Heat stress vulnerability during critical periods of nervous system development

Heat stress vulnerability during critical periods of nervous system development

Supervisor: Matthias Landgraf

Project Summary (PhD):

We discovered that heat stress, when transiently experienced during a short window of embryonic development, permanently compromises insect nervous system operation and stability. This is concerning in light of insect decline in an era of rising temperatures. Working with the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, as a model, we identified the primary stress signals, emanating from mitochondria, and downstream pathways. This now allows us to investigate how related species, heat- vs cold-loving, have evolved solutions to heat stress responses and gained adaptability. 

Type of Work:

We discovered that heat stress, when transiently experienced during a short window of embryonic development, permanently compromises insect nervous system operation and stability. This is concerning in light of insect decline in an era of rising temperatures. Working with the fruit fly, Drosophila melanogaster, as a model, we identified the primary stress signals, emanating from mitochondria, and downstream pathways. This now allows us to investigate how related species, heat- vs cold-loving, have evolved solutions to heat stress responses and gained adaptability. 

Importance of the area of research concerned:

Climate change is an additional challenge to already declining insect populations. Having identified molecular mechanisms that can cause maladaptive outcomes following critical period stress, we now need to seek potential solutions, inspired by nature and evolution.

References:

Sobrido-Cameán D, Coulson B, Miller M, Oswald MCW, Pettini T, Bailey DMD, Baines RA, Landgraf M. Mitochondrial ROS and HIF-1α signaling mediate synaptic plasticity in the critical period (2026). PLoS Biol. 2025 Aug 13;23(8):e3003338. doi: 10.1371/journal.pbio.3003338. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40802851.   Krick N, Davies J, Coulson B, Sobrido-Cameán D, Miller M, Oswald MCW, Zarin AA, Baines RA, Landgraf M (2024). Heterogeneous responses to embryonic critical period perturbations within the Drosophila larval locomotor circuit. bioRxiv 2024.09.14.613036; doi: https://doi.org/10.1101/2024.09.14.613036   Hunter I, Coulson B, Pettini T, Davies JJ, Parkin J, Landgraf M, Baines RA (2024). Balance of activity during a critical period tunes a developing network. eLife. 12:RP91599. doi: 10.7554/eLife.91599.