Using a female-specific isoform of <i>doublesex</i> to explore male-specific hearing in mosquitoes.

ABSTRACT: Animal reproduction relies on elaborate divisions of labor, and multiple dimorphisms, between the sexes. Primary dimorphisms affect core reproductive elements; secondary dimorphisms affect indirect traits, including complex behaviors. Male disease-transmitting mosquitoes locate female mating partners acoustically before copulation (phonotaxis). Male ears-and hearing performance-have thus evolved to become substantially more complex, partly due to sex-specific expression of the gene doublesex (dsx). dsx links primary and secondary dimorphisms: spermatogenesis and ear morphogenesis share considerable molecular overlap; both depend on dsx expression patterns. Here, we combine functional-anatomical analyses of mosquito ears with transcriptomic profiling to dissect <

SUBMITTER: Su MP 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12496202 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature