Contribution of Visual and Circadian Neural Circuits to Memory for Prolonged Mating Induced by Rivals

Rival exposure causes Drosophila melanogaster males to prolong mating. Longer-Mating-Duration (LMD) may enhance reproductive success, but its underlying mechanism is currently unknown. Here we report that LMD is context-dependent and can be induced solely via visual stimuli. We further show that LMD involves neural circuits important for visual memory, including central neurons in the ellipsoid body but not the mushroom bodies or the fan-shaped bodies, and may rely on the rival exposure memory lasting several hours. LMD is affected by a subset of learning and memory mutants. LMD depends on the circadian clock genes timeless and period but not Clock or cycle, and persists in many arrhythmic conditions. Moreover, LMD critically depends on a subset of pigment dispersing factor (PDF) neurons rather than the entire circadian neural circuit. Our study thus delineates parts of the molecular and cellular basis for LMD – a plastic social behavior elicited by visual cues.