Charro M J, Alcorta E
Departmento de Biología Funcional (Genética), Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Oviedo, Spain.
J Comp Physiol A. 1994 Dec;175(6):761-6. doi: 10.1007/BF00191847.
Maxillary palps have been proposed as secondary olfactory organs, after the antennae, in Drosophila melanogaster. Our study tries to establish the quantitative importance of both organs as olfactory information mediators. Dose-response curves for three odorants: ethyl acetate, propionaldehyde and benzaldehyde were carried out for comparing olfaction in either complete animals or flies surgically deprived of antennae. Antennaless flies tested in our behavioral assay showed indifferent, attractant and repellent responses depending on concentration, similarly as normal flies do. However, they clearly displayed less sensitivity than normal flies. The range of concentrations they were able to perceive was correlated to antennal sensitivity approximately by a factor 1:10 for ethyl acetate and benzaldehyde, and between 1:10 and 1:100 at high concentrations of propionaldehyde. A complementary experiment was performed to test changes in olfactory behavior produced by removing maxillary palps in the presence of antennae. At high concentrations of odorant, responses to ethyl acetate and propionaldehyde experienced small changes when both palps were removed. Results are compatible with a summation model of all olfactory information reaching the brain either through antennae or palps.
在黑腹果蝇中，上颌触须被认为是仅次于触角的第二嗅觉器官。我们的研究试图确定这两种器官作为嗅觉信息介质的定量重要性。针对三种气味剂：乙酸乙酯、丙醛和苯甲醛绘制了剂量反应曲线，以比较完整动物或手术切除触角的果蝇的嗅觉。在我们的行为试验中测试的无触角果蝇根据浓度表现出无反应、吸引和排斥反应，与正常果蝇类似。然而，它们明显比正常果蝇表现出更低的敏感性。它们能够感知的浓度范围与触角敏感性的相关性约为：乙酸乙酯和苯甲醛为1:10，高浓度丙醛时为1:10至1:100。进行了一项补充实验，以测试在有触角的情况下移除上颌触须所产生的嗅觉行为变化。在高浓度气味剂下，当移除双侧触须时，对乙酸乙酯和丙醛的反应有微小变化。结果与所有通过触角或触须到达大脑的嗅觉信息的总和模型相符。
