Neuroecology of alcohol risk and reward: Methanol boosts pheromones and courtship success in Drosophila melanogaster

Science Advances, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 11(14)

Published: April 2, 2025

Attraction of Drosophila melanogaster toward by-products alcoholic fermentation, especially ethanol, has been extensively studied. Previous research provided several interpretations this attraction, including potential drug abuse, or a self-medicating coping strategy after mate rejection. We posit that the ecologically adaptive value alcohol attraction not fully explored. Here, we assert simple yet vital biological rationale for preference. Flies display to fruits rich in alcohol, specifically ethanol and methanol, where contact results rapid amplification fatty acid–derived pheromones enhance courtship success. also identify olfactory sensory neurons detect these alcohols, reveal roles both aversion, show valence is balanced around concentration. Moreover, demonstrate methanol can be deadly, adult flies must therefore accurately weigh trade-off between benefits costs exposure within their naturally fermented alcohol-rich environments.

Language: Английский

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Accurate, scalable, and fully automated inference of species trees from raw genome assemblies using ROADIES

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 122(19)

Published: May 2, 2025

Current genome sequencing initiatives across a wide range of life forms offer significant potential to enhance our understanding evolutionary relationships and support transformative biological medical applications. Species trees play central role in many these applications; however, despite the widespread availability assemblies, accurate inference species remains challenging due limited automation, substantial domain expertise, computational resources required by conventional methods. To address this limitation, we present ROADIES, fully automated pipeline infer starting from raw assemblies. In contrast prominent approach, ROADIES incorporates unique strategy randomly sampling segments input genomes generate gene trees. This eliminates need for predefining set loci, limiting analyses fixed number genes, performing cumbersome annotation and/or whole alignment steps. also orthology leveraging existing discordance-aware methods that allow multicopy genes. Using genomic datasets large-scale efforts four diverse (placental mammals, pomace flies, birds, budding yeasts), show infers are comparable quality state-of-the-art studies but fraction time effort, including on with rampant tree discordance complex polyploidy. With its speed, accuracy, has vastly simplify inference, making it accessible broader scientists

Language: Английский

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Closely Related Fruit Fly Species Living at Different Latitudes Diverge in Their Circadian Clock Anatomy and Rhythmic Behavior

Journal of Biological Rhythms, Journal Year: 2018, Volume and Issue: 33(6), P. 602 - 613

Published: Sept. 11, 2018

Recently, we reported differences in the expression pattern of blue light-sensitive flavoprotein cryptochrome (CRY) and neuropeptide pigment-dispersing factor (PDF) neuronal clock network high-latitude Drosophila species, belonging to subgenus ( virilis-repleta radiation), compared with cosmopolitan D. melanogaster flies, Sophophora subgenus. Alterations rhythmic patterns activity due these might have adaptive significance for colonizing habitats and, hence, adjusting long photoperiods. Here, show that differing CRY/PDF are only present those species radiation colonized high latitudes. The mercatorum hydei a melanogaster-like behavior despite radiation. Similarly, 2 holotropical Zaprionus genus, more closely related than subgenus, retain behavior. We therefore suggest is “ancestral fly phenotype” alterations neurochemistry allowed some colonize environments.

Language: Английский

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Flies as models for circadian clock adaptation to environmental challenges

European Journal of Neuroscience, Journal Year: 2018, Volume and Issue: 51(1), P. 166 - 181

Published: Sept. 30, 2018

Life on earth is assumed to have developed in tropical regions that are characterized by regular 24 hr cycles irradiance and temperature remain the same throughout seasons. All organisms circadian clocks predict these environmental prepare advance for them. A central question chronobiology how endogenous changed order anticipate very different cyclical conditions such as extremely short long photoperiods existing close poles. Flies of family Drosophilidae can be found all over world-from tropics subarctic regions-making them unprecedented models studying evolutionary processes underlie adaptation latitudes. This review summarizes our current understanding processes. We discuss changes clock genes network brain Drosophilids may caused behavioural adaptations high

Language: Английский

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Model-Based Species Delimitation: Are Coalescent Species Reproductively Isolated?

Systematic Biology, Journal Year: 2019, Volume and Issue: 69(4), P. 708 - 721

Published: Oct. 31, 2019

A large and growing fraction of systematists define species as independently evolving lineages that may be recognized by analyzing the population genetic history alleles sampled from individuals belonging to those species. This has motivated development increasingly sophisticated statistical models rooted in multispecies coalescent process. Specifically, these allow for simultaneous estimation number present a sample phylogenetic using only DNA sequence data independent loci. These methods hold extraordinary promise increasing efficiency discovery but require extensive validation ensure they are accurate precise. Whether identified correspond would alternative recognition criteria (such measurements reproductive isolation) is currently an open question subject vigorous debate. Here, we perform empirical test making use classic model system speciation research, flies genus Drosophila. uniquely comprehensive on isolation available this system, along with data, ask whether Drosophila inferred under many decades research. We found based isolation-based inferring boundaries concordant 77% pairs. explore discuss potential explanations discrepancies. also amount prezygotic between two strong predictor posterior probability regardless pairs sympatrically or allopatrically distributed. [BPP; speciation; distance; coalescent.].

Language: Английский

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