title: A transcriptional reporter of intracellular Ca(2+) in Drosophila.
abstract: Intracellular Ca(2+) is a widely used neuronal activity indicator. Here we describe a transcriptional reporter of intracellular Ca(2+) (TRIC) in Drosophila that uses a binary expression system to report Ca(2+)-dependent interactions between calmodulin and its target peptide. We found that in vitro assays predicted in vivo properties of TRIC and that TRIC signals in sensory systems depend on neuronal activity. TRIC was able to quantitatively monitor neuronal responses that changed slowly, such as those of neuropeptide F-expressing neurons to sexual deprivation and neuroendocrine pars intercerebralis cells to food and arousal. Furthermore, TRIC-induced expression of a neuronal silencer in nutrient-activated cells enhanced stress resistance, providing a proof of principle that TRIC can be used for circuit manipulation. Thus, TRIC facilitates the monitoring and manipulation of neuronal activity, especially those reflecting slow changes in physiological states that are poorly captured by existing methods. TRIC's modular design should enable optimization and adaptation to other organisms.
authors.affiliation: Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.
authors.forename: Xiaojing J
authors.initials: XJ
authors.lastname: Gao
authors.affiliation: The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Olena
authors.identifier: 0000000200884534
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Riabinina
authors.affiliation: Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.
authors.forename: Jiefu
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: The Solomon H. Snyder Department of Neuroscience, The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.
authors.forename: Christopher J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Potter
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.
authors.forename: Thomas R
authors.initials: TR
authors.lastname: Clandinin
authors.affiliation: 1] Howard Hughes Medical Institute and Department of Biology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA. [2] Department of Neurobiology, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.
authors.forename: Liqun
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Luo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002118:Calcium / Q000502:physiology*; D020013:Calcium Signaling / Q000235:genetics* / Q000502:physiology*; D002478:Cells, Cultured; D004330:Drosophila; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D016296:Mutagenesis; D009434:Neural Pathways / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D009833:Olfactory Pathways / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology; D009899:Optic Lobe, Nonmammalian / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000235:genetics / Q000503:physiopathology; D009435:Synaptic Transmission / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology; D014795:Visual Pathways / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D002118:Calcium