Dopamine activity in projection neurons regulates short‐lasting olfactory approach memory in Drosophila

Survival in many animals requires the ability to associate certain cues with danger and others with safety. In a Drosophila melanogaster aversive olfactory conditioning paradigm, flies are exposed to two odours, one presented coincidentally with electrical shocks, and a second presented 45 s after shock cessation. When flies are later given a choice between these two odours, they avoid the shock‐paired odour and prefer the unpaired odour. While many studies have examined how flies learn to avoid the shock‐paired odour through formation of odour‐fear associations, here we demonstrate that conditioning also causes flies to actively approach the second odour. In contrast to fear memories, which are longer lasting and requires activity of D1‐like dopamine receptors only in the mushroom bodies, approach memory is short‐lasting and requires activity of D1‐like dopamine receptors in projection neurons originating from the antennal lobes, primary olfactory centers. Further, while recall of fear memories requires activity of the mushroom bodies, recall of approach memories does not. Our data suggest that olfactory approach memory is formed using different mechanisms in different brain locations compared to aversive and appetitive olfactory memories.