Fig. 6. Targeted ablation of CCAP neurons causes defects at eclosion and in post-eclosion events. (A,B) Pharate KO (A) and control (B) animals at eclosion. While both flies inflated their ptilinum (arrow), the abdomen of KO pharate adults failed to distend and exert traction on the internal surface of the puparium. White arrowheads indicate outer limits of abdomen; black bars indicate width of puparium. (C) Adult KO animals did not inflate wings (arrow) or correctly tan the cuticle. White arrows indicate dimples in dorsal thorax at insertion point of thoracic musculature. (D) Control adult of similar age (2- to 4-day old). (E) Eclosion in control and KO animals. Eclosion behaviors (red bars; triangles represent 10 bouts of eclosion peristalses) were preceded by the entry of air into the trachea (Air) and by the deployment of the ptilinum (EP). Successful extrication from the puparium is indicated (Eclosion). Times represent the average length of each interval±s.e.m.; n=10 for each group, except for eclosion events themselves where n=9 for KO animals (one animal of the 10 animals monitored failed to escape the puparium). The most noticeable difference between KO and control pharate adults was that the former showed many more bouts of eclosion behavior before emerging from the puparium, due primarily the poor traction exerted by the abdomen on the inside walls of the puparium as seen in A.