Neuronal control of suppression, initiation and completion of egg deposition in <i>Drosophila melanogaster</i>

Oliveira-Ferreira, Cristina; Gaspar, Miguel; Vasconcelos, Maria Luísa

doi:10.1101/2021.08.23.457359

Cited by 4 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 51 publications

(96 reference statements)

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“…3d, Supplementary Video 5). In line with this, optogenetically inducing abdomen bending via the activation of a small subset of abdominal ganglion neurons (OvAbg 78 also diminished threat responses (Fig. 3e).…”

Section: Mainsupporting

confidence: 69%

Mating proximity blinds threat perception.

Cazale Debat,

Scheunemann,

Day

et al. 2024

Preprint

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Romantic engagement can bias sensory perception. This 'love blindness' reflects a common behavioral principle across organisms: favoring pursuit of a coveted reward over potential risks. In the case of animal courtship, such sensory biases may support reproductive success but can also expose individuals to danger, such as predation. How do neural networks balance the trade-off between risk and reward? Here, we discover a dopamine-governed filter mechanism in male Drosophila that reduces threat perception as courtship progresses. We show that during early courtship stages, threat-activated visual neurons inhibit central courtship nodes via specific serotonergic neurons. This serotonergic inhibition prompts flies to abort courtship when they see imminent danger. However, as flies advance in the courtship process, the dopaminergic filter system reduces visual threat responses, shifting the balance from survival to mating. By recording neural activity from males as they approach mating, we demonstrate that progress in courtship is registered as dopaminergic activity levels ramping up. This dopamine signaling inhibits the visual threat detection pathway via Dop2R receptors, allowing male flies to focus on courtship when they are close to copulation. Thus, dopamine signaling biases sensory perception based on perceived goal proximity, in order to prioritize between competing behaviors.

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Section: Mainsupporting

confidence: 69%

Mating proximity blinds threat perception.

Cazale Debat,

Scheunemann,

Day

et al. 2024

Preprint

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A rise-to-threshold process for a relative-value decision

Vijayan

Wang

et al. 2023

Nature

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Whereas progress has been made in the identification of neural signals related to rapid, cued decisions1–3, less is known about how brains guide and terminate more ethologically relevant decisions in which an animal’s own behaviour governs the options experienced over minutes4–6. Drosophila search for many seconds to minutes for egg-laying sites with high relative value7,8 and have neurons, called oviDNs, whose activity fulfills necessity and sufficiency criteria for initiating the egg-deposition motor programme9. Here we show that oviDNs express a calcium signal that (1) dips when an egg is internally prepared (ovulated), (2) drifts up and down over seconds to minutes—in a manner influenced by the relative value of substrates—as a fly determines whether to lay an egg and (3) reaches a consistent peak level just before the abdomen bend for egg deposition. This signal is apparent in the cell bodies of oviDNs in the brain and it probably reflects a behaviourally relevant rise-to-threshold process in the ventral nerve cord, where the synaptic terminals of oviDNs are located and where their output can influence behaviour. We provide perturbational evidence that the egg-deposition motor programme is initiated once this process hits a threshold and that subthreshold variation in this process regulates the time spent considering options and, ultimately, the choice taken. Finally, we identify a small recurrent circuit that feeds into oviDNs and show that activity in each of its constituent cell types is required for laying an egg. These results argue that a rise-to-threshold process regulates a relative-value, self-paced decision and provide initial insight into the underlying circuit mechanism for building this process.

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Flexible neural control of transition points within the egg-laying behavioral sequence in Drosophila

Cury

2023

Nat Neurosci

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Innate behaviors are frequently comprised of ordered sequences of component actions that progress to satisfy essential drives. Progression is governed by specialized sensory cues that induce transitions between components within the appropriate context. Here we have characterized the structure of the egg-laying behavioral sequence in Drosophila and found significant variability in the transitions between component actions that affords the organism an adaptive flexibility. We identified distinct classes of interoceptive and exteroceptive sensory neurons that control the timing and direction of transitions between the terminal components of the sequence. We also identified a pair of motor neurons that enact the final transition to egg expulsion. These results provide a logic for the organization of innate behavior in which sensory information processed at critical junctures allows for flexible adjustments in component actions to satisfy drives across varied internal and external environments.

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Neuronal control of suppression, initiation and completion of egg deposition in Drosophila melanogaster

Cited by 4 publications

References 51 publications

Mating proximity blinds threat perception.

Mating proximity blinds threat perception.

A rise-to-threshold process for a relative-value decision

Flexible neural control of transition points within the egg-laying behavioral sequence in Drosophila

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