Food deprivation

…to maximize the chance of finding food. Selecting the appropriate actions requires them to gauge their internal hunger-state but also to weigh up the value of inputs coming from their external environment. The neural mechanisms that underlie this survival-linked perceptual decision-making are of significant interest, but poorly understood.To identify the underlying neural mechanisms of these motivational state dependent decisions, we used the mollusc, Lymnaea stagnalis, whose behaviours have been extensively characte

In the quest for survival, animals constantly adapt their behaviours to environmental cues, internal states, and experiences. This process involves allocating cognitive resources in the brain to promote relevant behaviours while inhibiting others. Despite recent progress in understanding biological mechanisms behind behavioural prioritization, there is still a gap in comprehending neuronal and molecular mechanisms governing the capacity to rank and prioritize competing needs. The neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT), produced in the paraventricular nucleus(PVN) and supraoptic nucleus(SON) of the hypoth

…information is essential to evaluate food quality before ingestion. Previously, we found that Drosophila larvae switch their response to certain odors from aversion to attraction when food deprived. The neural mechanism underlying this switch in behavior involves serotonergic modulation and reconfiguration of odor processing in the early olfactory sensory system. We now investigate if a change in hunger state also influences other behavioral dec

…We find that acute food deprivation alters the localization of two transcription factors, likely releasing an insulin-like peptide from the intestine, which in turn modifies chemosensory neurons and alters behavior. These results present a model for how inter-tissue signals to generate flexible behaviors via gut-brain signaling.

How does the presence or absence of food shape and prioritize behavioral decisions? When is food more than just food? As in other animals, prolonged food deprivation dramatically alters sensory behaviors in C. elegans. For instance, it has been known since the mid-1970s that hungry worms no longer respond to temperature changes in their environment, but the underlying mechanisms have been unclear. I will describe unpublished work showing that insulin signaling from the gut regulates thermosensory behaviors as a function of feeding state by engaging a modulatory sensorimotor circuit that gates