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Borie AM, Agezo S, Lunsford P, Boender AJ, Guo JD, Zhu H, Berman GJ, Young LJ, Liu RC. Social experience alters oxytocinergic modulation in the nucleus accumbens of female prairie voles. Curr Biol 2022; 32:1026-1037.e4. [PMID: 35108521 PMCID: PMC8930613 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.01.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2021] [Revised: 10/11/2021] [Accepted: 01/06/2022] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Social relationships are dynamic and evolve with shared and personal experiences. Whether the functional role of social neuromodulators also evolves with experience to shape the trajectory of relationships is unknown. We utilized pair bonding in the socially monogamous prairie vole as an example of socio-sexual experience that dramatically alters behaviors displayed toward other individuals. We investigated oxytocin-dependent modulation of excitatory synaptic transmission in the nucleus accumbens as a function of pair-bonding status. We found that an oxytocin receptor agonist decreases the amplitude of spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic currents (sEPSCs) in sexually naive virgin, but not pair-bonded, female voles, while it increases the amplitude of electrically evoked EPSCs in paired voles, but not in virgins. This oxytocin-induced potentiation of synaptic transmission relies on the de novo coupling between oxytocin receptor signaling and endocannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1) receptor signaling in pair-bonded voles. Blocking CB1 receptors after pair-bond formation increases the occurrence of a specific form of social rejection-defensive upright response-that is displayed toward the partner, but not toward a novel individual. Altogether, our results demonstrate that oxytocin's action in the nucleus accumbens is changed through social experience in a way that regulates the trajectory of social interactions as the relationship with the partner unfolds, potentially promoting the maintenance of a pair bond by inhibiting aggressive responses. These results provide a mechanism by which social experience and context shift oxytocinergic signaling to impact neural and behavioral responses to social cues.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amélie M Borie
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Sena Agezo
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Parker Lunsford
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Arjen J Boender
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Ji-Dong Guo
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Hong Zhu
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Gordon J Berman
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA
| | - Larry J Young
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Center for Social Neural Networks, University of Tsukuba, Tsukuba 305-8555, Japan.
| | - Robert C Liu
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Silvio O. Conte Center for Oxytocin and Social Cognition, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA; Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA 30322, USA.
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Warren MR, Campbell D, Borie AM, Ford CL, Dharani AM, Young LJ, Liu RC. Maturation of Social-Vocal Communication in Prairie Vole ( Microtus ochrogaster) Pups. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 15:814200. [PMID: 35087387 PMCID: PMC8787284 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.814200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2021] [Accepted: 12/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Impairments in social communication are common among neurodevelopmental disorders. While traditional animal models have advanced our understanding of the physiological and pathological development of social behavior, they do not recapitulate some aspects where social communication is essential, such as biparental care and the ability to form long-lasting social bonds. Prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) have emerged as a valuable rodent model in social neuroscience because they naturally display these behaviors. Nonetheless, the role of vocalizations in prairie vole social communication remains unclear. Here, we studied the ontogeny [from postnatal days (P) 8-16] of prairie vole pup ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), both when isolated and when the mother was present but physically unattainable. In contrast to other similarly sized rodents such as mice, prairie vole pups of all ages produced isolation USVs with a relatively low fundamental frequency between 22 and 50 kHz, often with strong harmonic structure. Males consistently emitted vocalizations with a lower frequency than females. With age, pups vocalized less, and the acoustic features of vocalizations (e.g., duration and bandwidth) became more stereotyped. Manipulating an isolated pup's social environment by introducing its mother significantly increased vocal production at older (P12-16) but not younger ages, when pups were likely unable to hear or see her. Our data provide the first indication of a maturation in social context-dependent vocal emission, which may facilitate more active acoustic communication. These results help lay a foundation for the use of prairie voles as a model organism to probe the role of early life experience in the development of social-vocal communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan R. Warren
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Drayson Campbell
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Amélie M. Borie
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Charles L. Ford
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Ammar M. Dharani
- Summer Opportunities of Academic Research Program, James T. Laney School of Graduate Studies, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Larry J. Young
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, United States
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, United States
| | - Robert C. Liu
- Department of Biology, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, United States
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, GA, United States
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