@article {69334, title = {Sexual arousal gates visual processing during Drosophila courtship}, journal = {Nature}, volume = {595}, year = {2021}, month = {2022 Oct 7}, pages = {549 - 553}, abstract = {

Long-lasting internal arousal states motivate and pattern ongoing behaviour, enabling the temporary emergence of innate behavioural programs\ that serve the needs of an animal, such as fighting, feeding, and mating. However, how internal states shape sensory processing or behaviour remains unclear. In\ Drosophila, male flies perform a lengthy and elaborate courtship ritual that is triggered by the activation of sexually dimorphic P1 neurons1,2,3,4,5, during which they faithfully follow and sing to a female6,7. Here, by recording from males as they court a virtual {\textquoteleft}female{\textquoteright}, we gain insight into how the salience of visual cues is transformed by a male{\textquoteright}s internal arousal state to give rise to persistent courtship pursuit. The gain of LC10a visual projection neurons is selectively increased during courtship, enhancing their sensitivity to moving targets. A concise network model indicates that visual signalling through the LC10a circuit, once amplified by P1-mediated arousal, almost fully specifies a male{\textquoteright}s tracking of a female. Furthermore, P1 neuron activity correlates with ongoing fluctuations in the intensity of a male{\textquoteright}s pursuit to continuously tune the gain of the LC10a pathway. Together, these results reveal how a male{\textquoteright}s internal state can dynamically modulate the propagation of visual signals through a high-fidelity visuomotor circuit to guide his moment-to-moment performance of courtship.

}, issn = {0028-0836}, doi = {10.1038/s41586-021-03714-w}, url = {https://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03714-whttp://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03714-w.pdfhttp://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03714-w.pdfhttp://www.nature.com/articles/s41586-021-03714-w}, author = {Hindmarsh Sten, Tom and Li, Rufei and Otopalik, Adriane and Ruta, Vanessa} } @article {49318, title = {Evolution of a central neural circuit underlies Drosophila mate preferences.}, journal = {Nature}, volume = {559}, year = {2018}, month = {2018 Jul 11}, pages = {564-9}, abstract = {

Courtship rituals serve to reinforce reproductive barriers between closely related species. Drosophila melanogaster and Drosophila simulans exhibit reproductive isolation, owing in part to the fact that D. melanogaster females produce 7,11-heptacosadiene, a pheromone that promotes courtship in D. melanogaster males but suppresses courtship in D. simulans males. Here we compare pheromone-processing pathways in D. melanogaster and D. simulans males to define how these sister species endow 7,11-heptacosadiene with the opposite behavioural valence to underlie species discrimination. We show that males of both species detect 7,11-heptacosadiene using homologous peripheral sensory neurons, but this signal is differentially propagated to P1 neurons, which control courtship behaviour. A change in the balance of excitation and inhibition onto courtship-promoting neurons transforms an excitatory pheromonal cue in D. melanogaster into an inhibitory cue in D. simulans. Our results reveal how species-specific pheromone responses can emerge from conservation of peripheral detection mechanisms and diversification of central circuitry, and demonstrate how flexible nodes in neural circuits can contribute to behavioural evolution.

}, issn = {1476-4687}, doi = {10.1038/s41586-018-0322-9}, author = {Seeholzer, Laura F and Seppo, Max and Stern, David L and Ruta, Vanessa} } @article {4295, title = {A dimorphic pheromone circuit in Drosophila from sensory input to descending output.}, journal = {Nature}, volume = {468}, year = {2010}, month = {2010 Dec 2}, pages = {686-90}, abstract = {

Drosophila show innate olfactory-driven behaviours that are observed in naive animals without previous learning or experience, suggesting that the neural circuits that mediate these behaviours are genetically programmed. Despite the numerical simplicity of the fly nervous system, features of the anatomical organization of the fly brain often confound the delineation of these circuits. Here we identify a neural circuit responsive to cVA, a pheromone that elicits sexually dimorphic behaviours. We have combined neural tracing using an improved photoactivatable green fluorescent protein (PA-GFP) with electrophysiology, optical imaging and laser-mediated microlesioning to map this circuit from the activation of sensory neurons in the antennae to the excitation of descending neurons in the ventral nerve cord. This circuit is concise and minimally comprises four neurons, connected by three synapses. Three of these neurons are overtly dimorphic and identify a male-specific neuropil that integrates inputs from multiple sensory systems and sends outputs to the ventral nerve cord. This neural pathway suggests a means by which a single pheromone can elicit different behaviours in the two sexes.

}, keywords = {Acetates, Animal, Animals, Arthropod Antennae, Drosophila melanogaster, Drosophila Proteins, Female, Male, Nerve Tissue Proteins, Neuroanatomical Tract-Tracing Techniques, Odors, Oleic Acids, Olfactory Pathways, Olfactory Perception, Pheromones, Physical Stimulation, Sensory Receptor Cells, Sex Characteristics, Sexual Behavior, Transcription Factors}, issn = {1476-4687}, doi = {10.1038/nature09554}, author = {Ruta, Vanessa and Datta, Sandeep Robert and Vasconcelos, Maria Lu{\'\i}sa and Freeland, Jessica and Looger, Loren L and Axel, Richard} }