Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction
A common explanation of molecular recognition by the olfactory system posits that receptors recognize the structure or shape of the odorant molecule. We performed a rigorous test of shape recognition by replacing hydrogen with deuterium in odorants and asking whether Drosophila melanogaster can dist...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
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National Academy of Sciences
2011
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/66499 |
| _version_ | 1811096585885450240 |
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| author | Mershin, Andreas Turina, Luca Franco, Maria Isabel Skoulakis, Efthimios M. C. |
| author2 | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Center for Biomedical Engineering |
| author_facet | Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Center for Biomedical Engineering Mershin, Andreas Turina, Luca Franco, Maria Isabel Skoulakis, Efthimios M. C. |
| author_sort | Mershin, Andreas |
| collection | MIT |
| description | A common explanation of molecular recognition by the olfactory system posits that receptors recognize the structure or shape of the odorant molecule. We performed a rigorous test of shape recognition by replacing hydrogen with deuterium in odorants and asking whether Drosophila melanogaster can distinguish these identically shaped isotopes. We report that flies not only differentiate between isotopic odorants, but can be conditioned to selectively avoid the common or the deuterated isotope. Furthermore, flies trained to discriminate against the normal or deuterated isotopes of a compound, selectively avoid the corresponding isotope of a different odorant. Finally, flies trained to avoid a deuterated compound exhibit selective aversion to an unrelated molecule with a vibrational mode in the energy range of the carbon–deuterium stretch. These findings are inconsistent with a shape-only model for smell, and instead support the existence of a molecular vibration-sensing component to olfactory reception. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T16:46:02Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/66499 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T16:46:02Z |
| publishDate | 2011 |
| publisher | National Academy of Sciences |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/664992022-09-29T21:21:32Z Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction Mershin, Andreas Turina, Luca Franco, Maria Isabel Skoulakis, Efthimios M. C. Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Center for Biomedical Engineering Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Media Laboratory Mershin, Andreas Mershin, Andreas Turina, Luca A common explanation of molecular recognition by the olfactory system posits that receptors recognize the structure or shape of the odorant molecule. We performed a rigorous test of shape recognition by replacing hydrogen with deuterium in odorants and asking whether Drosophila melanogaster can distinguish these identically shaped isotopes. We report that flies not only differentiate between isotopic odorants, but can be conditioned to selectively avoid the common or the deuterated isotope. Furthermore, flies trained to discriminate against the normal or deuterated isotopes of a compound, selectively avoid the corresponding isotope of a different odorant. Finally, flies trained to avoid a deuterated compound exhibit selective aversion to an unrelated molecule with a vibrational mode in the energy range of the carbon–deuterium stretch. These findings are inconsistent with a shape-only model for smell, and instead support the existence of a molecular vibration-sensing component to olfactory reception. United States. Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (Grant N66001-10-1-4062) 2011-10-19T18:50:47Z 2011-10-19T18:50:47Z 2011-01 2010-08 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 0027-8424 1091-6490 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/66499 Franco, M. I. et al. “Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences 108 (2011): 3797-3802. Web. 19 Oct. 2011. © 2011 by the National Academy of Sciences en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1012293108 Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use. application/pdf National Academy of Sciences PNAS |
| spellingShingle | Mershin, Andreas Turina, Luca Franco, Maria Isabel Skoulakis, Efthimios M. C. Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction |
| title | Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction |
| title_full | Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction |
| title_fullStr | Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction |
| title_full_unstemmed | Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction |
| title_short | Molecular vibration-sensing component in Drosophila melanogaster olfaction |
| title_sort | molecular vibration sensing component in drosophila melanogaster olfaction |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/66499 |
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