Temporally dimorphic recruitment of dopamine neurons into stress response circuitry in Drosophila

Many studies have pointed to vulnerability to stress and stress-related pathologies at different timepoints during an individual’s lifespan. These sensitive windows are usually during periods of neural development, such as embryogenesis, infancy, and adolescence. It is critical to understand how neural circuitry may change as an individual ages in ways that could affect susceptibility to stress. Here we compare two stages in Drosophila melanogaster: sexual immaturity and sexual maturity. We used the genetic resources available in Drosophila to manipulate pre- and post-synaptic dopamine signaling in sexually immature and mature animals that were then assayed for heart rate and locomotor behavior in response to starvation and oxidative stress. Our results show significant differences in the stress response for sexually immature and mature animals for heart rate, periods of high mobility, mean velocity, and several other parameters of locomotor behavior. Our data show that dopamine neurons are differentially recruited into the stress response circuitry for sexually immature and mature individuals. By observing behaviors that have been previously shown in mammalian models to be affected by stress and altered in models of affective disorders, we provide a genetically tractable model for development and maintenance of the stress response circuitry during sexual maturation.