Hokto Kazama

The paper investigates the evolutionary origins of insecticidal protein families, finding evidence of divergent evolution and horizontal gene transfer across bacteria, ferns, and other organisms.

The paper compares synaptic and membrane potential fluctuations as mechanisms of representational drift and shows synaptic fluctuations better support discrimination learning.

This study shows that odors activate gustatory receptor neurons in Drosophila, triggering feeding behaviors and enhancing food intake through a mechanism involving the Gr5a receptor and olfactory binding proteins.

This study shows that sleep in Drosophila alters the coding of odor value in dopamine neurons, leading to more aversive odor representations and behavioral changes upon arousal.

This study shows that dopaminergic neurons in Drosophila update the value of odors during navigation, independent of associative learning.

The paper identifies an insect-specific endosomal protein involved in forming nanopores in the cuticle, essential for odor detection.