Frequency-specific suppression of locomotor components by the white+ gene in Drosophila melanogaster adult flies

Abstract

The classic eye-color gene white+ (w+) in Drosophila melanogaster (fruitfly) has unexpected behavioral consequences. How w+ affect locomotion of adult flies is largely unknown. Here, we show that w+ selectively suppresses locomotor components at relatively high frequencies (> 0.1 Hz). The wildtype Canton-S male flies walked intermittently in circular arenas while the white-eyed w1118 flies walked continuously. Through careful control of genetic and cytoplasmic backgrounds, we found that w+ was associated with intermittent walking. w+-carrying male flies had smaller median values of path length per second (PPS) and reduced 5-min path length compared with w1118-carrying males. Additionally, flies carrying 2-4 genomic copies of mini-white+ (mw+) showed reduced median PPSs and decreased 5-min path length compared with w1118 flies, and the suppression was dependent on the copy number of mw+. Fourier transform of the time series (i.e. PPSs over time) indicated that w+/mw+ specifically suppressed the locomotor components at relatively high frequencies (> 0.1 Hz). Lastly, the downregulation of w+ in neurons but not glial cells resulted in an increased percentage of high-frequency locomotor components. We concluded that w+ suppressed the locomotion of adult flies by selectively reducing the high-frequency locomotor components.