ArticleNature metabolism2023
Glycolysis-derived alanine from glia fuels neuronal mitochondria for memory in Drosophila.
Article in Nature metabolism, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 35 papers.
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Who cites it
35 citing papers in PubMed, 66 citations in OpenAlex.
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- Neuronal fatty acid oxidation fuels memory after intensive learning in Drosophila.Nature metabolism · 2025Article
- The neuron-astrocyte metabolic unit as a cornerstone of brain energy metabolism in health and disease.Nature metabolism · 2025Review
- Astrocytes expressing mutant hnRNPA1 induce non-cell-autonomous motor neuron death.Brain research bulletin · 2025Article
- Invertebrate glial barriers as a model for understanding blood-brain barrier evolution.Fluids and barriers of the CNS · 2025Review
- Astrocyte-Neuron Metabolic Synergies in Neurological Homeostasis and Disease.Neurochemical research · 2025Review
- Pyruvate kinase deficiency links metabolic perturbations to neurodegeneration and axonal protection.Molecular metabolism · 2025Article
- Two-point calibration protocol for the Förster Resonance Energy Transfer indicator Pyronic in neurons.Neurophotonics · 2025Article
- Astrocyte-to-neuron HNature metabolism · 2025Article
- Coordinating the energetic strategy of glia and neurons for memory.Trends in neurosciences · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Glucose is the primary source of energy for the brain; however, it remains controversial whether, upon neuronal activation, glucose is primarily used by neurons for ATP production or if it is partially oxidized in astrocytes, as proposed by the astrocyte-neuron lactate shuttle model for glutamatergic neurons. Thus, an in vivo picture of glucose metabolism during cognitive processes is missing. Here, we uncover in Drosophila melanogaster a glia-to-neuron alanine transfer involving alanine aminotransferase that sustains memory formation. Following associative conditioning, glycolysis in glial cells produces alanine, which is back-converted into pyruvate in cholinergic neurons of the olfactory memory center to uphold their increased mitochondrial needs. Alanine, as a mediator of glia-neuron coupling, could be an alternative to lactate in cholinergic systems. In parallel, a dedicated glial glucose transporter imports glucose specifically for long-term memory, by directly transferring it to neurons for use by the pentose phosphate pathway. Our results demonstrate in vivo the compartmentalization of glucose metabolism between neurons and glial cells during memory formation.
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