Anholt, R. R. H., Fanara, J. J., Fedorowicz, G. M., Ganguly, I., Kulkarni, N., Mackay, T. F. C. & Rollmann, S. M. 2001. Functional genomics of odor-guided behavior in Drosophila melanogaster. Chem. Senses 26: 215-221.
Odor-guided behavior is essential for the survival and reproduction of most species. In recent years considerable progress has been made in elucidating the molecular mechanisms that underlie odor recognition and odor-guided behavior. In vertebrates, nematodes, and insects large gene families encoding G protein-coupled odorant receptors have been identified. A surprisingly large percentage of the genome is comprised of genes that mediate olfaction. In vertebrates, odorant receptor genes alone have been estimated to comprise up to 1% of the genome. In Drosophila melanogaster it has been estimated that approximately 4% of the genome contributes directly to the avoidance response of the repellent odorant, benzaldehyde. Our studies are aimed at understanding the genetic architecture of odor-guided behavior using Drosophila as a model system.