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Mushroom bodies are required for learnt visual navigation, but not for innate visual behaviour, in ants

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posted on 2023-06-07, 07:27 authored by Cornelia BuehlmannCornelia Buehlmann, Beata WozniakBeata Wozniak, Roman Goulard, Barbara Webb, Paul GrahamPaul Graham, Jeremy NivenJeremy Niven
Visual navigation in ants has long been a focus of experimental study [1, 2, 3], but only recently have explicit hypotheses about the underlying neural circuitry been proposed [4]. Indirect evidence suggests the mushroom bodies (MBs) may be the substrate for visual memory in navigation tasks [5, 6, 7], while computational modeling shows that MB neural architecture could support this function [8, 9]. There is, however, no direct evidence that ants require MBs for visual navigation. Here we show that lesions of MB calyces impair ants’ visual navigation to a remembered food location yet leave their innate responses to visual cues unaffected. Wood ants are innately attracted to large visual cues, but we trained them to locate a food source at a specific angle away from such a cue. Subsequent lesioning of the MB calyces using procaine hydrochloride injection caused ants to revert toward their innate cue attraction. Handling and saline injection control ants still approached the feeder. Path straightness of lesioned and control ants did not differ from each other but was lower than during training. Reversion toward the cue direction occurred irrespective of whether the visual cue was ipsi- or contralateral to the lesion site, showing this is not due simply to an induced motor bias. Monocular occlusion did not diminish ants’ ability to locate the feeder, suggesting that MB lesions are not merely interrupting visual input to the calyx. The demonstrated dissociation between innate and learned visual responses provides direct evidence for a specific role of the MB in navigational memory.

Funding

Visual navigation in ants: from visual ecology to brain; G2263; BBSRC-BIOTECHNOLOGY & BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES RESEARCH COUNCIL; BB/R005036/1

History

Publication status

  • Published

File Version

  • Accepted version

Journal

Current Biology

ISSN

0960-9822

Publisher

Elsevier

Volume

30

Page range

1-6

Department affiliated with

  • Evolution, Behaviour and Environment Publications

Full text available

  • Yes

Peer reviewed?

  • Yes

Legacy Posted Date

2020-07-07

First Open Access (FOA) Date

2021-07-24

First Compliant Deposit (FCD) Date

2020-07-06

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