Abstract
Abstract The greatest challenge for neuroscience at present is to address how sensory coding is represented from sensory input to the higher brain centers, where neural activity and information integration is computed in order to elicit appropriate behavior responses. In Drosophila, most odorants elicit either attraction or avoidance, depending on their concentration as well as their identity. Olfactory information is received from olfactory receptor neurons (ORNs) and then transferred to the two higher brain centers - mushroom bodies (MBs) and lateral horns (LHs) - via secondary olfactory neurons - projection neurons (PNs). To figure out the function of MBs in olfactory processing, we specifically disrupted neurotransmitter outputs from different lobes of the MBs and examined the resulting avoidance and attraction behavior after exposure to two different repellents - methyl cyclohexanol (MCH) and octanol (OCT) and one attraction odorant- apple cider vinegar (ACV). We found that neurotransmitter outputs from α’/β’ lobes in MBs are necessary for avoidance behavior at low concentrations of repellents but not at high concentrations. We also demonstrated that α/β lobes in MBs is necessary for attraction behavior. These findings suggested that the avoidance and attraction olfactory information may be separately processed in the different lobes of MBs in Drosophila brain.