美国洛克菲勒大学Vanessa Ruta课题组在研究中取得进展。他们开发出雄性与雄性的相互作用决定了果蝇的择偶。2025年2月13日出版的《细胞》发表了这项成果。

该研究团队从雄性和雌性的角度探讨了果蝇的配偶选择，以阐明性选择的这些关键组成部分——雌性选择和雄性竞争——如何协同工作，指导生殖策略。该研究团队发现，雄性果蝇通过在雌性果蝇的位置上穿插攻击性的翅膀摆动来抵挡竞争对手，这既可以击退竞争对手，又可以发出“歌声”，掩盖雌性对其他潜在配偶的听觉感知。两个高阶回路节点——p1a和pC1x神经元——被协调地调动起来，使雄性能够灵活地将这些对抗行为与它们的求爱表现交织在一起，确保它们坚持不懈地追求雌性，直到它们的对手动摇。

总之，他们的研究结果表明，雌性的交配决定是由雄性之间的互动决定的，这强调了雄性颠覆竞争对手的能力是其繁殖成功的关键。

据了解，许多物种的雄性都进化出了吸引雌性和击退竞争对手的行为特征。

附：英文原文

Title: Male-male interactions shape mate selection in Drosophila

Author: Tom Hindmarsh Sten, Rufei Li, Florian Hollunder, Shade Eleazer, Vanessa Ruta

Issue&Volume: 2025-02-13

Abstract: Males of many species have evolved behavioral traits to both attract females and repel rivals. Here, we explore mate selection in Drosophila from both the male and female perspective to shed light on how these key components of sexual selection—female choice and male-male competition—work in concert to guide reproductive strategies. We find that male flies fend off competing suitors by interleaving their courtship of a female with aggressive wing flicks, which both repel competitors and generate a “song” that obscures the female’s auditory perception of other potential mates. Two higher-order circuit nodes—P1a and pC1x neurons—are coordinately recruited to allow males to flexibly interleave these agonistic actions with courtship displays, assuring they persistently pursue females until their rival falters. Together, our results suggest that female mating decisions are shaped by male-male interactions, underscoring how a male’s ability to subvert his rivals is central to his reproductive success.

DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2025.01.008

Source: https://www.cell.com/cell/abstract/S0092-8674(25)00037-6