I am looking for markers such as c-fos or phospho-CREB that could reveal neuronal activity in honeybee. So far I have found only d-fos (or kayak, the drosophila homolog) but there is no good homology in honeybee genome.
Any idea?
For the record, although this question was asked a couple of months ago, the following month this very relevant paper came out. Their approach was in situ based and tested in moths (Bombyx) and Drosophila.
Visualization of Neural Activity in Insect Brains Using a Conserved Immediate Early Gene, Hr38
dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2013.08.051
Hi Marco,
did you check those papers? They use a gene called kakusei
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/?term=round+dance+gene+expression
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/17440607
cyrille
Dear Marco,
Go for 22c10 or HRP. Both will stain the neuron.
Good luck....
thanks for the suggestions!
Monalisa, have you any good antibody for 22c10 or HRP to suggest me? have you ever tried it personally in bees or insects?
I have checked the papers cyrille, but they do in situ and there is no antibody against kakusei yet..
22c10 and HRP will visualize neurons/parts of neurons but will not be a reporter of activity, which was the original question.
Marco, it might help if you give us a brief description of the question that you are trying to answer.
Thanks George, what I am doing is studing memory learning in honeybee olfactory circuit and I am interested in looking at which neurons activate upon conditioning. In mice I used to monitor activity with c-fos and p-creb..but I cannot do the same in bees apparently...
Chao...what would C14 sugar stain exactly? any reference?
To monitor neuronal activity in vivo some calcium dyes would be useful? In Drosophila one an overexpress in neurone certain dyes, no idea about honey bee, but certainly you can develop some for honeybee as well.
Certainly I can do it..but I was looking for something doable in a couple of months, not in years...secondly, i was not talking about in vivo in real time (like calcium imaging) but of looking with IHC where neurons become active during a learning process of hours and days..
Couple of months usually turns to be much much longer time in science
not for a basic IHC...but developing genomic tools from scrach in a new model animal was not exactly what I was looking for..
Anyway, you can check drosophila antibodies in Iowa Developmental Studies Hybridoma bank, many good Drosophila antibodies for neurobiology are available there for decent price.
thanks Mari, I know the DSHB but I was asking what could be a good IHC marker for neuronal activity..
hi, i am familiar with the detection of immediate early genes, such as c-fos/ZENK ect...unfortunately in birds. what i know is that the same antibodies do work in fish. however, although there is a certain degree of evolutionary conservation of these genes/proteins there is still a long way to bees...give it a quick shot, i could send you some aliquots of different antibodies. cheers.
For the record, although this question was asked a couple of months ago, the following month this very relevant paper came out. Their approach was in situ based and tested in moths (Bombyx) and Drosophila.
Visualization of Neural Activity in Insect Brains Using a Conserved Immediate Early Gene, Hr38
dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2013.08.051
pERK is a good option and it responds immediately. c-fos takes a little longer time.
you can use histochemical techniques as: NADPH, ANE,AChE, see " Bio Optica" Milan
kit for hirschsprung disease. ciao
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