A novel satiety sensor detects circulating glucose and suppresses food consumption via insulin-producing cells in Drosophila

Sensing satiety is a crucial survival skill for all animal species including human. Despite the discovery of numerous neuromodulators that regulate food intake in Drosophila, the mechanism of satiety sensing remains largely elusive. Here, we investigated how neuropeptidergic circuitry conveyed satiety state to influence flies' food consumption. Drosophila tachykinin (DTK) and its receptor TAKR99D were identified in an RNAi screening as feeding suppressors. Two pairs of DTK neurons in the fly brain could be activated by elevated D-glucose in the hemolymph and imposed a suppressive effect on feeding. These DTK+ neurons formed a two-synapse circuitry targeting insulin-producing cells, a well-known feeding suppressor, via TAKR99D+ neurons, and this circuitry could be rapidly activated during food ingestion and cease feeding. Taken together, we identified a novel satiety sensor in the fly brain that could detect specific circulating nutrients and in turn modulate feeding, shedding light on the neural regulation of energy homeostasis.

Wei Qi, Gaohang Wang, Liming Wang