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Natural variation in the strength and direction of male mating preferences for female pheromones in Drosophila melanogaster.
Pischedda, Alison; Shahandeh, Michael P; Cochrane, Wesley G; Cochrane, Veronica A; Turner, Thomas L.
Affiliation
  • Pischedda A; Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, United States of America.
  • Shahandeh MP; Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, United States of America.
  • Cochrane WG; Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, United States of America.
  • Cochrane VA; Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, United States of America ; Department of Cell and Developmental Biology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, Oregon, United States of America.
  • Turner TL; Department of Ecology, Evolution and Marine Biology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, California, United States of America.
PLoS One ; 9(1): e87509, 2014.
Article in En | MEDLINE | ID: mdl-24489930
Many animal species communicate using chemical signals. In Drosophila, cuticular hydrocarbons (CHCs) are involved in species and sexual identification, and have long been thought to act as stimulatory pheromones as well. However, a previous study reported that D. melanogaster males were more attracted to females that were lacking CHCs. This surprising result is consistent with several evolutionary hypotheses but is at odds with other work demonstrating that female CHCs are attractive to males. Here, we investigated natural variation in male preferences for female pheromones using transgenic flies that cannot produce CHCs. By perfuming females with CHCs and performing mate choice tests, we found that some male genotypes prefer females with pheromones, some have no apparent preference, and at least one male genotype prefers females without pheromones. This variation provides an excellent opportunity to further investigate the mechanistic causes and evolutionary implications of divergent pheromone preferences in D. melanogaster males.
Subject(s)

Full text: 1 Collection: 01-internacional Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Pheromones / Sexual Behavior, Animal / Drosophila melanogaster Aspects: Patient_preference Limits: Animals Language: En Journal: PLoS One Journal subject: CIENCIA / MEDICINA Year: 2014 Document type: Article Affiliation country: Estados Unidos Country of publication: Estados Unidos

Full text: 1 Collection: 01-internacional Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Pheromones / Sexual Behavior, Animal / Drosophila melanogaster Aspects: Patient_preference Limits: Animals Language: En Journal: PLoS One Journal subject: CIENCIA / MEDICINA Year: 2014 Document type: Article Affiliation country: Estados Unidos Country of publication: Estados Unidos