacillus can fully and partially rescue the locomotor defects in GF larvae,respectively,probably due to the highest abundance of Acetobacter as a symbiotic bacterium in the larval gut,followed by Lactobacillus.Moreover,the gut microbiome promoted larval locomotion,not by nutrition,but rather by enhancing the brain levels of tyrosine decarboxylase 2(Tdc2),which is an enzyme that synthesizes octopamine(OA).Overexpression of Tdc2 rescued locomotion ability in GF larvae.These findings together demonstrate that the gut microbiome specifically modulates larval locomotor behavior through the OA signaling pathway,revealing a new mechanism underlying larval locomotion regulated by the gut microbiome.

关 键 词：Drosophila melanogaster larval locomotion MICROBIOME octopamine signaling 

分 类 号：Q96[生物学—昆虫学]