Sexual arousal gates visual processing during Drosophila courtship.

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 neurons^1-5, during which they faithfully follow and sing to a female^6,7. Here, by recording from males as they court a virtual 'female', we gain insight into how the salience of visual cues is transformed by a male's internal arousal state to give rise to persistent courtship pursuit. The gain of LC10a visual projection neurons is selectivel

SUBMITTER: Hindmarsh Sten T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8973426 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature