Why stress can outlast the event: Dopamine tied to lingering sexual suppression in fruit fly study

MedicalXpress | Jun 01, 2026

Scientists from Tokyo Metropolitan University have revealed key parts of the biochemical pathways connecting stress to sexual dysfunction. By studying Drosophila fruit flies, they showed that the neurotransmitter dopamine was responsible for determining how long male flies showed persistent courtship suppression after being confined in a small space, but not whether mating was suppressed in the first place.