Olfactory adaptation in Drosophila larvae

To accommodate both high sensitivity as well as the ability to respond to a broad range of stimulus concentrations, an organism must possess some mean s of modulating the gain of its sensory systems. This phenomenon is known a s adaptation. Here, we demonstrate that Drosophila larvae can adapt to thre e odorants in a behavioral paradigm. Larval olfactory adaptation is concent ration- and dose-dependent. Olfactory and visual adaptation in Drosophila m elanogaster adults is dependent on the transient receptor potential (trp) c alcium channel. Recovery from olfactory adaptation, which is TRP-dependent in adults, is shown to be unaffected by a loss-of-function trp mutation in larvae. Moreover, the TRP gene product is not expressed in the larval olfac tory organs. These observations suggest a role for trp in mediating sensory function that is conserved between sensory modalities in adults but is not conserved between developmental stages.