Morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of Drosophila larvae
Sensory perception is the ability through which an organism is able to process sensory stimuli from the environment. This stimulus is transmitted from the peripheral sensory organs to the central nervous system, where it is interpreted. Drosophila melanogaster larvae possess peripheral sense organs...
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eLife Sciences Publications Ltd
2025-06-01
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| author | Vincent Richter Anna Rist Georg Kislinger Michael Laumann Andreas Schoofs Anton Miroschnikow Michael J Pankratz Albert Cardona Andreas S Thum |
| author_facet | Vincent Richter Anna Rist Georg Kislinger Michael Laumann Andreas Schoofs Anton Miroschnikow Michael J Pankratz Albert Cardona Andreas S Thum |
| author_sort | Vincent Richter |
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| description | Sensory perception is the ability through which an organism is able to process sensory stimuli from the environment. This stimulus is transmitted from the peripheral sensory organs to the central nervous system, where it is interpreted. Drosophila melanogaster larvae possess peripheral sense organs on their head, thoracic, and abdominal segments. These are specialized to receive diverse environmental information, such as olfactory, gustatory, temperature, or mechanosensory signals. In this work, we complete the description of the morphology of external larval sensilla and provide a comprehensive map of the ultrastructure of the different types of sensilla that comprise them. This was achieved by 3D electron microscopic analysis of partial and whole body volumes, which contain high-resolution and complete three-dimensional data of the anatomy of the sensilla and adjacent ganglia. Our analysis revealed three main types of sensilla on thoracic and abdominal segments: the papilla sensillum, the hair sensillum, and the knob sensillum. They occur solitary or organized in compound sensilla such as the thoracic keilin’s organ or the terminal sensory cones. We present a spatial map defining these sensilla by their position on thoracic and abdominal segments. Furthermore, we identify and name the sensilla at the larval head and the last fused abdominal segments. We show that mechanosensation dominates in the larval peripheral nervous system, as most sensilla have corresponding structural properties. The result of this work, the construction of a complete structural and neuronal map of the external larval sensilla, provides the basis for following molecular and functional studies to understand which sensory strategies the Drosophila larva employs to orient itself in its natural environment. |
| format | Article |
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| institution | Kabale University |
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| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-06-01 |
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| spelling | doaj-art-00476b51ca984a26a6941c2bbd65881a2025-08-20T03:45:35ZengeLife Sciences Publications LtdeLife2050-084X2025-06-011210.7554/eLife.91155Morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of Drosophila larvaeVincent Richter0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8009-0357Anna Rist1Georg Kislinger2Michael Laumann3Andreas Schoofs4https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7002-9181Anton Miroschnikow5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2276-3434Michael J Pankratz6https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5458-6471Albert Cardona7Andreas S Thum8https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3830-6596Department of Genetics, Leipzig University, Institute for Biology, Leipzig, GermanyDepartment of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, GermanyDepartment of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, GermanyElectron Microscopy Center, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, GermanyDepartment of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, GermanyDepartment of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, GermanyDepartment of Molecular Brain Physiology and Behavior, LIMES Institute, University of Bonn, Bonn, GermanyDepartment of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United KingdomDepartment of Genetics, Leipzig University, Institute for Biology, Leipzig, Germany; Department of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, GermanySensory perception is the ability through which an organism is able to process sensory stimuli from the environment. This stimulus is transmitted from the peripheral sensory organs to the central nervous system, where it is interpreted. Drosophila melanogaster larvae possess peripheral sense organs on their head, thoracic, and abdominal segments. These are specialized to receive diverse environmental information, such as olfactory, gustatory, temperature, or mechanosensory signals. In this work, we complete the description of the morphology of external larval sensilla and provide a comprehensive map of the ultrastructure of the different types of sensilla that comprise them. This was achieved by 3D electron microscopic analysis of partial and whole body volumes, which contain high-resolution and complete three-dimensional data of the anatomy of the sensilla and adjacent ganglia. Our analysis revealed three main types of sensilla on thoracic and abdominal segments: the papilla sensillum, the hair sensillum, and the knob sensillum. They occur solitary or organized in compound sensilla such as the thoracic keilin’s organ or the terminal sensory cones. We present a spatial map defining these sensilla by their position on thoracic and abdominal segments. Furthermore, we identify and name the sensilla at the larval head and the last fused abdominal segments. We show that mechanosensation dominates in the larval peripheral nervous system, as most sensilla have corresponding structural properties. The result of this work, the construction of a complete structural and neuronal map of the external larval sensilla, provides the basis for following molecular and functional studies to understand which sensory strategies the Drosophila larva employs to orient itself in its natural environment.https://elifesciences.org/articles/91155sensillaperipheral nervous systemelectron microscopychemosensationmechanosensationthermosensation |
| spellingShingle | Vincent Richter Anna Rist Georg Kislinger Michael Laumann Andreas Schoofs Anton Miroschnikow Michael J Pankratz Albert Cardona Andreas S Thum Morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of Drosophila larvae eLife sensilla peripheral nervous system electron microscopy chemosensation mechanosensation thermosensation |
| title | Morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of Drosophila larvae |
| title_full | Morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of Drosophila larvae |
| title_fullStr | Morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of Drosophila larvae |
| title_full_unstemmed | Morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of Drosophila larvae |
| title_short | Morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of Drosophila larvae |
| title_sort | morphology and ultrastructure of external sense organs of drosophila larvae |
| topic | sensilla peripheral nervous system electron microscopy chemosensation mechanosensation thermosensation |
| url | https://elifesciences.org/articles/91155 |
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