Abstract
The Drosophila nervous system is a valuable model to examine the mechanisms of activity-dependent synaptic modification (plasticity) owing to its relatively simple organization and the availability of powerful genetic tools. The larval neuromuscular junction (NMJ) in particular is an accessible model for the study of synaptic development and plasticity. In addition to the NMJ, huge strides have also been made on understanding activity-dependent synaptic plasticity in the Drosophila olfactory and visual systems. In this review, we focus mainly on the underlying processes of activity-dependent synaptic plasticity at both pre-synaptic and post-synaptic terminals, and summarize current knowledge on activity-dependent synaptic plasticity in different parts of the Drosophila melanogaster nervous system (larval NMJ, olfactory system, larval visual system, and adult visual system). We also examine links between synaptic development and activity-dependent synaptic plasticity, and the relationships between morphological and physiological plasticity. We provide a point of view from which we discern that the underlying mechanism of activity-dependent plasticity may be common throughout the nervous systems in Drosophila melanogaster.
Highlights
Activity-dependent synaptic plasticity is a crucial component of activity-dependent neuroplasticity
This progress has benefited from the wellstudied anatomic structure of the Drosophila nervous system
The Drosophila adult visual system warrants further study since it possesses complex layered structures that resemble those of mammals
Summary
The Drosophila nervous system is a valuable model to examine the mechanisms of activity-dependent synaptic modification (plasticity) owing to its relatively simple organization and the availability of powerful genetic tools. In addition to the NMJ, huge strides have been made on understanding activity-dependent synaptic plasticity in the Drosophila olfactory and visual systems. We focus mainly on the underlying processes of activitydependent synaptic plasticity at both pre-synaptic and post-synaptic terminals, and summarize current knowledge on activity-dependent synaptic plasticity in different parts of the Drosophila melanogaster nervous system (larval NMJ, olfactory system, larval visual system, and adult visual system). We provide a point of view from which we discern that the underlying mechanism of activity-dependent plasticity may be common throughout the nervous systems in Drosophila melanogaster
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