Vumx1 neuron

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Contents 1 VUMmx1 neuron 2 Anatomy 3 Molecular profile 4 Behavior 5 References 6 Additional information

VUMmx1 neuron

The VUMmx1 neuron or ventral unpaired median neuron maxillare 1 is an octopaminergic neuron found in the honey bee. 1. The VUMmx1 neuron plays a critical role in appetitive olfactory learning – a paradigm in which odors associated with a sucrose reward can drive movement of the proboscis

Anatomy

The VUMmx1 neuron is a large, multipolar neuron with dendrites receiving input in the subesophageal ganglion and multiple axonal branches extending into the antennal lobes and mushroom body calyces.

Molecular profile

• Neurotransmitter: Octopamine

Behavior

The release of octopamine from the VUMmx1 neuron communicates information about reward and the depolarization of this neuron can substitute for the US (sucrose reward) in an appetitive olfactory learning paradigm. The VUMmx1 neuron has properties similar to mammalian, mesolimbic dopamine neurons in that its activity reflects reward predictions and modifications of these predictions.

References

1. Muller, Uli Learning in honeybees: from molecules to behavior Zoology 105 313-320 2002
2. North, Geoffrey Greenspan, Ralph J. Invertebrate Neurobiology Cold Springs Harbor Laboratory Press 2207
3. Hammer, Martin The neural basis of associative reward learning in honeybees Trends in Neuroscience 20, 245-252 1997

Additional information