LC10 – the neuron that tracks fruit flies
Friday, July 20, 2018 - 08:01
in Biology & Nature
Many animals rely on vision to detect, locate, and track moving objects. Male Drosophila fruit flies primarily use visual cues to stay close to a female and to direct their courtship song towards her. Scientists from the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology in Martinsried and the Janelia Research Campus (USA) now described the nerve cells, which allow the detection and tracking of a moving female. The results suggest that these LC10 cells constitute an essential pathway to relay visual information that is necessary for efficient courtship in fruit flies.