Studying sensory reception and decision making in Drosophila fruit flies
I
am doing research on sensory reception and decision making in
Drosophila fruit flies. 1.) The fiies are presented with attractant,
then after that with replellent, and in this way mutants are found
which are not attracted or repelled by anything, though they are still
motile. Such mutants are defective in a final step of sensory reception
needed for telling the legs and wings what to do. 2.) The flies are
presented with an attractant and at the same time with repellent; now
the flies need to decide what to do. Mutants that can not make this
decision and are still motile are being isolated. The defects in these
two kinds of mutants will be discovered. This will reveal the
mechanisms involved. In larger perspective, this provides an entree
into the study of the fly's brain. Similar work will also be attempted
in mice.
Currently I have a grant for undergraduate research, and eight undergraduates are working with me on this.
Undergraduates interested in research and postdoctoral fellows are invited to participate.