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Threshold-based ordering of sequential actions during Drosophila courtship.

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Current Biology : CB. 2019 Jan 07;29(3):426-34. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2018.12.019
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Threshold-based ordering of sequential actions during Drosophila courtship. Simpson LabDickson LabFitzgerald Lab
McKellar CE, Lillvis JL, Bath DE, Fitzgerald JE, Cannon JG, Simpson JH, Dickson BJ
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Abstract

Goal-directed animal behaviors are typically composed of sequences of motor actions whose order and timing are critical for a successful outcome. Although numerous theoretical models for sequential action generation have been proposed, few have been supported by the identification of control neurons sufficient to elicit a sequence. Here, we identify a pair of descending neurons that coordinate a stereotyped sequence of engagement actions during Drosophila melanogaster male courtship behavior. These actions are initiated sequentially but persist cumulatively, a feature not explained by existing models of sequential behaviors. We find evidence consistent with a ramp-to-threshold mechanism, in which increasing neuronal activity elicits each action independently at successively higher activity thresholds.

PMID: 30661796 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]

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Janelia Authors

Joshua Lillvis
James Fitzgerald
Barry Dickson
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