⏰ Sleepy Flies & Smart Butterflies: A CUBE Dive into Biological Clocks & Choices

CUBE chat
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:star2: CUBE ChatShaala Summary – 24th July 2025

:brain: 1. Drosophila & Drug-Induced Sleep: Kanjan’s Research

Internship Context : Azim Premji University
Topic : Sleep-Wake Cycle in Drosophila melanogaster (Fruit Flies)

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Key Points:

  • Focus on understanding sleep circuits and neuronal pathways.

  • Analysis of circadian rhythms in fruit flies at CUBE Homelab.

  • Investigation of Clobazam, a benzodiazepine, and its influence on fruit fly sleep patterns.

Relevance : This raises important parallels between human and fruit fly neurobiology, especially regarding how medications influence sleep through neurotransmitter systems.

:butterfly: 2. Female Butterflies & Host Plant Recognition

Main Research Question : How do female butterflies recognize their host plants?

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Butterfly-Plant Associations:

  • Common Mormon: Prefers Lemon, Curry Leaf, Wood Apple (Bael Patra)

  • Common Crow: Host - Oleander (Nerium)

  • Psyche Butterfly: Host - Cardamine, Cleome

  • Nectar Plants: Ixora, which provides sugar, water, vitamins, and minerals.

Scientific Curiosity :

Is host recognition purely chemical, or also visual or tactile?

How is neural processing involved in plant selection?

:zap: 3. How Do Neurons Talk?

Diagram Discussion:

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  • Illustrated communication between Neuron 1 and Neuron 2.

  • Emphasis on synaptic transmission:

:white_small_square:Release of neurotransmitters across synapse.

:white_small_square:Binding to receptors on next neuron.

:white_small_square:Real-life analogy using motor neuron signaling to hand movement.

Why it Matters : Understanding this pathway connects directly to earlier discussion on benzodiazepines (like Clobazam), which modulate these neurotransmitter-receptor interactions, impacting behavior like sleep.

:jigsaw: Provocative Questions for the Audience

  1. :butterfly: How do butterflies make such precise decisions on where to lay eggs? Can it be considered an instinct or a learned behavior?

  2. :brain: Can studying fruit flies help us understand the effects of psychiatric drugs like Clobazam on the human brain?

  3. :seedling: Could manipulating host plant availability affect butterfly populations in urban environments?

  4. :zap: Can drugs like benzodiazepines help or hinder synaptic transmission in different organisms?

  5. :alarm_clock: How similar is the circadian rhythm in flies to that of humans, and why should we care?

:bulb: What I Learned from Today’s ChatShaala

Today’s session beautifully connected neurobiology, pharmacology, and ecology through practical questions and relatable organisms. I found it fascinating how the fruit fly’s brain serves as a miniature model for understanding drug action and sleep patterns. Meanwhile, the behavior of female butterflies selecting host plants showed an elegant display of instinctual neural mechanisms. The highlight for me was the interplay between neurotransmitters and behavior, reminding us how even simple organisms follow complex biological logic.

:star2: TINKE Moments

Realizing that Clobazam, a drug used in humans, can affect the sleep-wake cycle of fruit flies (Drosophila)— showing a strong connection between human neuroscience and CUBE Homelab experiments!

Also explored how female butterflies identify their exact host plants, and how neurons communicate using neurotransmitters.

— M S Sailekshmi :brain::butterfly:

Let’s continue exploring the brain and the butterfly — two vastly different systems with striking similarities in decision-making, signaling, and adaptation.

:books: Reference