Ih current is necessary to maintain normal dopamine fluctuations and sleep consolidation in drosophila
Entity
UAM. Departamento de BiologíaPublisher
Public Library of ScienceDate
2012-05-04Citation
10.1371/journal.pone.0036477
Plos One 7.5 (2012): e36477
ISSN
1932-6203 (online)DOI
10.1371/journal.pone.0036477Funded by
This work was supported by Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion grant BFU2008-04683 to LT, Comunidad Autónoma de Madrid grant P-SEM-0255-2006 to IC, and BFU2010-10981-E to ETProject
Comunidad de Madrid. S2006/SEM-0255/OPFACTOSENSESubjects
Behavior, Animal; Circadian Rhythm; Darkness; Dopamine; Drosophila melanogaster; Sleep; Biología y Biomedicina / BiologíaRights
© 2012 Gonzalo-Gomez et al.Abstract
HCN channels are becoming pharmacological targets mainly in cardiac diseases. But apart from their well-known role in heart pacemaking, these channels are widely expressed in the nervous system where they contribute to the neuron firing pattern. Consequently, abolishing Ih current might have detrimental consequences in a big repertoire of behavioral traits. Several studies in mammals have identified the Ih current as an important determinant of the firing activity of dopaminergic neurons, and recent evidences link alterations in this current to various dopamine-related disorders. We used the model organism Drosophila melanogaster to investigate how lack of Ih current affects dopamine levels and the behavioral consequences in the sleep:activity pattern. Unlike mammals, in Drosophila there is only one gene encoding HCN channels. We generated a deficiency of the DmIh core gene region and measured, by HPLC, levels of dopamine. Our data demonstrate daily variations of dopamine in wild-type fly heads. Lack of Ih current dramatically alters dopamine pattern, but different mechanisms seem to operate during light and dark conditions. Behaviorally, DmIh mutant flies display alterations in the rest:activity pattern, and altered circadian rhythms. Our data strongly suggest that Ih current is necessary to prevent dopamine overproduction at dark, while light input allows cycling of dopamine in an Ih current dependent manner. Moreover, lack of Ih current results in behavioral defects that are consistent with altered dopamine levels
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Google Scholar:Gonzalo-Gomez, Alicia
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Turiégano Marcos, Enrique
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León Álvarez, Yolanda
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Molina Balsa, Isabel
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Torroja Fungairiño, Laura
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Canal, Inmaculada
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