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Alcohol potentiates a pheromone signal in flies.


ABSTRACT: For decades, numerous researchers have documented the presence of the fruit fly or Drosophila melanogaster on alcohol-containing food sources. Although fruit flies are a common laboratory model organism of choice, there is relatively little understood about the ethological relationship between flies and ethanol. In this study, we find that when male flies inhabit ethanol-containing food substrates they become more aggressive. We identify a possible mechanism for this behavior. The odor of ethanol potentiates the activity of sensory neurons in response to an aggression-promoting pheromone. Finally, we observed that the odor of ethanol also promotes attraction to a food-related citrus odor. Understanding how flies interact with the complex natural environment they inhabit can provide valuable insight into how different natural stimuli are integrated to promote fundamental behaviors.

SUBMITTER: Park A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7671682 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Nov

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Alcohol potentiates a pheromone signal in flies.

Park Annie A   Tran Tracy T   Scheuermann Elizabeth A EA   Smith Dean P DP   Atkinson Nigel S NS  

eLife 20201103


For decades, numerous researchers have documented the presence of the fruit fly or <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i> on alcohol-containing food sources. Although fruit flies are a common laboratory model organism of choice, there is relatively little understood about the ethological relationship between flies and ethanol. In this study, we find that when male flies inhabit ethanol-containing food substrates they become more aggressive. We identify a possible mechanism for this behavior. The odor of  ...[more]

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