The Role of the Flabellar and Ellipsoid Bodies of the Central Complex of the Brain of Drosophila Melanogaster in the Control of Courtship Behavior and Communicative Sound Production in Males

Abstract

The role of flabellar and ellipsoid bodies of the central complex of the brain of Drosophila melanogaster males in controlling courtship behavior and the accompanying sound production was studied by comparative analysis of the characteristics of courtship and singing in wild-type flies and individuals of five mutant lines with different anatomical defects in these parts of the brain. Investigations were performed using the following fly lines: Canton S (wild-type, controls), ebo(KS263), with defects only in the ellipsoid bodies, and ebo(1041), ceb(849), ceb(892), and cba(KS96), with different levels of abnormality in both parts of the central complex. The data obtained here indicated that the flabellar and ellipsoid bodies are involved in: 1) maintaining a high level of courtship activity; 2) regulating the precision of male movements while following females; 3) in controlling the nature and stability of the sound elements from which communicative signals are constructed; 4) in regulating the rhythmic structure of signals dependent on the stability of pacemakers function; 5) establishing the relationship between behavior and the context in which it occurs.