Wavelength of light impacts circadian regulation in Rdl mutant Drosophila melanogaster

Abstract

Drosophila melanogaster are a useful human analog for circadian rhythm research. They have a short life cycle, similar genetic loci to humans with respect to spatial and temporal gene expression and easily traceable mutant phenotypes. This study analyzes the impact of specific photon wavelength on circadian rhythm in Drosophila melanogaster. In flies, Resistant to Dieldrin (Rdl) encodes a subunit of the GABA receptor, which is upregulated by the circadian oscillator, WAKE. This interaction induces RDL localization to the plasma membrane to modulate sleep; however, the specific function of RDL and its downstream interactions to facilitate sleep/wake switching, are yet to be characterized. The Drosophila Activity Monitor TriKinetics System and a custom‐built light controlling apparatus were used to characterize the impact of varied light wavelengths on locomotion in control, RdlMD‐RR mutant flies and flies overexpressing Rdl in a subset of circadian neurons. Preliminary data suggests RdlMD‐RR flies show less activity during daylight hours, and severely diminished locomotion in darkness compared to controls; thus, it is the intent to characterize the specific wavelength associated with induction of this phenotype. These data will provide information related to sleep latency and quality of sleep as different wavelengths of light would amplify or diminish sleep onset and duration.Support or Funding InformationThis work was supported by funds from the Department of Sciences at Wentworth Institute of Technology.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.