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Fuxjager MJ, Ryder TB, Moody NM, Alfonso C, Balakrishnan CN, Barske J, Bosholn M, Boyle WA, Braun EL, Chiver I, Dakin R, Day LB, Driver R, Fusani L, Horton BM, Kimball RT, Lipshutz S, Mello CV, Miller ET, Webster MS, Wirthlin M, Wollman R, Moore IT, Schlinger BA. Systems biology as a framework to understand the physiological and endocrine bases of behavior and its evolution-From concepts to a case study in birds. Horm Behav 2023; 151:105340. [PMID: 36933440 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2023.105340] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/15/2022] [Revised: 02/10/2023] [Accepted: 02/21/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023]
Abstract
Organismal behavior, with its tremendous complexity and diversity, is generated by numerous physiological systems acting in coordination. Understanding how these systems evolve to support differences in behavior within and among species is a longstanding goal in biology that has captured the imagination of researchers who work on a multitude of taxa, including humans. Of particular importance are the physiological determinants of behavioral evolution, which are sometimes overlooked because we lack a robust conceptual framework to study mechanisms underlying adaptation and diversification of behavior. Here, we discuss a framework for such an analysis that applies a "systems view" to our understanding of behavioral control. This approach involves linking separate models that consider behavior and physiology as their own networks into a singular vertically integrated behavioral control system. In doing so, hormones commonly stand out as the links, or edges, among nodes within this system. To ground our discussion, we focus on studies of manakins (Pipridae), a family of Neotropical birds. These species have numerous physiological and endocrine specializations that support their elaborate reproductive displays. As a result, manakins provide a useful example to help imagine and visualize the way systems concepts can inform our appreciation of behavioral evolution. In particular, manakins help clarify how connectedness among physiological systems-which is maintained through endocrine signaling-potentiate and/or constrain the evolution of complex behavior to yield behavioral differences across taxa. Ultimately, we hope this review will continue to stimulate thought, discussion, and the emergence of research focused on integrated phenotypes in behavioral ecology and endocrinology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI 02906, USA.
| | - T Brandt Ryder
- Migratory Bird Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, National Zoological Park, Washington, DC 20013, USA
| | - Nicole M Moody
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI 02906, USA
| | - Camilo Alfonso
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA
| | | | - Julia Barske
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Mariane Bosholn
- Animal Behavior Lab, Ecology Department, National Institute for Amazon Research, Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil
| | - W Alice Boyle
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS 66506, USA
| | - Edward L Braun
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Ioana Chiver
- GIGA Neurosciences, University of Liège, Liege, Belgium
| | - Roslyn Dakin
- Migratory Bird Center, Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute, National Zoological Park, Washington, DC 20013, USA
| | - Lainy B Day
- Department of Biology, University of Mississippi, University, MS 38677, USA
| | - Robert Driver
- Department of Biology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, USA
| | - Leonida Fusani
- Department of Behavioral and Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, and Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna
| | - Brent M Horton
- Department of Biology, Millersville University, Millersville, PA 17551, USA
| | - Rebecca T Kimball
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611, USA
| | - Sara Lipshutz
- Department of Biology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL 60660, USA
| | - Claudio V Mello
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, OR 97239, USA
| | | | - Michael S Webster
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA; Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Morgan Wirthlin
- Computational Biology Department, Carnegie Melon University, Pittsburgh, PA 15213, USA
| | - Roy Wollman
- Department of Physiology and Integrative Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Ignacio T Moore
- Department of Biological Sciences, Virginia Tech, Blacksburg, VA 24060, USA
| | - Barney A Schlinger
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Department of Physiology and Integrative Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA; Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama City, Panama.
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Fuxjager MJ, Fusani L, Schlinger BA. Physiological innovation and the evolutionary elaboration of courtship behaviour. Anim Behav 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2021.03.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Day LB, Helmhout W, Pano G, Olsson U, Hoeksema JD, Lindsay WR. Correlated evolution of acrobatic display and both neural and somatic phenotypic traits in manakins (Pipridae). Integr Comp Biol 2021; 61:1343-1362. [PMID: 34143205 DOI: 10.1093/icb/icab139] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2021] [Revised: 06/07/2021] [Accepted: 06/15/2021] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Brightly colored manakin (Aves: Pipridae) males are known for performing acrobatic displays punctuated by non-vocal sounds (sonations) in order to attract dull colored females. The complexity of the display sequence and assortment of display elements involved (e.g., sonations, acrobatic maneuvers, and cooperative performances) varies considerably across manakin species. Species-specific display elements coevolve with display-distinct specializations of the neuroanatomical, muscular, endocrine, cardiovascular, and skeletal systems in the handful of species studied. Conducting a broader comparative study, we previously found positive associations between display complexity and both brain mass and body mass across 8 manakin genera, indicating selection for neural and somatic expansion to accommodate display elaboration. Whether this gross morphological variation is due to overall brain and body mass expansion (concerted evolution) versus size increases in only functionally relevant brain regions and growth of particular body ("somatic") features (mosaic evolution) remains to be explored. Here we test the hypothesis that cross-species variation in male brain mass and body mass is driven by mosaic evolution. We predicted positive associations between display complexity and variation in the volume of the cerebellum and sensorimotor arcopallium, brain regions which have roles in sensorimotor processes, and learning and performance of precisely timed and sequenced thoughts and movements, respectively. In contrast, we predicted no associations between the volume of a limbic arcopallial nucleus or a visual thalamic nucleus and display complexity as these regions have no-specific functional relationship to display behavior. For somatic features, we predicted that the relationship between body mass and complexity would not include contributions of tarsus length based on a recent study suggesting selection on tarsus length is less labile than body mass. We tested our hypotheses in males from 12 manakin species and a closely related flycatcher. Our analyses support mosaic evolution of neural and somatic features functionally relevant to display and indicate sexual selection for acrobatic complexity may increase the capacity for procedural learning via cerebellar enlargement and maneuverability via a reduction in tarsus length in species with lower overall complexity scores.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lainy B Day
- Department of Biology, University of Mississippi, 30 University Avenue, University, MS 38677, USA.,Neuroscience Minor, University of Mississippi, 30 University Avenue, University, MS 38677, USA
| | - Wilson Helmhout
- Neuroscience Minor, University of Mississippi, 30 University Avenue, University, MS 38677, USA
| | - Glendin Pano
- Neuroscience Minor, University of Mississippi, 30 University Avenue, University, MS 38677, USA
| | - Urban Olsson
- Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Medicinaregatan 18, SE-413-90 Gothenburg, Sweden.,Gothenburg Global Biodiversity Centre, Box 461, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
| | - Jason D Hoeksema
- Department of Biology, University of Mississippi, 30 University Avenue, University, MS 38677, USA
| | - Willow R Lindsay
- Department of Biology, University of Mississippi, 30 University Avenue, University, MS 38677, USA.,Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, University of Gothenburg, Medicinaregatan 18, SE-413-90 Gothenburg, Sweden.,Gothenburg Global Biodiversity Centre, Box 461, SE-405 30 Gothenburg, Sweden
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Fuxjager MJ, Schuppe ER. Androgenic signaling systems and their role in behavioral evolution. J Steroid Biochem Mol Biol 2018; 184:47-56. [PMID: 29883693 DOI: 10.1016/j.jsbmb.2018.06.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2018] [Revised: 05/25/2018] [Accepted: 06/04/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Sex steroids mediate the organization and activation of masculine reproductive phenotypes in diverse vertebrate taxa. However, the effects of sex steroid action in this context vary tremendously, in that steroid action influences reproductive physiology and behavior in markedly different ways (even among closely related species). This leads to the idea that the mechanisms underlying sex steroid action similarly differ across vertebrates in a manner that supports diversification of important sexual traits. Here, we highlight the Evolutionary Potential Hypothesis as a framework for understanding how androgen-dependent reproductive behavior evolves. This idea posits that the cellular mechanisms underlying androgenic action can independently evolve within a given target tissue to adjust the hormone's functional effects. The result is a seemingly endless number of permutations in androgenic signaling pathways that can be mapped onto the incredible diversity of reproductive phenotypes. One reason this hypothesis is important is because it shifts current thinking about the evolution of steroid-dependent traits away from an emphasis on circulating steroid levels and toward a focus on molecular mechanisms of hormone action. To this end, we also provide new empirical data suggesting that certain cellular modulators of androgen action-namely, the co-factors that dynamically adjust transcritpional effects of steroid action either up or down-are also substrates on which evolution can act. We then close the review with a detailed look at a case study in the golden-collared manakin (Manacus vitellinus). Work in this tropical bird shows how androgenic signaling systems are modified in specific parts of the skeletal muscle system to enhance motor performance necessary to produce acrobatic courtship displays. Altogether, this paper seeks to develop a platform to better understand how steroid action influences the evolution of complex animal behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, 455 Vine Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, United States.
| | - Eric R Schuppe
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, 455 Vine Street, Winston-Salem, NC 27101, United States
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Miles MC, Goller F, Fuxjager MJ. Physiological constraint on acrobatic courtship behavior underlies rapid sympatric speciation in bearded manakins. eLife 2018; 7:e40630. [PMID: 30375331 PMCID: PMC6207423 DOI: 10.7554/elife.40630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2018] [Accepted: 10/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Physiology's role in speciation is poorly understood. Motor systems, for example, are widely thought to shape this process because they can potentiate or constrain the evolution of key traits that help mediate speciation. Previously, we found that Neotropical manakin birds have evolved one of the fastest limb muscles on record to support innovations in acrobatic courtship display (Fuxjager et al., 2016a). Here, we show how this modification played an instrumental role in the sympatric speciation of a manakin genus, illustrating that muscle specializations fostered divergence in courtship display speed, which may generate assortative mating. However, innovations in contraction-relaxation cycling kinetics that underlie rapid muscle performance are also punctuated by a severe speed-endurance trade-off, blocking further exaggeration of display speed. Sexual selection therefore potentiated phenotypic displacement in a trait critical to mate choice, all during an extraordinarily fast species radiation-and in doing so, pushed muscle performance to a new boundary altogether.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Franz Goller
- University of UtahSalt Lake CityUnited States
- Institute for ZoophysiologyUniversity of MünsterGermany
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Fuxjager MJ, Fusani L, Goller F, Trost L, Maat AT, Gahr M, Chiver I, Ligon RM, Chew J, Schlinger BA. Neuromuscular mechanisms of an elaborate wing display in the golden-collared manakin ( Manacus vitellinus). ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 220:4681-4688. [PMID: 29061685 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.167270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/07/2017] [Accepted: 10/18/2017] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Many species perform elaborate physical displays to court mates and compete with rivals, but the biomechanical mechanisms underlying such behavior are poorly understood. We address this issue by studying the neuromuscular origins of display behavior in a small tropical passerine bird, the golden-collared manakin (Manacus vitellinus). Males of this species court females by dancing around the forest floor and rapidly snapping their wings together above their back. Using radio-telemetry, we collected electromyographic (EMG) recordings from the three main muscles that control avian forelimb movement, and found how these different muscles are activated to generate various aspects of display behavior. The muscle that raises the wing (supracoracoideus, SC) and the primary muscle that retracts the wing (scapulohumeralis caudalis, SH) were activated during the wing-snap, whereas the pectoralis (PEC), the main wing depressor, was not. SC activation began before wing elevation commenced, with further activation occurring gradually. By contrast, SH activation was swift, starting soon after wing elevation and peaking shortly after the snap. The intensity of this SH activation was comparable to that which occurs during flapping, whereas the SC activation was much lower. Thus, light activation of the SC likely helps position the wings above the back, so that quick, robust SH activation can drive these appendages together to generate the firecracker-like snap sonation. This is one of the first looks at the neuromuscular mechanisms that underlie the actuation of a dynamic courtship display, and it demonstrates that even complex, whole-body display movements can be studied with transmitter-aided EMG techniques.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27109, USA
| | - Leonida Fusani
- Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria.,Department of Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, 1160 Vienna, Austria
| | - Franz Goller
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA
| | - Lisa Trost
- Department of Behavioral Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, 82319, Germany
| | - Andries Ter Maat
- Department of Behavioral Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, 82319, Germany
| | - Manfred Gahr
- Department of Behavioral Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, 82319, Germany
| | - Ioana Chiver
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - R Miller Ligon
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27109, USA
| | - Jennifer Chew
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Barney A Schlinger
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.,Department of Ecology and Evolution, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.,Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancón, Panama
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Day LB, Lindsay WR. Associations between Manakin Display Complexity and Both Body and Brain Size Challenge Assumptions of Allometric Correction: A Response to Gutierrez-Ibanez et al. (2016). BRAIN, BEHAVIOR AND EVOLUTION 2016; 87:227-31. [DOI: 10.1159/000446341] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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Fuxjager MJ, Schuppe ER, Hoang J, Chew J, Shah M, Schlinger BA. Expression of 5α- and 5β-reductase in spinal cord and muscle of birds with different courtship repertoires. Front Zool 2016; 13:25. [PMID: 27293470 PMCID: PMC4901407 DOI: 10.1186/s12983-016-0156-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2016] [Accepted: 05/30/2016] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Through the actions of one or more isoforms of the enzyme 5α-reductase in many male reproductive tissues, circulating testosterone (T) undergoes metabolic conversion into 5α-dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which binds to and activates androgen receptors (AR) with greater potency than T. In birds, T is also subject to local inactivation into 5β-DHT by the enzyme 5β-reductase. Male golden-collared manakins perform an androgen-dependent and physically elaborate courtship display, and these birds express androgen receptors in skeletal muscles and spinal cord at levels far greater than those expressed in species with more limited courtship routines, including male zebra finches. To determine if local T metabolism facilitates or impedes activation of male manakin courtship, we examined expression of two isoforms of 5α-reductase, as well as 5β-reductase, in forelimb muscles and spinal cords of males and females of the two aforementioned species. Results We found that all enzymes were expressed in all tissues, with patterns that partially predict a functional role for 5α-reductase in these birds, especially in both muscle and spinal cord of male manakins. Moreover, we found that 5β-reductase was markedly different between species, with far lower levels in golden-collared manakins, compared to zebra finches. Thus, modification to neuromuscular deactivation of T may also play a functional role in adaptive behavioral modulation. Conclusions Given that such a role for 5α-reductase in androgen-sensitive mammalian skeletal muscle is in dispute, our data suggest that, in birds, local metabolism may play a key role in providing active androgenic substrates to peripheral neuromuscular systems. Similarly, we provide the first evidence that 5β-reductase is expressed broadly through an organism and may be an important factor that regulates androgenic modulation of neuromuscular functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, 228 Winston Hall, Winston-Salem, NC 27109 USA ; Center for Molecular Communication and Signaling, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, USA
| | - Eric R Schuppe
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, 228 Winston Hall, Winston-Salem, NC 27109 USA
| | - John Hoang
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
| | - Jennifer Chew
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
| | - Mital Shah
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
| | - Barney A Schlinger
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, USA ; Laboratory of Neuroendocrinology, Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, USA ; Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California, Los Angeles, USA ; Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Balboa, Ancon, Republic of Panama
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Bodony DJ, Day L, Friscia AR, Fusani L, Kharon A, Swenson GW, Wikelski M, Schlinger BA. Determination of the wingsnap sonation mechanism of the Golden-collared manakin (Manacus vitellinus). J Exp Biol 2016; 219:1524-34. [DOI: 10.1242/jeb.128231] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2015] [Accepted: 02/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Male Golden-collared manakins (Manacus vitellinus), small suboscine passeriform birds of Panamanian forests, communicate acoustically using a variety of nonvocal sonations. The most prominent sonations are single or multiple intense ‘wingsnaps’ with a dominant acoustic frequency around 5 kHz. Several hypotheses have been proposed addressing the source of the sound, ranging from purely aerodynamic origins (due to a rapid jet of air formed by the wings or by a ‘whiplike’ motion) to purely structural origins (such as physical contact of the wings), but without definitive assessment. Using anatomical analysis as well as high-speed video and synchronized audio recordings, we show that compared to related species, Manacus radii are morphologically unique and confirm that they collide over the back of the bird at the moment (± 1 ms) the wingsnap is produced. Using aeroacoustic theory, we quantitatively estimate the acoustic signatures from three previously proposed sonation mechanisms. We conclude that only the physical contact hypothesis, wherein the wing collisions create the sound, is consistent with the measured sonation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel J. Bodony
- Department of Aerospace Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA
| | - Lainy Day
- Department of Biology, The University of Mississippi, MS, USA
| | - Anthony R. Friscia
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles, USA
| | - Leonida Fusani
- Department of Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, and Konrad Lorenz Institute for Ethology, University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna, Austria
| | - Aharon Kharon
- Department of Aerospace Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, USA
| | - George W. Swenson
- Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, IL, USA
| | - Martin Wikelski
- Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Radolfzell, Germany and Dept. of Biology, University of Konstanz, Konstanz, Germany
| | - Barney A. Schlinger
- Departments of Integrative Biology and Physiology & Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, University of California at Los Angeles and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute, Panama City, Panama
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