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PubMedDate not supplied

Agaricus subrufescens, a cultivated edible and medicinal mushroom, and its synonyms.

Agaricus subrufescens Peck was cultivated first in the late 1800s in eastern North America. The type consists partly of cultivated material and partly of field-collected specimens. Once a popular market mushroom, the species faded from commerce in the early 20th century. More recently, a mushroom species growing wild in Brazil has been introduced into cultivation in Brazil, Japan and elsewhere. This Brazilian mushroom has been referred to by various names, most commonly as A. blazei Murrill (sensu Heinemann) and most recently as A. brasiliensis Wasser et al. The author first cultivated A. subrufescens in 1981 and has grown and studied Brazilian isolates since 1992. The species has an amphithallic pattern of reproduction. Based on DNA sequence analysis of the rDNA ITS region and on mating studies and genetic analysis of hybrid progeny, there is a strong case for conspecificity of the Brazilian mushrooms with A. subrufescens. Based on a study of the type and other data, the recent lectotypification of A. subrufescens is accepted. Data are presented on mushrooms of diverse geographical origins, including A. rufotegulis Nauta from western Europe, another apparent conspecific. A possible role for interpopulational hybridization in current populations of A. subrufescens is proposed. The agronomic history of the species is reviewed.

Agaricus↗
PubMed2003

Survey of retail alfalfa sprouts and mushrooms for the presence of Escherichia coil O157:H7, Salmonella, and Listeria with BAX, and evaluation of this polymerase chain reaction-based system with experimentally contaminated samples.

BAX, a polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based pathogen detection system, was used to survey retail sprouts and mushrooms for contamination with Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella, Listeria spp., and Listeria monocytogenes. No Salmonella or E. coli O157:H7 was detected in the 202 mushroom and 206 alfalfa sprout samples screened. L. monocytogenes was detected in one sprout sample, and seven additional sprout samples tested positive for the genus Listeria. BAX also detected Listeria species in 17 of the mushroom samples. Only 6 of 850 PCR assays (0.7%) failed to amplify control DNA, and therefore reagent failures and the inhibition of PCR by plant compounds were rare. The sensitivity of the detection system was evaluated by assaying samples inoculated with 10 CFU of each of the pathogens. One hundred seventy-two alfalfa sprout samples were inoculated with E. coli O157:H7, and two sets of 130 samples were experimentally contaminated with Salmonella Enteritidis and L. monocytogenes. The frequency of detection depended on the protocols used for inoculation and culturing. Inoculation of samples with approximately 10 CFU from frozen stocks yielded detection rates of 87.5 and 94.5% for L. monocylogenes and Salmonella Enteritidis, respectively, in mushrooms. The corresponding rates for alfalfa sprouts were 94.5 and 76.3%. The E. coli O157:H7 detection rate was 100% for mushrooms but only 48.6% for sprouts when standard BAX culture protocols were used. The substitution of an overnight incubation in modified E. coli medium for the 3-h brain heart infusion incubation increased the rate of E. coli O157:H7 detection to 75% for experimentally contaminated sprouts. The detection rate was 100% when E. coli O157:H7 cells from a fresh overnight culture were used for the inoculation. Test sensitivity is therefore influenced by the type of produce involved and is probably related to the growth of pathogens in the resuscitation and enrichment media.

Agaricales↗
PubMed2004

Antibacterial effect of water-soluble arrowroot (Puerariae radix) tea extracts on foodborne pathogens in ground beef and mushroom soup.

Antimicrobial activity of water-soluble arrowroot tea extract was evaluated against Escherichia coli O157:H7, Salmonella enterica Serotype Enteritidis, Listeria monocytogenes, and Staphylococcus aureus in ground beef and mushroom soup. The concentrations of arrowroot tea used were 0, 3, and 6% (wt/wt) for ground beef and 0, 1, 5, and 10% (wt/vol) for mushroom soup. Samples without tea extract were considered controls. Each sample was stored for 0, 1, 3, 5, and 7 days at 7 degrees C for ground beef and for 0, 1, 3, and 5 days at 35 degrees C for mushroom soup. On each sampling time, proper dilutions were spread plated on each pathogen-specific agar. Viable cell counts of each pathogen were performed after incubation at 35 degrees C for 24 to 48 h. For ground beef, Salmonella Enteritidis and L. monocytogenes were slightly suppressed by approximately 1.5 log, compared with the control, on day 7 at 3 and 6% arrowroot tea treatment. For mushroom soup, all test pathogens were suppressed by 6.5, 4.7, 3.4, and 4.3 log at 5% and 6.0, 4.7, 5.0, and 4.3 log at 10% against E. coli O157:H7, Salmonella Enteritidis, L. monocytogenes, and S. aureus, respectively, compared with the control on day 5. Mushroom soup with 1% arrowroot tea also showed 2.3- and 2.7-log growth suppression of Salmonella Enteritidis and S. aureus, respectively, compared with the control on day 5. This study showed that the use of arrowroot tea would effectively inhibit the microbial growth of both gram-negative and gram-positive foodborne pathogens in various foods, especially liquid foods.

Agaricales↗
PubMed1999

Organization of olfactory and multimodal afferent neurons supplying the calyx and pedunculus of the cockroach mushroom bodies.

The mushroom bodies of neopteran insects are considered to be higher olfactory centers because their calyces receive abundant collaterals of projection neurons from the antennal lobes. However, intracellular recordings of mushroom body efferent neurons demonstrate that they respond to multimodal stimuli, implying that the mushroom bodies receive a variety of sensory cues. The present account describes new features of the organization of afferent neurons supplying the calyces of the cockroach Periplaneta americana. Afferent terminals segment the calyces into discrete zones, I, II, III, and IIIA, which receive afferents from 1) two discrete populations of sexually isomorphic olfactory glomeruli, 2) two types of male-specific olfactory glomeruli, 3) the optic lobes, and 4) multimodal interneurons that originate in protocerebral neuropils. In addition, intracellular recordings and dye fills show that at least four morphologically distinct GABAergic elements link many regions of the protocerebrum to the calyces. A new type of touch-sensitive centrifugal neuron has been identified terminating in the pedunculus. The dendrites of this afferent reside in satellite neuropil, beneath the mushroom body's medial lobe, which is supplied by collaterals from medial lobe efferent neurons and by terminals from the central complex. The role of this centrifugal cell in odorant sampling is considered. Golgi impregnation identifies other afferents in proximal regions of the calyx (zone IIIA) that also originate from satellite neuropils, suggesting major reafference from the medial lobes channeled through this region. The relevance of multimodal supply to the calyx in odorant discrimination is discussed as are comparisons between mushroom body organization in this phylogenetically basal neopteran and other taxa.

Animals↗
PubMed2000

Proliferation and programmed cell death of neuronal precursors in the mushroom bodies of the honeybee.

We have studied proliferation and programmed cell death in the brain of the honeybee during metamorphosis. DNA fragmentation detection using the TUNEL method combined with 5-bromodeoxyuridine incorporation experiments reveal that in the mushroom bodies neurogenesis is terminated by extensive apoptosis. Proliferation of mushroom body neuroblasts is active until the fourth day of pupal development, ceasing abruptly within 1 day after the onset of apoptosis in the mushroom body proliferative clusters. Inside the mushroom bodies, apoptosis spreads from the apical ends of proliferative clusters, beneath the brain's surface, toward the basal ones. The distributions of apoptotic cells and those in the S phase of the cell cycle overlap significantly. Electron microscopic analysis gives further evidence that mushroom body neuroblasts themselves undergo programmed cell death. We suggest that programmed cell death may be the main factor controlling the final number of Kenyon cells produced during metamorphosis. The overlap in time and space between proliferation and apoptosis raises the question of whether the neuronal precursors switch to programmed cell death during the progression of the cell cycle, or afterwards.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

[Biologically active compounds of edible mushrooms and their beneficial impact on health].

Edible mushrooms are valuable a source of biologically active compounds. Some are used in the prophylaxis and therapy of such diseases as cancer and cardiovascular disease. Their antitumor mechanism is complex. The biologically active substances in mushrooms decrease DNA damage, reduce carcinogen concentrations and their activation, inhibit the growth of cancer cells by scavenging free radicals, stimulate the immune system, and induce tumor cell apoptosis. The stimulation of the immune system by the biologically active compounds in edible mushrooms protects against cold, flu, infections, well as AIDS by inhibition of viral replication. Mushrooms contain effective substances which decrease the LDL fraction of cholesterol in blood. They also prevent the accumulation of serum triaclyglycerols, thus decreasing the risk of developing cardiovascular disease. The therapeutic properties of mushrooms result from the specific polysaccharides, such as beta-glucans and chitosans, that are present in the fructification of fungi.

Adjuvants, Immunologic↗
PubMed2004

[Identification of edible mushrooms by Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy].

In this paper, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) was used to identify edible mushrooms belonging to Auriculariales, Aphyllophorales, and Agaricales of Basidiomycotina. Vibrational spectra of fruiting bodies of ten species belonging to nine different genera of mushrooms (one is cultivated, and the others are wild growing) were recorded. The spectra were divided into five regions, i.e. 3 050 to 2 800 cm(-1), 1 750 to 1 500 cm(-1), 1 500 to 1 200 cm(-1), 1 200 to 950 cm(-1), and 950 to 700 cm(-1). These regions contain characteristic bands among different mushrooms. According to the characteristic bands in the five regions, different species of mushrooms can be identified. Vibrational spectra in the interval between 950 and 700 cm(-1) could serve as fingerprints to discriminate different genera of mushrooms.

Agaricales↗
PubMed2006

Mosaicplasty with photooxidized, mushroom shaped, bovine, osteochondral xenografts in experimental sheep.

The goal was to study the performance of mushroom shaped, photooxidized, osteochondral grafts in mosaicplasty focusing on graft stability and survival. Mushroom shaped, photooxidized grafts (6 mm for the cartilaginous head of the mushroom, 3 mm for the stem) were implanted in the medial femoral condyle of 10 sheep. Four transplants were inserted per condyle in an overlapping fashion using the pressfit technique (n=40 grafts in 10 condyles). The grafts were followed for 6 and 12 months. Semi-quantitative evaluation of graft performance was performed using a validated score system. All grafts were mechanically stable at 6 and 12 months with one exception, where the mushroom head broke off. The formation of cystic lesions in the subchondral bone area was minimal. Repopulation of the old photooxidized cartilage was noticed with cells invading the matrix from the subchondral bone area and also from the pannus on the surface. Fusion between host and graft cartilage was observed in some of the grafts at 12 months, while remodeling of the calcified cartilage zone and tidemark was noticed in all grafts. Results scored significantly better for the 6 months compared to the 12 months group if cartilage surface integrity was compared (p<0.05). In all other variables no significant differences were found between groups. Despite moderate graft recession in the 12 months group partial fusion of grafts and functional results were satisfactory. The photooxidized mushroom shaped osteochondral transplants may be a suitable type of graft for functional results in cartilage resurfacing if stable anchorage of the grafts can be achieved.

Animals↗
PubMed1991

Provocation tests in extrinsic allergic alveolitis in mushroom workers.

The clinical diagnosis of extrinsic allergic alveolitis can be supported by a positive provocation test. Twenty-eight common mushroom (Agaricus bisporus) workers, 4 oyster mushroom (Pleurotus ostreatus) workers and 6 Shii Take mushroom (Lentinus edodes) workers, whose medical history indicated a possible extrinsic allergic alveolitis, were examined. The provocation test consisted of a control day, an exposure day, and half a day of follow-up observation. On the control and exposure days, the body temperature, leucocyte count and lung function were measured every 2 h. The chest X-ray and arterial blood gas sample were taken once. The exposure consisted of a 1-h presence on the common mushroom farm in spawning conditions or inhaling a suspension of spores of Pleurotus or Shii-Take in the laboratory. Eighteen of the 28 people employed on the common mushroom farm, all 4 Pleurotus workers and 4 of the 6 Shii-Take workers were diagnosed as having extrinsic allergic alveolitis, according to the following criteria: a positive history and 2 or more of the following findings: increase in leucocyte count, rise in temperature and decrease in inspiratory vital capacity (IVC) and total lung capacity (TLC).

Adult↗
PubMed1994

Odorant-induced oscillations in the mushroom bodies of the locust.

Kenyon cells are the intrinsic interneurons of the mushroom bodies in the insect brain, a center for olfactory and multimodal processing and associative learning. These neurons are small (3-8 microns soma diameter) and numerous (340,000 and 400,000 in the bee and cockroach brains, respectively). In Drosophila, Kenyon cells are the dominant site of expression of the dunce, DC0, and rutabaga gene products, enzymes in the cAMP cascade whose absence leads to specific defects in olfactory learning. In honeybees, the volume of the mushroom body neurophils may depend on the age or social status of the individual. Although the anatomy of these neurons has been known for nearly a century, their physiological properties and the principles of information processing in the circuits that they form are totally unknown. This article provides a first such characterization. The activity of Kenyon cells was recorded in vivo from locust brains with intracellular and local field potential electrodes during olfactory processing. Kenyon cells had a high input impedance (approximately 1 G omega at the soma). They produced action potentials upon depolarization, and consistently showed spike adaptation during long depolarizing current pulses. They generally displayed a low resting level of spike activity in the absence of sensory stimulation, despite a large background of spontaneous synaptic activity, and showed no intrinsic bursting behavior. Presentation of an airborne odor, but not air alone, to an antenna evoked spatially coherent field potential oscillations in the ipsilateral mushroom body, with a frequency of approximately 20 Hz. The frequency of these oscillations was independent of the nature of the odorant. Short bouts of oscillations sometimes occurred spontaneously, that is, in the absence of odorant stimulation. Autocorrelograms of the local field potentials in the absence of olfactory stimulation revealed small peaks at +/- 50 msec, suggesting an intrinsic tendency of the mushroom body networks to oscillate at 20 Hz. Such oscillatory behavior could not be seen from local field potential recordings in the antennal lobes, and may thus be generated in the mushroom body, or via feedback interactions with downstream neurons in the protocerebrum. During the odor-induced oscillations, the membrane potential of Kenyon cells oscillated around the resting level, under the influence of excitatory inputs phase-locked to the field activity. Each phasic wave of depolarization in a Kenyon cell could be amplified by intrinsic excitable properties of the dendritic membrane, and sometimes led to one action potential, whose timing was phase-locked to the population oscillations.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 400 WORDS)

Animals↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Lack of carcinogenesis by the baked mushroom Agaricus bisporus in mice: different feeding regimen [corrected].

Agaricus bisporus, the cultivated mushroom of the western hemisphere, was baked at 220-230 degrees C for 10 minutes and subsequently fed to mice for 12 hours each day, five days each week throughout their life. After each feeding cycle, the animals received a well-balanced semisynthetic diet for 12 hours each day for five days plus the remaining two full days each week. The estimated average daily mushroom consumption per animal was 4.8 g for a female and 4.2 g for a male. Randomly bred Swiss mice, six weeks old at the start of the experiment, were used. In the baked mushroom-fed group, the incidences of tumors in the lungs, blood vessels, cecum, and colon increased when compared to the untreated controls. These increases were not, however, statistically significant. In another previous experiment, both the raw and the baked mushrooms, when used in different feeding regimens, induced statistically significant incidences of cancers in several organs of the mice. It is possible that the negative finding in the current study was due to insufficient mushroom consumption.

Adenocarcinoma↗
PubMed1998

Mushroom bodies of the cockroach: their participation in place memory.

Insects and other arthropods use visual landmarks to remember the location of their nest, or its equivalent. However, so far, only olfactory learning and memory have been claimed to be mediated by any particular brain region, notably the mushroom bodies. Here we describe the results of experiments that demonstrate that the mushroom bodies of the cockroach (Periplaneta americana), already shown to be involved in multimodal sensory processing, play a crucial role in place memory. Behavioral tests, based on paradigms similar to those originally used to demonstrate place memory in rats, demonstrate a rapid improvement in the ability of individual cockroaches to locate a hidden target when its position is provided by distant visual cues. Bilateral lesions of selected areas of the mushroom bodies abolish this ability but leave unimpaired the ability to locate a visible target. The present results demonstrate that the integrity of the pedunculus and medial lobe of a single mushroom body is required for place memory. The results are comparable to the results obtained from hippocampal lesions in rats and are relevant to recent studies on the effects of ablations of Drosophila mushroom bodies on locomotion.

Animals↗
PubMed2003

A unique mushroom body substructure common to basal cockroaches and to termites.

The mushroom bodies of the cockroach Periplaneta americana are made up of intrinsic neurons (class I and class II Kenyon cells) with dendrites in a dorsal calyx and axons that bifurcate into medial and vertical lobes. Here, we describe a substructure of the cockroach mushroom bodies composed of a previously unrecognized class of Kenyon cells with distinct morphologies. The embryonically produced class III Kenyon cells form a separate accessory calyx below the calyx proper. The medial branches of class III Kenyon cell axons form the previously described "gamma bulb," whereas the vertical branches leave the vertical lobe to form a toroidal "lobelet" around the posterior surface. Taking advantage of the morphologically and immunochemically distinct nature of the lobelet, we have attempted to determine the distribution of this unique structure in other insects of the taxon Dictyoptera (cockroaches, mantises, and termites). Our data indicate that the lobelet is present only in basal cockroaches and in termites, supporting existing theories of a close phylogenetic relationship between these groups. Higher termites possess a duplicated lobe structure due to immense elaboration of the processes of class III Kenyon cells. The degree of complexity in the mushroom body lobes of termites agrees with current taxonomic arrangements of the Isoptera based on non-neural morphological and DNA sequence analyses. It thus appears that the evolution of the Dictyoptera has been accompanied by increasing complexity of the mushroom bodies, achieved in part through the further specialization and elaboration of a subset of Kenyon cells.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

Development and morphology of class II Kenyon cells in the mushroom bodies of the honey bee, Apis mellifera.

Class II Kenyon cells, defined by their early birthdate and unique dendritic arborizations, have been observed in the mushroom bodies of evolutionarily divergent insects. In the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster, Class II (also called clawed) Kenyon cells are well known for their extensive reorganization that occurs during metamorphosis. The present account reports for the first time the occurrence of mushroom body reorganization during metamorphosis in holometabolous insect species outside of the Diptera. In the honey bee, Apis mellifera, Class II Kenyon cells show signs of degeneration and undergo a subtle reshaping of their axons during metamorphosis. Unlike in Drosophila, reorganization of Class II Kenyon cells in the honey bee does not involve the loss of axon branches. In contrast, the mushroom bodies of closely related hymenopteran species, the polistine wasps, undergo a much more dramatic restructuring near the end of metamorphosis. Immunohistochemistry, dextran fills, and Golgi impregnations illuminate the heterogeneous nature of Class II Kenyon cells in the developing and adult honey bee brain, with subpopulations differing in the location of dendritic arbors within the calyx, and branching pattern in the lobes. Furthermore, polyclonal antibodies against the catalytic subunit of Drosophila protein kinase A (anti-DC0) label an unusual and previously undescribed trajectory for these neurons. The observed variations in morphology indicate that subpopulations of Class II Kenyon cells in the honey bee can likely be further defined by significant differences in their specific connections and functions within the mushroom bodies.

Animals↗
PubMed2004

F-actin at identified synapses in the mushroom body neuropil of the insect brain.

The distribution of f-actin stained by fluorescent phalloidin was investigated in the brain of several insect species, with a special focus on the mushroom body. For localizing f-actin in identified neurons and at synapses, additional staining with fluorescent dextrans and anti-synapsin I immunostaining was employed. Intense f-actin staining was consistently found in synaptic complexes of the mushroom body calyces (calycal microglomeruli [MG]). These MG contain a central core of presynaptic boutons, predominantly belonging to deutocerebral cholinergic excitatory projection neurons, which are surrounded by a shell of numerous Kenyon cell (KC) dendritic tips. In the cricket Gryllus bimaculatus, high-resolution confocal laser scanning imaging revealed colocalization of f-actin with KC dendritic spine parts within MG. Although presynaptic boutons appear to be mainly devoid of f-actin-phalloidin fluorescence, there appears to be an accumulation of f-actin in KC dendritic spines synaptically contacting the boutons. Electron microscopy of boutons and dextran-stained KC dendrites revealed their pre- and postsynaptic sites, with KCs being strictly postsynaptic elements. Their subsynaptic membrane appositions are considered to be associated with f-actin. Focal accumulation of f-actin in the dendritic tips of KCs was found to be a general feature of MG, with either spheroidal or indented boutons of different sizes, as encountered in the mushroom bodies of the cricket, honey bee, ant, and fruit fly. The structural similarities of calycal MG and f-actin accumulation in KC dendrites with cerebellar microglomeruli are considered comparatively. The accumulation of f-actin in KC dendrites is discussed in view of mushroom body plasticity and its potential role in learning and memory formation.

Actins↗
PubMed2004

A simple mushroom body in an African scarabid beetle.

This account describes novel mushroom body organization in a coleopteran insect, the African fruit chafer Pachnoda marginata. Each of its prominent mushroom bodies possesses a pair of simple calyces comprising two populations of Kenyon cells, the dendrites of which are organized into a central and an annular zone. Kenyon cells of the central zone extend their dendrites downward and toward the perimeter of the calyx. Their axon-like processes in the pedunculus are densely packed to make up a distinctive shaft of neuropil. Toward the front of the brain, the shafts, one from each calyx, bifurcate to provide a pair of subdivisions in the medial and vertical lobes. Dendrites of Kenyon cells supplying the annular zone extend from the calyx perimeter toward its center. Axons from the annular zones of both calyces together provide a sleeve of axons that ensheaths the two shafts. Sleeve axons bifurcate to provide a second pair of divisions in each of the lobes. These arrangements provide each lobe with a discrete representation of the two Kenyon cell populations of the two calyces. Kenyon cells supplying the central zone have dendritic morphologies reminiscent of class II clawed Kenyon cells that supply the gamma lobes in other taxa. Kenyon cells supplying axons to the sleeve are suggestive of class III Kenyon cell morphologies described from cockroaches and termites. Elaborate intrinsic neurons, comparable to exotic intrinsic neurons in the honey bee gamma lobes, have processes that interact with shaft axons. The present observations suggest that mushroom bodies of Pachnoda represent either a basal organization entirely lacking class I Kenyon cells or an evolutionary modification in which there is no clear morphological distinction of class I and II Kenyon cells. In either case, cellular organization in Pachnoda's mushroom body is simple compared with that of other taxa.

Animals↗
PubMed2006

Synaptogenesis in the mushroom body calyx during metamorphosis in the honeybee Apis mellifera: an electron microscopic study.

The goals of this study are to determine relationships between synaptogenesis and morphogenesis within the mushroom body calyx of the honeybee Apis mellifera and to find out how the microglomerular structure characteristic for the mature calyx is established during metamorphosis. We show that synaptogenesis in the mushroom body calycal neuropile starts in early metamorphosis (stages P1-P3), before the microglomerular structure of the neuropile is established. The initial step of synaptogenesis is characterized by the rare occurrence of distinct synaptic contacts. A massive synaptogenesis starts at stage P5, which coincides with the formation of microglomeruli, structural units of the calyx that are composed of centrally located presynaptic boutons surrounded by spiny postsynaptic endings. Microglomeruli are assembled either via accumulation of fine postsynaptic processes around preexisting presynaptic boutons or via ingrowth of thin neurites of presynaptic neurons into premicroglomeruli, tightly packed groups of spiny endings. During late pupal stages (P8-P9), addition of new synapses and microglomeruli is likely to continue. Most of the synaptic appositions formed there are made by boutons (putative extrinsic mushroom body neurons) into small postsynaptic profiles that do not exhibit presynaptic specializations (putative intrinsic mushroom body neurons). Synapses between presynaptic boutons characteristic of the adult calyx first appear at stage P8 but remain rare toward the end of metamorphosis. Our observations are consistent with the hypothesis that most of the synapses established during metamorphosis provide the structural basis for afferent information flow to calyces, whereas maturation of local synaptic circuitry is likely to occur after adult emergence.

Animals↗
PubMed2002

Mushroom bodies are not required for courtship behavior by normal and sexually mosaic Drosophila.

To elucidate the effect of feminization of male Drosophila brain cells on courtship control, we performed a large scale screening of expression drivers that can suppress male-specific behavior with transformer gene expression. Two drivers caused essentially total courtship suppression. The expression pattern of these drivers did not show any correlation with the mushroom bodies or the antennal lobes, the regions that have been suggested to play important roles in courtship. Ablation of mushroom bodies using hydroxyurea treatment did not affect this courtship suppression. The ablation did not change either wild-type heterosexual behavior or bisexual behavior caused by transformer expression driven by the same drivers used in the previous studies to suggest the involvement of the mushroom bodies in courtship. Our results show that feminization of different nonoverlapping cells in other parts of the protocerebrum was sufficient to cause the same bisexual or suppressed-courtship phenotype. Thus, contrary to previous assumptions, the mushroom bodies are not required for the control of courtship. Present evidence supports its mediation by other distributed protocerebral regions.

Animals↗