The role of <i>fruitless</i> in specifying courtship behaviors across divergent <i>Drosophila</i> species.

ABSTRACT: Sex-specific behaviors are critical for reproduction and species survival. The sex-specifically spliced transcription factor fruitless (fru) helps establish male courtship behaviors in invertebrates. Forcing male-specific fru (fruM) splicing in Drosophila melanogaster females produces male-typical behaviors while disrupting female-specific behaviors. However, whether fru's joint role in specifying male and inhibiting female behaviors is conserved across species is unknown. We used CRISPR-Cas9 to force FruM expression in female Drosophila virilis, a species in which males and females produce sex-specific songs. In contrast to D. melanogaster, in which one fruM allele is sufficient to generate male behaviors in females, tw

SUBMITTER: Baker CA 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10936877 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature