Behavioural responses and long chain fatty acides preferences in Drosophila melanogaster
type: Dataset
description: Fatty-acids (FAs) are crucial for animal survival and reproduction since these molecules are involved in many metabolic pathways and constitute a substantial store of energy. Despite the strong relationship established between excessive FA consumption and severe human etiologies (obesity, cancer, vascular diseases), our knowledge of the mechanisms underlying FA perception and preference is limited particularly in invertebrates. This is one of the reasons why we decided to investigate, during our PhD thesis, the perception of long-chain FAs (C14:0, C16:0, C18:0, C18:1, C18:2, C18:3), using the model species Drosophila melanogaster. We have also attempted to characterize some of the biological factors involved in the modulation of this response. Our behavioral tests, carried both on individuals and groups of the two wild-type strains Dijon2000 (Di2) and Canton-S, revealed that larvae are able to distinguish these FAs. More precisely, we observed that larvae are attracted by unsaturated FAs and strongly repulsed and/or stressed by saturated FAs. The latter compounds also induce a strong behavioral reaction in groups of larvae resulting into a long-lasting aggregation figure. Another reason to study FAs is their structural proximity with cuticular hydrocarbons which act as sex pheromones in adults. Therefore, we measured the behavioral response of mutants for the desat1 and CheB42a genes, both of which are involved in the perception and/or discrimination of these pheromones. The fact that mutant desat1 larvae do not show aggregation behavior suggests that they have an abnormal perception or reaction to saturated FAs. We then targeted genetic alteration of desat1 using drivers (made with different regulatory regions of desat1) combined with a transgene carrying the interferential RNA of desat1. When targeting a specific brain region, we found that larvae do not properly react to C18:0. This result is coherent with the defect described above. On the other hand, larvae car…
landing page: https://theses.hal.science/tel-00704984
identifier: NNT: 2011DIJOS076
keyword: acides-gras
keyword: adultes
keyword: adults
keyword: behaviour
keyword: comportement
keyword: drosophila-melanogaster
keyword: fatty-acids
keyword: genes
keyword: infoeu-reposemanticsdoctoralthesis
keyword: larva
keyword: larves
keyword: sdvbalife-sciences-q-bioanimal-biology
keyword: sdvsalife-sciences-q-bioagricultural-sciences
keyword: theses
issued: 2026-05-16T00:10:56.701901
modified: 2026-05-16T00:10:56.701907
language: fr
contact point: Organization
  fn: CCSD

test_moissonnage_selune
type: Agent

Behavioural responses and long chain fatty acides preferences in Drosophila melanogaster
type: Distribution
format: HTML
access URL: https://theses.hal.science/tel-00704984
issued: 2026-05-16T00:10:56.832186
modified: 2026-05-16T00:10:56.655971