%0 Journal Article
%T G¦Áo Is Required for L-Canavanine Detection in Drosophila
%A Isabelle Devambez
%A Moutaz Ali Agha
%A Christian Mitri
%A Jo£¿l Bockaert
%A Marie-Laure Parmentier
%A Fr¨¦d¨¦ric Marion-Poll
%A Yves Grau
%A Laurent Soustelle
%J PLOS ONE
%D 2013
%I Public Library of Science (PLoS)
%R 10.1371/journal.pone.0063484
%X Taste is an essential sense for the survival of most organisms. In insects, taste is particularly important as it allows to detect and avoid ingesting many plant toxins, such as L-canavanine. We previously showed that L-canavanine is toxic for Drosophila melanogaster and that flies are able to detect this toxin in the food. L-canavanine is a ligand of DmXR, a variant G-protein coupled receptor (GPCR) belonging to the metabotropic glutamate receptor subfamily that is expressed in bitter-sensitive taste neurons of Drosophila. To transduce the signal intracellularly, GPCR activate heterotrimeric G proteins constituted of ¦Á, ¦Â and ¦Ã subunits. The aim of this study was to identify which G¦Á protein was required for L-canavanine detection in Drosophila. By using a pharmacological approach, we first demonstrated that DmXR has the best coupling with G¦Áo protein subtype. Then, by using genetic, behavioral assays and electrophysiology, we found that G¦Áo47A is required in bitter-sensitive taste neurons for L-canavanine sensitivity. In conclusion, our study revealed that G¦Áo47A plays a crucial role in L-canavanine detection.
%U http://www.plosone.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0063484