Piezo-mediated mechanosensation contributes to stabilizing copulation posture and reproductive success in Drosophila males

Hayato M Yamanouchi; Ryoya Tanaka; Azusa Kamikouchi

doi:10.1016/j.isci.2023.106617

Piezo-mediated mechanosensation contributes to stabilizing copulation posture and reproductive success in Drosophila males

iScience. 2023 Apr 11;26(5):106617. doi: 10.1016/j.isci.2023.106617. eCollection 2023 May 19.

Authors

Hayato M Yamanouchi¹, Ryoya Tanaka¹, Azusa Kamikouchi^{1

2}

Affiliations

¹ Graduate School of Science, Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan.
² Institute of Transformative Bio-Molecules (WPI-ITbM), Nagoya University, Nagoya, Aichi 464-8602, Japan.

Abstract

In internal fertilization animals, reproductive success depends on maintaining copulation until gametes are transported from male to female. In Drosophila melanogaster, mechanosensation in males likely contributes to copulation maintenance, but its molecular underpinning remains to be identified. Here we show that the mechanosensory gene piezo and its' expressing neurons are responsible for copulation maintenance. An RNA-seq database search and subsequent mutant analysis revealed the importance of piezo for maintaining male copulation posture. piezo-GAL4-positive signals were found in the sensory neurons of male genitalia bristles, and optogenetic inhibition of piezo-expressing neurons in the posterior side of the male body during copulation destabilized posture and terminated copulation. Our findings suggest that the mechanosensory system of male genitalia through Piezo channels plays a key role in copulation maintenance and indicate that Piezo may increase male fitness during copulation in flies.

Keywords: Behavioral neuroscience; Mechanobiology; Molecular physiology.