Neural correlates of water reward in thirsty fruit flies
November 17, 2014
Drinking water is innately rewarding to thirsty animals. A recent study from the Waddell lab in Nature Neuroscience demonstrated that neural circuit mechanisms of water wanting, learning and liking can be distinguished by their requirements for dopaminergic neurons in the brain of thirsty flies. The full paper can be viewed Lin et al. (2014).
Suewei Lin discusses his work in a short film, entitled Thirsty Work.
This research was featured in an article in the New Yorker by Jonathan Weiner.