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J Neurophysiol 102: 875-885, 2009. First published May 27, 2009; doi:10.1152/jn.00073.2009
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A Novel Neuronal Pathway for Visually Guided Escape in Drosophila melanogaster

Haleh Fotowat1,*, Amir Fayyazuddin2,*, Hugo J. Bellen1,2,3,4 and Fabrizio Gabbiani1,5

1Department of Neuroscience, 2Department of Molecular and Human Genetics, 3Howard Hughes Medical Institute, and 4Program in Developmental Biology, Baylor College of Medicine; and 5Computational and Applied Mathematics, Rice University, Houston, Texas

Submitted 23 January 2009; accepted in final form 25 May 2009

Drosophila melanogaster exhibits a robust escape response to objects approaching on a collision course. Although a pair of large command interneurons called the giant fibers (GFs) have been postulated to trigger such behaviors, their role has not been directly demonstrated. Here, we show that escape from visual stimuli like those generated by approaching predators does not rely on the activation of the GFs and consists of a more complex and less stereotyped motor sequence than that evoked by the GFs. Instead, the timing of escape is tightly correlated with the activity of previously undescribed descending interneurons that signal a threshold angular size of the approaching object. The activity pattern of these interneurons shares features with those of visual escape circuits of several species, including pigeons, frogs, and locusts, and may therefore have evolved under similar constraints. These results show that visually evoked escapes in Drosophila can rely on at least two descending neuronal pathways: the GFs and the novel pathway we characterize electrophysiologically. These pathways exhibit very different patterns of sensory activity and are associated with two distinct motor programs.

Address for reprint requests and other correspondence: F. Gabbiani, Department of Neuroscience, Room S557, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Houston, TX 77030 (E-mail: gabbiani{at}bcm.edu) or A. Fayyazuddin, Dart Neuroscience, 7473 Lusk Blvd, San Diego, CA 92121 (E-mail: afayyazuddin{at}dartneuroscience.com)






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