| Title: | A bidirectional circuit switch reroutes pheromone signals in male and female brains |
| Author(s): | Kohl J; Ostrovsky AD; Frechter S; Jefferis GS; |
| Address: | "Division of Neurobiology, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge CB2 0QH, UK. Division of Neurobiology, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Cambridge CB2 0QH, UK. Electronic address: jefferis@mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk" |
| DOI: | 10.1016/j.cell.2013.11.025 |
| ISSN/ISBN: | 1097-4172 (Electronic) 0092-8674 (Print) 0092-8674 (Linking) |
| Abstract: | "The Drosophila sex pheromone cVA elicits different behaviors in males and females. First- and second-order olfactory neurons show identical pheromone responses, suggesting that sex genes differentially wire circuits deeper in the brain. Using in vivo whole-cell electrophysiology, we now show that two clusters of third-order olfactory neurons have dimorphic pheromone responses. One cluster responds in females; the other responds in males. These clusters are present in both sexes and share a common input pathway, but sex-specific wiring reroutes pheromone information. Regulating dendritic position, the fruitless transcription factor both connects the male-responsive cluster and disconnects the female-responsive cluster from pheromone input. Selective masculinization of third-order neurons transforms their morphology and pheromone responses, demonstrating that circuits can be functionally rewired by the cell-autonomous action of a switch gene. This bidirectional switch, analogous to an electrical changeover switch, provides a simple circuit logic to activate different behaviors in males and females" |
| Keywords: | "Animals Behavior, Animal Brain/metabolism Drosophila Proteins/metabolism Drosophila melanogaster/*physiology Female Male Nerve Tissue Proteins/metabolism Olfactory Receptor Neurons/*metabolism Pheromones/*metabolism Sex Characteristics Signal Transduction;" |
| Notes: | "MedlineKohl, Johannes Ostrovsky, Aaron D Frechter, Shahar Jefferis, Gregory S X E eng WT_/Wellcome Trust/United Kingdom MC_U105188491/MRC_/Medical Research Council/United Kingdom Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't 2013/12/24 Cell. 2013 Dec 19; 155(7):1610-23. doi: 10.1016/j.cell.2013.11.025" |
