Diagrams associated with anatomy terms from the Drosophila Anatomy Ontology.
Anatomical overview of the adult central complex (CX) and its accessory neuropils, from Figure 1 of Hulse et al. (2021). Panel A places the CX within the hemibrain volume alongside the medulla (ME), lobula (LO) and subesophageal zone (SEZ). Panel B shows the immediate surrounds — superior protocerebrum (SLP, SIP, SMP), inferior neuropils (CRE, RUB, ROB) and lateral neuropils (BU, GA, LAL). Panels C–E give frontal, lateral, and dorsal views of the five core CX structures: ellipsoid body (EB), fan-shaped body (FB), protocerebral bridge (PB), paired noduli (NO), and the asymmetric body (AB). Click a labelled neuropil to open the corresponding term in Virtual Fly Brain.
Schematic overview of olfactory and multimodal input to the adult lateral horn (LH) and the major target neuropils of LH output neurons, based on Frechter et al. (2019). Panel A shows the four antennal-lobe tracts (mALT, mlALT, tALT, lALT) by which projection neurons (PNs) reach the LH. Panel B groups PN axonal arbours in the LH by presumptive sensory modality: excitatory uniglomerular olfactory, inhibitory olfactory, multiglomerular olfactory, multiglomerular + gustatory, gustatory, mechanosensory, thermosensory, and neuromodulatory. Panel E shows the major (AVLP, PVLP, SLP, SIP, SMP) and minor (LH, MB calyx, SCL, IB, ICL, SPS, CRE) target neuropils of core LH output neurons (LHONs). Click a labelled element to open the corresponding term in Virtual Fly Brain.
Schematic representation of the 21 cell types of MBONs in the lobes and one cell type of MBON in the calyx based on the data presented in the accompanying manuscript (Aso et al., 2014): circles, cell bodies; semicircles, dendrites; arrowheads, axon terminals; color-coding is by neurotransmitter as in panel (A) Three MBON cell-types (GABAergic MBON-γ1pedc>α/β, glutamatergic MBON-γ4>γ1γ2 and MBON-β1>α; marked as 11, 5 and 6 respectively) send axons into the MB lobes. Axons of MBON-γ4>γ1γ2 project from γ4 to γ1 and γ2, and thus have the potential to affect activity of MBON-γ1pedc>α/β. From γ1, the axon of MBON-γ1pedc>α/β projects to compartments in the α/β lobes including β1, where dendrites of MBON-β1>α arborize. Axons of both MBON-γ1pedc>α/β and MBON-β1>α project to the compartments in the α lobe. Therefore activity of MBONs in the α lobe can be regulated by these layered inter-compartmental connections. These three types of MBONs (11, 5 and 6) do not project back to their own dendrites. Therefore, the organization of the MBONs can be viewed as forming a multilayered feed-forward network (Aso et al., 2014). MBONs project to a small number of brain areas: the crepine (CRE; a region surrounding the horizontal/medial lobes), the superior medial protocerebrum (SMP), superior intermediate protocerebrum (SIP) and superior lateral protocerebrum (SLP) and the lateral horn (LH). The size of the arrowhead reflects the relative number of termini in each area. The MBONs are numbered and listed in Table 1. See the accompanying manuscript (Aso et al., 2014) and Table 1 for details.
Compartmental organisation of the adult mushroom body lobes, showing how the dendrites of mushroom body output neurons (MBONs) and the axon terminals of dopaminergic neurons (DANs) tile the lobes into a stereotyped grid of 15 compartments. Adapted from Figure 10 of Aso et al. (2014a). Panels A–F show single examples of γ-lobe MBONs (MBON-γ5β′2a, MBON-γ4>γ1γ2, MBON-γ3, MBON-γ3β′1, MBON-γ2α′1, MBON-γ1pedc>α/β). Panels G/I/K give an MBON-side colour-coded map of the γ, α′/β′ and α/β lobes; panels H/J/L give the matching DAN-side map. Together these panels make explicit the compartments (γ1–γ5, β′1–β′2, β1–β2, α′1–α′3, α1–α3) used to organise input from PPL1 and PAM cluster DANs and output via MBONs. Click a labelled compartment to open the corresponding MB lobe slice in Virtual Fly Brain.
Graphical glossary of adult Drosophila olfactory neuroanatomy and the canonical neuron classes that make up the olfactory pathway, from Figure 1 of Schlegel et al. (2021). The left-hand schematic shows the feed-forward course of olfactory information from antenna and antennal lobe (AL) to mushroom body (MB) and lateral horn (LH), with antennal-lobe receptor neurons (ORNs / ALRNs), antennal lobe local neurons (ALLNs), uniglomerular and multiglomerular projection neurons (uPNs, mPNs), Kenyon cells (KCs), MBONs, DANs, lateral horn neurons (LHNs / LHLNs / LHCENT), and wedge projection neurons (WEDPNs). Click a labelled element to open the corresponding term in Virtual Fly Brain.
Schematic wiring of the ON-edge (T4) and OFF-edge (T5) motion-detection circuits, from Figure 6 of Shinomiya et al. (2019). Panels A and B show the columnar inputs that converge on T4 and T5 dendrites — Mi1, Mi4, Mi9, Tm3, TmY15, C3 (and CT1 feedback) for T4; Tm1, Tm2, Tm4, Tm9, TmY15 (and CT1) for T5 — with arrow weights indicating relative synapse counts. Panel C is the canonical summary cartoon: photoreceptors R1-6 → lamina monopolar cells L1/L2/L3 → medulla cells (Mi1/Mi4/Mi9/Tm3 driving T4 ON-edge; Tm1/Tm2/Tm4/Tm9 driving T5 OFF-edge) → T4/T5 → lobula plate. Click a labelled neuron type or neuropil to open the corresponding term in Virtual Fly Brain.
Last modified January 20, 2026:
rename anatomy (a8f5f53)