Molecular sensors in the taste system of Drosophila

Shrestha, Bhanu; Lee, Youngseok

doi:10.1007/s13258-023-01370-0

Cited by 16 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 114 publications

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“…Drosophila melanogaster is an excellent genetic model organism for studying the cellular and molecular mechanisms of each taste category ( Shrestha and Lee, 2023 ). Similar to mammals, flies can detect sweet, amino acid, bitter, salty, and sour tastants.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular Basis of Hexanoic Acid Taste in Drosophila melanogaster

Pradhan

Shrestha

Lee

2023

Molecules and Cells

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Molecular Basis of Hexanoic Acid Taste in Drosophila melanogaster

Pradhan

Shrestha

Lee

2023

Molecules and Cells

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“…6 Marine Biomedical Institute of Qingdao, School of Pharmacy and Medicine, Ocean University of China, Qingdao, Shandong 266100, China. 7 Center of Cryo-Electron Microscopy, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou 310058, China. 8 CAS Center for Excellence in Molecular Plant Sciences, Institute of Plant Physiology and Ecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200032, China.…”

Section: Acknowledgmentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In insects such as Drosophila , various tastants can also induce taste sensations of sweet, bitter, salty, and sour ( 3 – 5 ). In Drosophila , taste perception is initiated by the recognition of tastant molecules by specific receptors expressed in gustatory receptor neurons, which are located on external taste organs, such as the anterior wing margins, legs, and labellum, as well as on three internal taste organs inside the proboscis ( 5 – 7 ). Among different taste receptor proteins in Drosophila , the gustatory receptors (GRs) play a major role in the sensation of sweet, bitter, and other tastes ( 5 , 7 – 9 ).…”

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confidence: 99%

Structural basis for sugar perception by Drosophila gustatory receptors

Ma,

Hu,

Yang

et al. 2024

Science

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Insects rely on a family of seven-transmembrane proteins called gustatory receptors (GRs) to encode different taste modalities such as sweet and bitter. Here we report structures of Drosophila sweet taste receptors GR43a and GR64a in the apo and sugar-bound states. Both GRs form tetrameric sugar-gated cation channels, composed of one central pore domain (PD) and four peripheral ligand-binding domains (LBDs). Whereas GR43a is specifically activated by the monosaccharide fructose that binds to a narrow pocket in LBD, disaccharides sucrose and maltose selectively activate GR64a by binding to a larger and flatter pocket in LBD. Sugar binding to LBD induces local conformational changes, which are subsequently transferred to PD to cause channel opening. Our studies have revealed structural basis for sugar recognition and activation of GRs.

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“…Sense of taste plays a key factor in determining nourishing foods and avoiding dangerous toxins. Animals' ability to taste is crucial for recognizing beneficial substances in the environment (Shrestha & Lee, 2023). The taste of various macronutrients and micronutrients is required for the regulation of the feeding behavior of the animal (Freeman & Dahanukar, 2015; Delompré et al , 2019).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The taste of vitamin C inDrosophila

2023

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Vitamins are essential micronutrients, but the mechanisms of vitamin chemoreception in animals are poorly understood. Here, we provide evidence that vitamin C doubles starvation resistance and induces egg laying in Drosophila melanogaster. Our behavioral analyses of genetically engineered and anatomically ablated flies show that fruit flies sense vitamin C via sweet-sensing gustatory receptor neurons (GRNs) in the labellum. Using a behavioral screen and in vivo electrophysiological analyses of ionotropic receptors (IRs) and sweet-sensing gustatory receptors (GRs), we find that two broadly tuned IRs (i.e., IR25a and IR76b) and five GRs (i.e., GR5a, GR61a, GR64b, GR64c, and GR64e) are essential for vitamin C detection. Thus, vitamin C is directly detected by the fly labellum and requires at least two distinct receptor types. Next, we expand our electrophysiological study to test attractive tastants such as sugars, carboxylic acids, and glycerol. Our analysis elucidates the molecular basis of chemoreception in sweet-sensing GRNs.

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Molecular sensors in the taste system of Drosophila

Cited by 16 publications

References 114 publications

Molecular Basis of Hexanoic Acid Taste in Drosophila melanogaster

Molecular Basis of Hexanoic Acid Taste in Drosophila melanogaster

Structural basis for sugar perception by Drosophila gustatory receptors

The taste of vitamin C inDrosophila

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