Charlie Ake, Eric Cervantes, Christal Garcia, Hannah Hammons, Lisa Obawole, Isabella Morton, Lexie Pham, Brandon Salas, Sadie Stacks, Luis Villarreal, Faith York, Samaneh Biglari, Eshani Yeragi, Elizabeth Lillvis, Matthew Moulton, Alex Keene
Tau aggregation is a hallmark of neurodegenerative diseases including Alzheimer's disease and frontotemporal dementia. Here, we tested how an obesogenic diet affects a Drosophila tauopathy model across multiple behavioral assays. In group-housed flies, mutant tau shortened lifespan, and this effect was worsened by a high-sugar diet. We also examined sleep, motor behavior, and sensory responsiveness. Tau-expressing flies differed from controls in all assays, but these deficits were not further exacerbated by diet. These findings reveal assay-specific diet effects and highlight the value of using multiple behavioral measures to characterize tau mutant phenotypes.