Defining how motor circuits translate steering signals from the brain (2026-2028)

This project seeks to understand how signals from the brain control motor circuits during walking, enabling an animal to navigate in space, pursue prey, or escape a predator. It will focus on the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, for which the entire pattern of neuronal connections has been mapped and genetic tools are available to selectively measure or manipulate the activity of single neurons in living animals. While the navigation circuits in the brain have been partly elucidated, this project will examine the motor outputs of these circuits. It will determine how brain signals control leg motor circuits to effect a turn. This work will deliver fundamental insights into motor control and inspire the design of more agile robots.