日本筑波大学Ryusuke Niwa小组近日取得一项新成果。经过不懈努力，他们的最新研究提出了果蝇钙动员的神经内分泌控制。该研究于2025年10月22日发表于国际一流学术期刊《自然》杂志上。

在这里，研究组发现了一种有效的肽激素，Capa，它负责调节果蝇的细胞外液Ca²+水平。Capa缺乏的幼虫表现出低血淋巴Ca²⁺水平，导致运动减少和诱导延长的蛹，模仿那些饲养在Ca²⁺无饮食的动物。由特定的神经分泌细胞分泌的Capa作用于前马氏小管中专门的Ca²⁺储存室，升高血淋巴Ca²⁺。这种调节陆地无脊椎动物Ca²⁺调节的内分泌机制类似于脊椎动物的甲状旁腺激素系统。

研究人员表示，钙（Ca²⁺）是一种必需的矿物质，必须严格调节以支持许多生理活动。在脊椎动物中，细胞外液Ca²⁺通过内分泌系统进行调节，内分泌系统管理骨骼中大量的Ca²⁺库，但以缺乏骨骼的无脊椎动物为主题的Ca²⁺调节机制在很大程度上仍不清楚。

附：英文原文

Title: Neuroendocrine control of calcium mobilization in the fruit fly

Author: Okamoto, Naoki, Mizuno, Yosuke, Watanabe, Akira, Kohsaka, Hiroshi, Niwa, Ryusuke

Issue&Volume: 2025-10-22

Abstract: Calcium (Ca2+) is an essential mineral that must be strictly regulated to support numerous physiological activities1,2. Extracellular fluid Ca2+ is regulated in vertebrates through endocrine systems that manage the vast Ca2+ reservoir in the bones3,4,5,6, but the Ca2+ regulatory mechanisms used by invertebrates, which lack bones, remain largely unclear. Here we identified a potent peptide hormone, Capa, which is responsible for regulating extracellular fluid Ca2+ levels in the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster. Capa-deficient larvae exhibit low haemolymph Ca2+ levels, resulting in reduced locomotion and induced elongated pupae that mimic those of animals reared on a Ca2+-free diet. Capa secreted from specific neurosecretory cells acts on specialized Ca2+ storage compartments in the anterior Malpighian tubules, elevating haemolymph Ca2+. This endocrine mechanism governing Ca2+ regulation in terrestrial invertebrates resembles the parathyroid hormone system in vertebrates.

DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09670-z

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-025-09670-z