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The olfactory circuit of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster

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Abstract

The olfactory circuit of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster has emerged in recent years as an excellent paradigm for studying the principles and mechanisms of information processing in neuronal circuits. We discuss here the organizational principles of the olfactory circuit that make it an attractive model for experimental manipulations, the lessons that have been learned, and future challenges.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA

    Liang Liang & Liqun Luo

  2. Department of Applied Physics, Stanford University, Stanford, CA, 94305, USA

    Liang Liang

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  1. Liang Liang
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  2. Liqun Luo
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Correspondence to Liqun Luo.

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Dr. Luo Liqun is a Professor in the Department of Biology at Stanford University, and an Investigator of the Howard Hughes Medical Institute. Dr. Luo grew up in Shanghai, China, and earned his bachelor’s degree in molecular biology from the University of Science and Technology of China. He was a CUSBEA fellow of Class VI (1987). After obtaining his Ph.D. in Brandeis University, and postdoctoral training at the University of California, San Francisco, Dr. Luo started his own lab in Stanford in December, 1996. Together with his postdoctoral fellows and graduate students, Dr. Luo studies the logic of organization and assembly of neuronal circuits using genetic tools. They have developed mosaic marking systems and used it to study how signals are transduced from cell surface receptors to the cytoskeleton, how neuronal processes are pruned, and how neuronal circuits are organized and built. Dr. Luo teaches to Stanford undergraduate and graduate students “Molecular and Cellular Neurobiology” and “Exploring Neural Circuits”. He is the recipient of several awards, including the Society for Neuroscience Young Investigator Award and the McKnight Technological Innovation in Neuroscience Award.

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Liang, L., Luo, L. The olfactory circuit of the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. Sci. China Life Sci. 53, 472–484 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11427-010-0099-z

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