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image/svg+xml Jakob Voss, based on art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina and Beao Closed Access logo, derived from PLoS Open Access logo. This version with transparent background. http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Closed_Access_logo_transparent.svg Jakob Voss, based on art designer at PLoS, modified by Wikipedia users Nina and Beao
Nature
Article . 2010 . Peer-reviewed
License: Springer TDM
Data sources: Crossref
Nature
Article . 2011
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A dimorphic pheromone circuit in Drosophila from sensory input to descending output

Authors: Loren L. Looger; Richard Axel; Sandeep Robert Datta; Sandeep Robert Datta; Maria Luisa Vasconcelos; Maria Luisa Vasconcelos; Vanessa Ruta; +1 Authors

A dimorphic pheromone circuit in Drosophila from sensory input to descending output

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

Arthropod Antennae, Male, Sex Characteristics, Sensory Receptor Cells, Nerve Tissue Proteins, Oleic Acids, Olfactory Pathways, Acetates, Olfactory Perception, Pheromones, Neuroanatomical Tract-Tracing Techniques, Sexual Behavior, Animal, Drosophila melanogaster, Physical Stimulation, Odorants, Animals, Drosophila Proteins, Female, Transcription Factors

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Powered by OpenAIRE graph
citations
This is an alternative to the "Influence" indicator, which also reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Citations provided by BIP!
popularity
This indicator reflects the "current" impact/attention (the "hype") of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Popularity provided by BIP!
influence
This indicator reflects the overall/total impact of an article in the research community at large, based on the underlying citation network (diachronically).
BIP!Influence provided by BIP!
impulse
This indicator reflects the initial momentum of an article directly after its publication, based on the underlying citation network.
BIP!Impulse provided by BIP!
308
Top 1%
Top 1%
Top 1%