Morphology and ultrastructure of pharyngeal sense organs of Drosophila larvae
- 1Department of Genetics, University of Leipzig, Institute for Biology, Leipzig, Germany
- 2MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Cambridge, United Kingdom; Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
- 3Department of Genetics, University of Leipzig, Institute for Biology, Leipzig, Germany; German Centre for Integrative Biodiversity Research (iDiv) Halle-Jena-Leipzig, Leipzig, Germany
Abstract
This study provides a comprehensive ultrastructural analysis of the pharyngeal sensory system in Drosophila melanogaster larvae, focusing on the four major pharyngeal sense organs: the ventral pharyngeal sensilla (VPS), dorsal pharyngeal sensilla (DPS), dorsal pharyngeal organ (DPO), and posterior pharyngeal sensilla (PPS). Our analysis revealed 15 sensilla across these organs, comprising four mechanosensory, nine chemosensory, and two dual-function sensilla. We identified 35 Type I neurons (6 mechanosensory and 29 chemosensory) and 6 Type II neurons with putative chemosensory functions. Additional sensory structures, including papilla sensilla and chordotonal organs in the cephalopharyngeal region, were characterized. This detailed mapping and classification of pharyngeal sensory structures completes their structural characterization and provides a foundation for future anatomical and functional studies of sensory perception in insects. This work represents a significant step toward a complete analysis of the larval sensory system, providing new opportunities for investigating how an organism processes sensory information to navigate and interact with its environment.
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BibTeX
@article{richter2026morphology,
title = {{Morphology and ultrastructure of pharyngeal sense organs of Drosophila larvae}},
author = {Vincent Richter and Tilman Triphan and Albert Cardona and Andreas S Thum},
journal = {eLife},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.7554/elife.108036},
url = {https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.108036},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Morphology and ultrastructure of pharyngeal sense organs of Drosophila larvae
AU - Vincent Richter
AU - Tilman Triphan
AU - Albert Cardona
AU - Andreas S Thum
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/23
JO - eLife
DO - 10.7554/elife.108036
UR - https://doi.org/10.7554/elife.108036
AB - This study provides a comprehensive ultrastructural analysis of the pharyngeal sensory system in Drosophila melanogaster larvae, focusing on the four major pharyngeal sense organs: the ventral pharyngeal sensilla (VPS), dorsal pharyngeal sensilla (DPS), dorsal pharyngeal organ (DPO), and posterior pharyngeal sensilla (PPS). Our analysis revealed 15 sensilla across these organs, comprising four mechanosensory, nine chemosensory, and two dual-function sensilla. We identified 35 Type I neurons (6 mechanosensory and 29 chemosensory) and 6 Type II neurons with putative chemosensory functions. Additional sensory structures, including papilla sensilla and chordotonal organs in the cephalopharyngeal region, were characterized. This detailed mapping and classification of pharyngeal sensory structures completes their structural characterization and provides a foundation for future anatomical and functional studies of sensory perception in insects. This work represents a significant step toward a complete analysis of the larval sensory system, providing new opportunities for investigating how an organism processes sensory information to navigate and interact with its environment.
SN - 2050-084X
ER -