Long known to play a role in sexual attraction, pheromones are revealing their influence over a range of nonsexual behaviors as researchers tease apart the neural circuitry that translates smells into action.
Following a trail of smell, a male fruit fly zeroes in on a banana peel. For the fly, the banana is not only a fantastic food source, but also fertile ground for finding mates. Sure enough, a virgin female is already feasting on the banana peel. He approaches her, taps her with his forelegs, and flutters his wings to sound a staccato love song, all in the hopes of securing her as a mate. But there is more to this scene than meets the eye or ear. The success of this courtship ritual critically depends on a single substance: an organic ester, 11-cis-vaccenyl acetate (cVA). CVA is found on the male’s cuticle, or exoskeleton, and in his ejaculatory bulb, a structure similar in anatomy and function to the human prostate. To mature female fruit flies, cVA is an aphrodisiac that induces their receptivity to an approaching male. To males, however, cVA is an antiaphrodisiac, even capable of inducing aggression. Although females do not produce the compound, residual cVA transferred from previous mating partners during copulation remains on their bodies. If a female reeks of the compound, new suitors are repelled.
CVA is a pheromone, classically defined as a substance secreted by an animal that elicits a specific reaction in other members of the species. Although best understood in insects, pheromones are also known to play important roles in mammalian behavior and physiology, from territorial marking in mice to the induction of mating in elephants .....
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