Search PubMed⌕ Search

SEARCH · Search PubMed

Results for “Courtship”

Search indexed PubMed citations on genomics, clinical trials, systematic reviews and public health. Explore titles, authors and supplied subject terms, then open the PubMed record.

Quote a phrase for an exact phrase match. Source license links do not imply unrestricted reuse.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1991

Effects of courtship on brain gonadotropin hormone-releasing hormone and plasma steroid concentrations in a female amphibian (Taricha granulosa).

Courtship-induced changes in plasma steroid and brain gonadotropin-releasing hormone (GnRH) concentrations in Taricha granulosa were determined with respect to changes in female sexual receptivity. Females were sacrificed at several times after courtship initiation. Concentrations of GnRH (determined by RIA) in the anterior telencephalon were high at courtship initiation (females unreceptive), but decreased by sperm transfer (females receptive). Courtship had no affect on GnRH concentrations in any other brain region examined. Furthermore, courted, receptive females had higher plasma levels of estradiol than did uncourted controls, and estradiol levels remained elevated above control levels 24 hr after courtship initiation. Courtship had no influence on plasma progesterone or corticosterone levels. To determine if the observed changes in GnRH concentrations in the telencephalon were localized to the nervus terminalis, courted females and controls were sacrificed after 5, 20, or 60 min of courtship. Nervus terminalis GnRH concentrations were higher in courted females than in uncourted controls. These results may represent the first documentation of a naturally occurring physiological change in the nervus terminalis.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Behavior and cytogenetics of fruitless in Drosophila melanogaster: different courtship defects caused by separate, closely linked lesions.

The fruitless (fru) courtship mutant was dissected into three defects of male reproductive behavior, which were separable as to their genetic etiologies by application of existing and newly induced chromosomal aberrations. fru itself is a small inversion [In(3R) 90C; 91B] on genetic and cytological criteria. Uncovering the fru distal breakpoint with deletions usually led to males with two of the fru courtship abnormalities: no copulation attempts with females (hence, behavioral sterility) and vigorous courtship among males, including the formation of "courtship chains." However, certain genetic changes involving region 91B resulted in males who formed courtship chains but who mated with females. Uncovering the fru proximal breakpoint led to males that passively elicit inappropriately high levels of courtship. This elicitation property was separable genetically from the sterility and chain formation phenotypes and provisionally mapped to the interval 89F-90F, which includes the fru proximal breakpoint. Behavioral sterility and chaining were also observed in males expressing certain abnormal genotypes, independent of the fru inversion. These included combinations of deficiencies, each with a breakpoint in 91B, and a transposon inserted in 91B.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Courtship in Saccharomyces cerevisiae: an early cell-cell interaction during mating.

During conjugation in Saccharomyces cerevisiae, two cells of opposite mating type (MATa and MAT alpha) fuse to form a diploid zygote. Conjugation requires that each cell locate an appropriate mating partner. To investigate how yeast cells select a mating partner, we developed a competition mating assay in which wild-type MAT alpha cells have a choice of two MATa cell mating partners. We first demonstrated that sterile MAT alpha 1 cells (expressing no a- or alpha-specific gene products) do not compete with fertile MATa cells in the assay; hence, wild-type MATa and MAT alpha cells can efficiently locate an appropriate mating partner. Second, we showed that a MATa strain need not be fertile to compete with a fertile MATa strain in the assay. This result defines an early step in conjugation, which we term courtship. We showed that the ability to agglutinate is not necessary in MATa cells for courtship but that production of a-pheromone and response to alpha-pheromone are necessary. Thus, MATa cells must not only transmit but must also receive and then respond to information for effective courtship; hence, there is a "conversation" between the courting cells. We showed that the only alpha-pheromone-induced response necessary in MATa cells for courtship is production of a-pheromone. In all cases tested, a strain producing a higher level of a-pheromone was more proficient in courtship than one producing a lower level. We propose that during courtship, a MAT alpha cell selects the adjacent MATa cell producing the highest level of a-pheromone.

Blotting, Northern↗
PubMed1986

Hormonal control of courtship and copulatory behavior in male Cnemidophorus inornatus, a direct sexual ancestor of a unisexual, parthenogenetic lizard.

The hormonal control of courtship and copulatory behavior in male Cnemidophorus inornatus, one of the gonochoristic ancestral species of the all-female, parthenogenetic C. uniparens, was determined. Significantly fewer castrated males courted females than intact and sham-castrated control males. Silastic capsules containing dihydrotestosterone or testosterone reinstated courtship and copulatory behavior in a significant number of castrates. While significantly greater numbers of castrates treated with androgens resumed courtship, some of the castrates receiving progesterone implants also resumed intense courtship and copulatory behavior. Exogenous progesterone also maintained courtship behaviors in a significant number of intact males at a time when control males ceased to court. The implications of these findings for our understanding of the evolution of hormone-brain-behavior relationships and sex steroid hormone mechanisms of action are discussed.

Animals↗
PubMed1985

Role of the anterior hypothalamus-preoptic area in the regulation of courtship behavior in the male Canadian red-sided garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis): lesion experiments.

Lesions of the medial preoptic area and/or the ventromedial hypothalamus resulted in an abrupt and immediate decline in courtship behavior in adult male Canadian red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis). Lesions of the more anterior portions of the preoptic area resulted in a more gradual, delayed decline in courtship behavior. Male snakes sustaining lesions dorsal, ventral, or caudal to the anterior hypothalamus-preoptic area exhibited no change in courtship behavior relative to controls. Measurements of testis size, spermatogenic stage, and circulation levels of androgens revealed no differences between any of the groups. There were marked differences in the change in hematocrit over time between the groups. These results indicate that the anterior hypothalamus-preoptic area is involved in the control of courtship behavior in the adult male red-sided garter snake. Moreover, it is suggested that the stimulus affecting the anterior hypothalamus-preoptic area to activate courtship is temperature related.

Androgens↗
PubMed1977

Courtship latency in male Drosophila melanogaster.

Male Drosophila melanogaster differ in the age at which they reach sexual maturity following eclosion from the pupa. Courtship latency, which is the time taken by a male to initiate courtship of a conspecific female, is related to age. Young males take significantly longer than older males to begin courtship. The probability that a male will initiate courship is influenced by the physiological state of the female. Males of different genotypes readily court mature (3-day-old) virgin females, but they differ significantly in their reaction to immature (12-hr-old) and fertilized females. Genes located on the third chromosome largely control male courtship latency, but responses to immature and fertilized females have different genetic bases, suggesting that the relevant stimulus inputs governing these responses also differ. The adaptive significance of courtship directed toward immature or fertilized females, which rarely mate, probably depends on the average level of sexual responsiveness of potentially receptive mature virgin females in a given population.

Age Factors↗
PubMed1987

Behavioral and sensory basis of courtship success in Drosophila melanogaster.

In Drosophila some individuals are more successful at mating than others. Reproductive fitness is strongly dependent upon the ability to recognize and compete for members of the opposite sex. Experiments were designed to answer two questions. (i) What behavioral components are characteristic or predictive of successful courtship? and (ii) How important is the information transmitted in the different sensory channels for courtship success in each sex? These questions were approached by two experimental procedures. Flies having a sensory deficiency (olfactory, auditory, or visual) competed with wild-type flies of the same sex for mates. Males were found to rely upon sensory channels different from those used by females in order to court successfully. In addition, the courtships of pairs of various genotypes were recorded and subjected to multivariate analysis. The multivariate courtship profiles deviated most widely from those of successful wild-type pairs when the male or female was unable to receive information in the sensory channel most important for successful mating by that sex. Both sequential and quantitative courtship properties were altered when one participant was deficient in ability to receive certain sensory information.

Animals↗
PubMed1979

Control of male reproductive behavior by the central nervous system of Drosophila: dissection of a courtship pathway by genetic mosaics.

In gynandromorphs of Drosophila, a detailed examination was made of the association between male courtship behavior and the chromosomal genotype of various parts of the central nervous system. Mosaic flies that behave as males repeatedly show a shorter courtship than normal males. If there is to be male behavior, the posterior dorsal brain must be haplo-X on at least one side for occurrence of the early courtship events. Tapping, following of females and wing extension. Licking (proboscis extension) has nearly the same focus but is submissive; that is, male tissue must be present in both left and right dorsal brain. The next courtship step, attempted copulation, has a focus (especially for actual genital contact) located in the thoracic ganglia, though apparently not in a discrete region. Attempted copulation, which can occur even in mosaics with a gravid abdomen, may be correlated with the presence of sex combs. The role of courtship foci are interpreted in terms of known sensory inputs to and functions of the major insect ganglia.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Neural control of homosexual courtship in Drosophila melanogaster.

Immature D. melanogaster males, like virgin females, often elicit vigorous courtship from mature males. Since males perform the same behaviors in response to attractive males and females, the question arises as to whether the foci--cells in the courting male's nervous system that must be haplo-X for the fly to perform a behavior--are the same for homosexual and heterosexual courtship. To answer this question, we analyzed the behaviors that normal males perform in response to sexually attractive flies. From these data, we calculated the probabilities that a fly with haplo-X tissue in a focus for homosexual and heterosexual courtship would perform the behavior in response to one or both of the two sex objects with which it was tested. Next, we observed the courtship behaviors that gynandromorphs (sex mosaics) performed in response to attractive males and females. Since the numbers of mosaics that performed a behavior in response to one or both of the sex objects with which they were tested were not significantly different from the predicted values, we conclude that the foci for performance of homosexual and heterosexual courtship are almost certainly identical.

Animals↗
PubMed1976

Behavior and single gene substitution in Drosophila melanogaster. I. Mating and courtship differences with w, cn, and bw loci.

The effect of single allele substitutions into an isogenic background in Oregon-R inbred lines of Drosophila melanogaster on courtship and mating patterns has been studied. A comparison has been made between the white locus w, wco, we, the wild type w+, cn, bw, and cn bw to test the effect of eye pigmentation in influencing courtship and mating patterns. It was found that w, we, wco, cn, and bw females were more successful in mating than were wild-type and cn bw females, cn bw females being less successful than wild-type females. Also, w and cn bw males were equally successful in mating but less successful than wild-type males during the 20-min test period. The mutant males performed as well as the wild-type after courtship was initiated. The behavioral parameters measured were (1) courtship latency, the time from exposure of male to female until orientation; (2) mating speed, the time from beginning of orientation of male to female until successful copulation, and (3) copulation time.

Animals↗
PubMed1987

Temperature activation of courtship behavior in the male red-sided garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis): role of the anterior hypothalamus-preoptic area.

Adult male red-sided garter snakes (Thamnophis sirtalis parietalis) received radio-frequency lesions prior to 17 weeks of low-temperature hibernation. Animals found to have bilateral lesions of the anterior hypothalamus-preoptic area (AH-POA) failed to exhibit courtship behavior on emergence from hibernation. Those individuals in which the major portion of the destruction was centered in the anterior POA also exhibited deficits in thermoregulatory behavior. Animals that received unilateral lesions of the AH-POA initiated courtship behavior after controls and had an abbreviated period of courtship; these animals exhibited normal responses to thermal stimuli. Male snakes with lesions outside the AH-POA courted normally and demonstrated no differences in thermoregulatory behavior compared with the surgical controls. These results indicate that in male red-sided garter snakes, an intact AH-POA is critical for the integration of thermal stimuli that activate seasonal courtship behavior.

Animals↗
PubMed1978

The nonverbal basis of attraction: flirtation, courtship, and seduction.

According to a familiar phrase, the "language" of love is universal. Recent ethological studies of nonlinguistic communication in courtship using facial expression, gesture, posture, distance, paralanguage, and gaze have begun to establish that a universal, culture-free, nonverbal sign system may exist (Eibl-Eibesfeldt, 1975), which is available to all persons for negotiating sexual relationships. The nonverbal mode, more powerful than the verbal for expressing such fundamental contingencies in social relationships as liking, disliking, superiority, timidity, fear and so on, appears to be rooted firmly in man's zoological heritage (Bateson, 1966, 1968). Paralleling a vertebrate-wide plan, human courtship expressivity often relies on nonverbal signs of submissiveness (meekness, harmlessness) and affiliation (willingness to form a social bond). Adoption of a submissive-affiliative social pose enables a person to convey an engaging, nonthreatening image that tends to attract potential mates. This report explores several conspicuous nonlinguistic cues that appear to be used widely in contexts of flirtation, courtship, and seduction. The expressive units are discussed from the standpoint of their occurence in five phases of courtship, and are illustrated by four cases.

Animals↗
PubMed1986

Chemically reinforced conditioned courtship in Drosophila: responses of wild-type and the dunce, amnesiac and don giovanni mutants.

To test the hypothesis that associative learning is the basis for conditioned courtship, male Drosophila melanogaster were paired with virgin females in the presence of quinine, known to be a negative reinforcer in a learning paradigm independent of courtship. Such "experienced" wild-type males failed to court virgin females and remained refractory to them for 1-2 h. But experienced males from the learning-defective strain, dunce, continued to court females at high levels; and experienced males from the retention-defective strain, amnesiac, failed to demonstrate the wild-type refractory period. Finally, males from the don giovanni strain, defective with respect to fertilized-female conditioning, were conditioned by presentation of virgin females and quinine. Courtship-depressing effects of cis-vaccenyl alcohol, which can be recovered from fertilized females, were confirmed, but no evidence for its role as a negative reinforcer of male courtship was obtained.

Animals↗
PubMed1990

Effects of the apterous4 mutation on Drosophila melanogaster males' courtship.

The apterous4 (ap4) mutation has pleiotropic effects on the morphology and lifespan of D. melanogaster adults. The mutation also affects one aspect of male sexual behaviour. Unlike normal, sexually mature males, three day old ap4/ap4 males synthesize courtship-stimulating hydrocarbons that immature males make; as a result they elicit vigorous courtship (Jallon and Hotta, 1979; Jallon et al., 1986). Data presented in this report indicate that expression of the apterous4 mutation does not affect all aspects of sexual maturation in males. Specifically, 24-30 hour old ap4/ap4 males are capable of performing all of the courtship behaviors, including abdominal vibration, a newly described response of mutant and wild-type males to virgin females. However, the mutant males spend less time courting and are less likely to perform some of the courtship behaviours than age-matched controls. These abnormalities are probably indirect effects of the apterous4 allele's previously unreported effects on the flies' motor functions, which include partial paralysis, lack of coordination, and sluggishness.

Animals↗
PubMed1989

Courtship behavior of Drosophila genetically or surgically deprived of basiconic sensilla.

The lack of basiconic antennal sensilla in the mutant lozenge was used to assess the role of these olfactory receptors in the courtship behavior of Drosophila melanogaster. Under normal light conditions, lozenge males courted virgin females much less than wild-type males did. However, when visual courtship stimuli were eliminated by studying behavior under dim red light, the two kinds of males courted individual wild-type virgin females with the same intensity, and the latency to copulation was similar. Also, no difference in courtship vigor was observed if the two kinds of males were paired in red light with a mated female. These data suggest that antennal basiconic sensilla are important for neither the perception of the attraction pheromone(s) of virgin females nor the inhibitory pheromone(s) of mated females. Similar assays with males deprived of maxillary palps make it unlikely that the basiconic-like sensilla on these appendages are needed to perceive the attraction pheromones. However, the unexpectedly high courtship activity of palp-deprived males toward mated females suggests that basiconic-like maxillary sensilla may be receptors of inhibitory female compounds.

Animals↗
PubMed1984

Stress-induced inhibition of sexual behavior: corticosterone inhibits courtship behaviors of a male amphibian (Taricha granulosa).

When male rough-skinned newts (Taricha granulosa) are exposed to presumptive stressors, the incidence of courtship decreases and plasma corticosterone concentration increases. When sexually active males are injected intraperitoneally with corticosterone (1, 5, 10, 15, 20, or 25 micrograms), the incidence of courtship decreases rapidly and in proportion to the dose of corticosterone. Intracerebroventricular infusion of synthetic corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) elevates plasma corticosterone levels and suppresses courtship. When male newts receive an injection of metyrapone, a drug that interferes with corticosterone synthesis, the inhibitory effects of stress or CRF infusion on courtship are reduced. These results support the hypothesis that, in this amphibian, elevated levels of corticosterone associated with exposure to stressful stimuli inhibit sexual behaviors.

Adrenocorticotropic Hormone↗
PubMed1992

Plasma testosterone and 17 beta-estradiol concentrations, and aromatase activity, during courtship in male Triturus carnifex.

Plasma testosterone and 17 beta-estradiol were monitored during the main phases of male Triturus carnifex courtship. "Inactive" males showed higher levels of testosterone with respect to those found during the various courtship phases. Estradiol was low in "inactive" males, and it reached the highest values at the beginning of the courtship. In addition aromatase activity was higher in the brain of the newts at the beginning of the courtship. These findings seem to support the "aromatization hypothesis" in Triturus carnifex.

Animals↗
PubMed1988

The dissonance mutant of courtship song in Drosophila melanogaster: isolation, behavior and cytogenetics.

The dissonance mutant of courtship song was induced by chemical mutagenesis. This X-chromosomal mutation causes the D. melanogaster male's acoustical output, resulting from his wing vibrations directed at a female, to include very long and loud tone "pulses." Yet, a given train of pulses starts out as normal, with the signals in all but the shortest singing bouts eventually becoming polycyclic and high-amplitude. The aberrant songs caused by diss (map position, 1-52; cytological interval, 14C1-2 to 14C4-5) were quantitatively compared to those produced by mutant cacophony males, whose pulses are much more uniformly polycyclic (due to a mutation mapping elsewhere on the X chromosome). Males or females expressing diss are normal in several "general" behaviors. Yet diss males not only sing abnormally, but they also exhibit longer-than-normal mating latencies in their courtship of females. These decrements seem to be associated, at least in part, with visually aberrant behavior of diss flies--measured with regard to male courtship per se, and also in tests of more general visual responses. Such defects were found when testing diss males or females, and the genetic etiology of the visual impairments were provisionally mapped to the same locus to which the song abnormality has been localized. Neurogenetic connections between the control of courtship singing behavior and visual system functions are discussed with respect to the new song mutation (diss) and the older one (cac)--which also turned out to be genetically related to a mutation that causes abnormalities of light-induced behavior and physiology.

Animals↗