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A pheromone antagonist liberates female sea lamprey from a sensory trap to enable reliable communication.
- Source :
-
Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America [Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A] 2020 Mar 31; Vol. 117 (13), pp. 7284-7289. Date of Electronic Publication: 2020 Mar 17. - Publication Year :
- 2020
-
Abstract
- The evolution of male signals and female preferences remains a central question in the study of animal communication. The sensory trap model suggests males evolve signals that mimic cues used in nonsexual contexts and thus manipulate female behavior to generate mating opportunities. Much evidence supports the sensory trap model, but how females glean reliable information from both mimetic signals and their model cues remains unknown. We discovered a mechanism whereby a manipulative male signal guides reliable communication in sea lamprey ( Petromyzon marinus ). Migratory sea lamprey follow a larval cue into spawning streams; once sexually mature, males release a pheromone that mimics the larval cue and attracts females. Females conceivably benefit from the mimetic pheromone during mate search but must discriminate against the model cue to avoid orienting toward larvae in nearby nursery habitats. We tested the hypothesis that spawning females respond to petromyzonol sulfate (PZS) as a behavioral antagonist to avoid attraction to the larval cue while tracking the male pheromone despite each containing attractive 3-keto petromyzonol sulfate (3kPZS). We found 1) PZS inhibited electrophysiological responses to 3kPZS and abated preferences for 3kPZS when mixed at the same or greater concentrations, 2) larvae released more PZS than 3kPZS whereas males released more 3kPZS than PZS, and 3) mixtures of 3kPZS and PZS applied at ratios measured in larval and male odorants resulted in the discrimination observed between the natural odors. Our study elucidates how communication systems that arise via deception can facilitate reliable communication.<br />Competing Interests: The authors declare no competing interest.<br /> (Copyright © 2020 the Author(s). Published by PNAS.)
- Subjects :
- Animal Communication
Animals
Biological Mimicry physiology
Cholic Acids chemistry
Cholic Acids metabolism
Ecosystem
Female
Lampreys metabolism
Larva
Male
Petromyzon metabolism
Petromyzon physiology
Sex Attractants metabolism
Sex Attractants pharmacology
Lampreys physiology
Pheromones antagonists & inhibitors
Pheromones physiology
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 1091-6490
- Volume :
- 117
- Issue :
- 13
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 32184327
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1921394117