Virtual Fly Brain: a global informatics hub for Drosophila neurobiology (360G-Wellcome-105023_A_14_Z)

Drosophila allows unprecedented genetic dissection of a relatively small nervous system that supports complex behaviours. Exploiting this opportunity requires intuitive tools to help users query the expanding knowledge from the literature and bulk image data, in order to generate hypotheses about neural circuits, and find reagents that target the neurons concerned. Virtual Fly Brain (VFB) is the only resource that provides this functionality,showing steadily increasing usage. We will further develop it, and lower the barriers for usersto find related Drosophila neuroanatomy and phenotypic information, and essential reagents, by: 1. Maintaining core coverage of literature and massively expanding bulk image data 2. Extending 3D image coverage to the whole adult and larval CNS 3. Increasing functionality of image, genetic, and phenotypic data available to users, including: - extending use of tools to predict overlap among neurons, structures and expression patterns - providing more comprehensive 2D and 3D image representations - allowing queries by behavioral and functional phenotype - providing access to electrophysiological data and circuit models 4. Increasing direct community input on the resource content, together with user annotation tools 5. Building a new web interface to provide intuitive navigation, including a more flexible and expanded query system