A Hormonal Signaling Cascade During an Early Adult Critical Period Required for Courtship Memory Retention in Drosophila

Authors

Sang Soo Lee, University of California, Riverside
Yike Ding, University of California, Riverside
Natalie Karapetians, University of California, Riverside
Crisalejandra Rivera-Perez, Department of Biological , Florida International UniversityFollow
Fernando G. Noriega, Department of Biological Sciences and Biomolecular Sciences Institute, Florida International UniversityFollow
Micheal E. Adams, University of California, Riverside

Date of this Version

9-14-2017

Document Type

Article

Rights

default

Abstract

Formation and expression of memories are critical for context-dependent decision making. In Drosophila, a courting male rejected by a mated female subsequently courts less avidly when paired with a virgin female, a behavioral modification attributed to “courtship memory.” Here we show the critical role of hormonal state for maintenance of courtship memory. Ecdysis-triggering hormone (ETH) is essential for courtship memory through regulation of juvenile hormone (JH) levels in adult males. Reduction of JH levels via silencing of ETH signaling genes impairs short-term courtship memory, a phenotype rescuable by the JH analog methoprene. JH-deficit-induced memory impairment involves rapid decay rather than failure of memory acquisition. A critical period governs memory performance during the first 3 days of adulthood. Using sex-peptide-expressing “pseudo-mated” trainers, we find that robust courtship memory elicited in the absence of aversive chemical mating cues also is dependent on ETH-JH signaling. Finally, we find that JH acts through dopaminergic neurons and conclude that an ETH-JH-dopamine signaling cascade is required during a critical period for promotion of social-context-dependent memory.

DOI

10.1016/j.cub.2017.08.017

Identifier

FIDC002162

Comments

Post Print Version.

Copyright Elsevier.

Recommended Citation

Soo Lee, Sang; Ding, Yike; Karapetians, Natalie; Rivera-Perez, Crisalejandra; Noriega, Fernando G.; and Adams, Micheal E., "A Hormonal Signaling Cascade During an Early Adult Critical Period Required for Courtship Memory Retention in Drosophila" (2017). Biomolecular Sciences Institute: Faculty Publications. 30.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/biomolecular_fac/30