EYES ABSENT and TIMELESS integrate photoperiodic and temperature cues to regulate seasonal physiology in <i>Drosophila</i>
Antoine Abrieux, Yongbo Xue, Yao D. Cai, Kyle M. Lewald, Hoang Nhu Nguyen, Yong Zhang, Joanna C. Chiu
Abstract
Significance Extracting information regarding calendar time from seasonal changes in photoperiod and temperature is critical for organisms to maintain annual cycles in physiology and behavior. Here we found that, in flies, EYES ABSENT (EYA) protein acts as a seasonal sensor by adjusting its abundance and phase in response to changes in photoperiod and temperature. We show that the manipulation of EYA levels is sufficient to impair the ability of female Drosophila to regulate seasonal variation in reproductive dormancy. Finally, our results suggest an important role for the circadian clock protein TIMELESS (TIM) in modulating EYA level through its ability to measure night length, linking the circadian clock to seasonal timing.