Behavioral phenotype of Vang6 mutant Drosophila melanogaster pertaining to the Olfactory System

Abstract

There are many proteins that aid in the development of the olfactory system, specifically Wnt pathway and planar cell polarity (PCP) pathway proteins. It has been shown that Vang6 mutant flies have distinct olfactory abnormalities, as do Wnt5 mutant flies. In addition, Drosophila melanogaster (Drosophila) Wnt5 mutants have an improper olfactory response compared to wildtype Drosophila. After using a T-maze to explore the behavioral tendencies of Vang6 mutant Drosophila and wildtype WT1118 flies, it was shown that there is no significance between wildtype and Vang6 mutant Drosophila selecting air (control component) or Carbon Dioxide (CO_2) (test component).