title: Neuromodulation of Courtship Drive through Tyramine-Responsive Neurons in the Drosophila Brain.
abstract: Neuromodulators influence the activities of collections of neurons and have profound impacts on animal behavior. Male courtship drive is complex and subject to neuromodulatory control. Using the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, we identified neurons in the brain (inferior posterior slope; IPS) that impact courtship drive and were controlled by tyramine-a biogenic amine related to dopamine, whose roles in most animals are enigmatic. We knocked out a tyramine-specific receptor, TyrR, which was expressed in IPS neurons. Loss of TyrR led to a striking elevation in courtship activity between males. This effect occurred only in the absence of females, as TyrR(Gal4) mutant males exhibited a wild-type preference for females. Artificial hyperactivation of IPS neurons caused a large increase in male-male courtship, whereas suppression of IPS activity decreased male-female courtship. We conclude that TyrR is a receptor for tyramine, and suggest that it serves to curb high levels of courtship activity through functioning as an inhibitory neuromodulator.
authors: Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China; Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA. Electronic address: huangj@zju.edu.cn.
authors: Jia
authors: J
authors: Huang
authors: Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA.
authors: Weiwei
authors: W
authors: Liu
authors: Institute of Insect Sciences, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China.
authors: Yi-Xiang
authors: YX
authors: Qi
authors: Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA; The Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
authors: Junjie
authors: J
authors: Luo
authors: Neuroscience Research Institute and Department of Molecular, Cellular and Developmental Biology, University of California, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA. Electronic address: craig.montell@lifesci.ucsb.edu.
authors: Craig
authors: C
authors: Montell
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000502:physiology; D003380:Courtship; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000378:metabolism*; D004331:Drosophila melanogaster / Q000502:physiology*; D008297:Male; D009474:Neurons / Q000502:physiology; D018377:Neurotransmitter Agents / Q000378:metabolism*; D017982:Receptors, Biogenic Amine / Q000378:metabolism*; D012726:Sexual Behavior, Animal; D014439:Tyramine / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D018377:Neurotransmitter Agents; D017982:Receptors, Biogenic Amine; C066175:tyramine receptor; D014439:Tyramine