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Rogers LS, Coffin AB, Sisneros JA. Reproductive state modulates utricular auditory sensitivity in a vocal fish. J Neurophysiol 2022; 128:1344-1354. [PMID: 36286323 PMCID: PMC9678424 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00315.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Revised: 10/17/2022] [Accepted: 10/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The plainfin midshipman, Porichthys notatus, is a seasonally breeding vocal fish that relies on acoustic communication to mediate nocturnal reproductive behaviors. Reproductive females use their auditory senses to detect and localize "singing" males that produce multiharmonic advertisement (mate) calls during the breeding season. Previous work showed that the midshipman saccule, which is considered the primary end organ used for hearing in midshipman and most other fishes, exhibits reproductive state and hormone-dependent changes that enhance saccular auditory sensitivity. In contrast, the utricle was previously posited to serve primarily a vestibular function, but recent evidence in midshipman and related toadfish suggests that it may also serve an auditory function and aid in the detection of behaviorally relevant acoustic stimuli. Here, we characterized the auditory-evoked potentials recorded from utricular hair cells in reproductive and nonreproductive female midshipman in response to underwater sound to test the hypothesis that variation in reproductive state affects utricular auditory sensitivity. We show that utricular hair cells in reproductive females exhibit up to a sixfold increase in the utricular potential magnitude and have thresholds based on measures of particle acceleration (re: 1 ms-2) that are 7-10 dB lower than nonreproductive females across a broad range of frequencies, which include the dominant harmonics of male advertisement calls. This enhanced auditory sensitivity of the utricle likely plays an essential role in facilitating midshipman social and reproductive acoustic communication.NEW & NOTEWORTHY In many animals, vocal-acoustic communication is fundamental for facilitating social behaviors. For the vocal plainfin midshipman fish, the detection and localization of social acoustic signals are critical to the species' reproductive success. Here, we show that the utricle, an inner ear end organ often thought to primarily serve a vestibular function, serves an auditory function that is seasonally plastic and modulated by the animal's reproductive state effectively enhancing auditory sensitivity to courting male advertisement calls.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loranzie S Rogers
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
| | - Allison B Coffin
- Department of Integrative Physiology and Neuroscience, Washington State University, Vancouver, Washington
| | - Joseph A Sisneros
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
- Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington
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2
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Spool JA, Bergan JF, Remage-Healey L. A neural circuit perspective on brain aromatase. Front Neuroendocrinol 2022; 65:100973. [PMID: 34942232 PMCID: PMC9667830 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2021.100973] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Revised: 12/14/2021] [Accepted: 12/16/2021] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
This review explores the role of aromatase in the brain as illuminated by a set of conserved network-level connections identified in several vertebrate taxa. Aromatase-expressing neurons are neurochemically heterogeneous but the brain regions in which they are found are highly-conserved across the vertebrate lineage. During development, aromatase neurons have a prominent role in sexual differentiation of the brain and resultant sex differences in behavior and human brain diseases. Drawing on literature primarily from birds and rodents, we delineate brain regions that express aromatase and that are strongly interconnected, and suggest that, in many species, aromatase expression essentially defines the Social Behavior Network. Moreover, in several cases the inputs to and outputs from this core Social Behavior Network also express aromatase. Recent advances in molecular and genetic tools for neuroscience now enable in-depth and taxonomically diverse studies of the function of aromatase at the neural circuit level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy A Spool
- Center for Neuroendocrine Studies, Neuroscience and Behavior Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, United States
| | - Joseph F Bergan
- Center for Neuroendocrine Studies, Neuroscience and Behavior Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, United States
| | - Luke Remage-Healey
- Center for Neuroendocrine Studies, Neuroscience and Behavior Graduate Program, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA 01003, United States.
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3
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Timothy M, Forlano PM. Serotonin distribution in the brain of the plainfin midshipman: Substrates for vocal-acoustic modulation and a reevaluation of the serotonergic system in teleost fishes. J Comp Neurol 2020; 528:3451-3478. [PMID: 32361985 DOI: 10.1002/cne.24938] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2018] [Revised: 04/27/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Serotonin (5-HT) is a modulator of neural circuitry underlying motor patterning, homeostatic control, and social behavior. While previous studies have described 5-HT distribution in various teleosts, serotonergic raphe subgroups in fish are not well defined and therefore remain problematic for cross-species comparisons. Here we used the plainfin midshipman fish, Porichthys notatus, a well-studied model for investigating the neural and hormonal mechanisms of vertebrate vocal-acoustic communication, to redefine raphe subgroups based on both stringent neuroanatomical landmarks as well as quantitative cell measurements. In addition, we comprehensively characterized 5-HT-immunoreactive (-ir) innervation throughout the brain, including well-delineated vocal and auditory nuclei. We report neuroanatomical heterogeneity in populations of the serotonergic raphe nuclei of the brainstem reticular formation, with three discrete subregions in the superior raphe, an intermediate 5-HT-ir cell cluster, and an extensive inferior raphe population. 5-HT-ir neurons were also observed within the vocal motor nucleus (VMN), forming putative contacts on those cells. In addition, three major 5-HT-ir cell groups were identified in the hypothalamus and one group in the pretectum. Significant 5-HT-ir innervation was found in components of the vocal pattern generator and cranial motor nuclei. All vocal midbrain nuclei showed considerable 5-HT-ir innervation, as did thalamic and hindbrain auditory and lateral line areas and vocal-acoustic integration sites in the preoptic area and ventral telencephalon. This comprehensive atlas offers new insights into the organization of 5-HT nuclei in teleosts and provides neuroanatomical evidence for serotonin as a modulator of vocal-acoustic circuitry and behavior in midshipman fish, consistent with findings in vocal tetrapods.
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Affiliation(s)
- Miky Timothy
- Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, New York, 11210, USA
| | - Paul M Forlano
- Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, 2900 Bedford Avenue, Brooklyn, New York, 11210, USA.,Biology Subprogram in Ecology, Evolution, and Behavior, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 5th Avenue, New York, New York, 10016, USA.,Biology Subprogram in Neuroscience, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 5th Avenue, New York, New York, 10016, USA.,Psychology Subprogram in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 5th Avenue, New York, New York, 10016, USA.,Aquatic Research and Environmental Assessment Center, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn, New York, USA
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4
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Rogers LS, Sisneros JA. Auditory evoked potentials of utricular hair cells in the plainfin midshipman, Porichthys notatus. J Exp Biol 2020; 223:jeb226464. [PMID: 32680899 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.226464] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2020] [Accepted: 07/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The plainfin midshipman, Porichthys notatus, is a soniferous marine teleost fish that generates acoustic signals for intraspecific social communication. Nocturnally active males and females rely on their auditory sense to detect and locate vocally active conspecifics during social behaviors. Previous work showed that the midshipman inner ear saccule and lagena are highly adapted to detect and encode socially relevant acoustic stimuli, but the auditory sensitivity and function of the midshipman utricle remain largely unknown. Here, we characterized the auditory evoked potentials from hair cells in the utricle of non-reproductive type I males and tested the hypothesis that the midshipman utricle is sensitive to behaviorally relevant acoustic stimuli. Hair cell potentials were recorded from the rostral, medial and caudal regions of the utricle in response to pure tone stimuli presented by an underwater speaker. We show that the utricle is highly sensitive to particle motion stimuli produced by an underwater speaker positioned in the horizontal plane. Utricular potentials were recorded across a broad range of frequencies with lowest particle acceleration (dB re. 1 m s-2) thresholds occurring at 105 Hz (lowest frequency tested; mean threshold -32 dB re. 1 m s-2) and highest thresholds at 605-1005 Hz (mean threshold range -5 to -4 dB re. 1 m s-2). The high gain and broadband frequency sensitivity of the utricle suggest that it likely serves a primary auditory function and is well suited to detect conspecific vocalizations including broadband agonistic signals and the multiharmonic advertisement calls produced by reproductive type I males.
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Affiliation(s)
- Loranzie S Rogers
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Joseph A Sisneros
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
- Virginia Merrill Bloedel Hearing Research Center, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
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Maruska K, Soares MC, Lima-Maximino M, Henrique de Siqueira-Silva D, Maximino C. Social plasticity in the fish brain: Neuroscientific and ethological aspects. Brain Res 2019; 1711:156-172. [PMID: 30684457 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2019.01.026] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2018] [Revised: 01/16/2019] [Accepted: 01/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Social plasticity, defined as the ability to adaptively change the expression of social behavior according to previous experience and to social context, is a key ecological performance trait that should be viewed as crucial for Darwinian fitness. The neural mechanisms for social plasticity are poorly understood, in part due to skewed reliance on rodent models. Fish model organisms are relevant in the field of social plasticity for at least two reasons: first, the diversity of social organization among fish species is staggering, increasing the breadth of evolutionary relevant questions that can be asked. Second, that diversity also suggests translational relevance, since it is more likely that "core" mechanisms of social plasticity are discovered by analyzing a wider variety of social arrangements than relying on a single species. We analyze examples of social plasticity across fish species with different social organizations, concluding that a "core" mechanism is the initiation of behavioral shifts through the modulation of a conserved "social decision-making network", along with other relevant brain regions, by monoamines, neuropeptides, and steroid hormones. The consolidation of these shifts may be mediated via neurogenomic adjustments and regulation of the expression of plasticity-related molecules (transcription factors, cell cycle regulators, and plasticity products).
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen Maruska
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, USA
| | - Marta C Soares
- Centro de Investigação em Biodiversidade e Recursos Genéticos - CIBIO, Universidade do Porto, Vairão, Portugal
| | - Monica Lima-Maximino
- Laboratório de Biofísica e Neurofarmacologia, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, Brazil; Grupo de Pesquisas em Neuropsicofarmacologia e Psicopatologia Experimental, Brazil
| | - Diógenes Henrique de Siqueira-Silva
- Laboratório de Neurociências e Comportamento "Frederico Guilherme Graeff", Universidade Federal do Sul e Sudeste do Pará, Marabá, Brazil; Grupo de Estudos em Reprodução de Peixes Amazônicos, Universidade Federal do Sul e Sudeste do Pará, Marabá, Brazil
| | - Caio Maximino
- Grupo de Pesquisas em Neuropsicofarmacologia e Psicopatologia Experimental, Brazil; Laboratório de Neurociências e Comportamento "Frederico Guilherme Graeff", Universidade Federal do Sul e Sudeste do Pará, Marabá, Brazil.
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Feng NY, Marchaterre MA, Bass AH. Melatonin receptor expression in vocal, auditory, and neuroendocrine centers of a highly vocal fish, the plainfin midshipman (Porichthys notatus). J Comp Neurol 2019; 527:1362-1377. [PMID: 30620047 DOI: 10.1002/cne.24629] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2018] [Revised: 12/31/2018] [Accepted: 01/02/2019] [Indexed: 11/07/2022]
Abstract
Melatonin plays a central role in entraining activity to the day-night cycle in vertebrates. Here, we investigate neuroanatomical substrates of melatonin-dependent vocal-acoustic behavior in the nocturnal and highly vocal teleost fish, the plainfin midshipman (Porichthys notatus). Using in situ hybridization (ISH) and quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR), we assess the mRNA distribution and transcript abundance of melatonin receptor subtype 1B (mel1b), shown to be important for vocalization in midshipman fish and songbirds. ISH shows robust mel1b expression in major nodes of the central vocal and auditory networks in the subpallium, preoptic area (POA), anterior hypothalamus, dorsal thalamus, posterior tuberculum, midbrain torus semicircularis and periaqueductal gray, and hindbrain. Mel1b label is also abundant in secondary targets of the olfactory, visual, and lateral line systems, as well as telencephalic regions that have been compared to the amygdala, extended amygdala, striatum, septum, and hippocampus of tetrapods. Q-PCR corroborates mel1b abundance throughout the brain and shows significant increases in the morning compared with nighttime in tissue samples inclusive of the telencephalon and POA, but remains stable in other brain regions. Plasma melatonin levels show expected increase at night. Our findings support the hypothesis that melatonin's stimulatory effects on vocal-acoustic mechanisms in midshipman is mediated, in part, by melatonin binding in vocal, auditory, and neuroendocrine centers. Together with robust mel1b expression in multiple telencephalic nuclei and sensory systems, the results further indicate an expression pattern comparable to that in birds and mammals that is indicative of melatonin's broad involvement in the modulation of physiology and behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ni Y Feng
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York
| | | | - Andrew H Bass
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York.,Bodega Marine Laboratory, University of California, Davis, Bodega Bay, California
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Maruska KP, Fernald RD. Astatotilapia burtoni: A Model System for Analyzing the Neurobiology of Behavior. ACS Chem Neurosci 2018. [PMID: 29522313 DOI: 10.1021/acschemneuro.7b00496] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/16/2023] Open
Abstract
Most biomedical research is performed using a very limited number of "model" species. In part, this has resulted from a combination of full genomes, manipulation of genes, and short generation times in these species. However, the advent of low-cost sequencing and gene editing in any organism has increased the use of nontraditional organisms. Many scientists have paraphrased the adage by Krogh [ Krogh , A. ( 2018 ) Science 70 , 200 - 204 ] that for many biological problems some species will prove to be most convenient and useful to study. In particular, using organisms most suited to the specific research question can lead to novel insights about fundamental physiological, neurobiological, immunological, and neuroendocrine systems that can advance our understanding of the well-being and health of humans. In addition, such studies have led to new ideas about the evolution and mechanisms that control social behavior. Fishes constitute about 50% of all vertebrate species and are the most diverse vertebrate radiation. Here we review behavioral and neurobiological discoveries of plasticity in social behavior resulting from analysis of an African cichlid fish, showing how its unique behavioral system has facilitated a broad range of discoveries. For many future questions, Astatotilapia burtoni and other cichlid fishes may be ideally suited to study as we advance our understanding of the neural basis of social decisions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karen P. Maruska
- Department of Biological Sciences, Louisiana State University, Baton Rouge, Louisiana 70803, United States
| | - Russell D. Fernald
- Biology Department, Stanford University, Stanford, California 94305, United States
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8
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Perelmuter JT, Forlano PM. Connectivity and ultrastructure of dopaminergic innervation of the inner ear and auditory efferent system of a vocal fish. J Comp Neurol 2017; 525:2090-2108. [PMID: 28118481 DOI: 10.1002/cne.24177] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2016] [Revised: 01/17/2017] [Accepted: 01/18/2017] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Dopamine (DA) is a conserved modulator of vertebrate neural circuitry, yet our knowledge of its role in peripheral auditory processing is limited to mammals. The present study combines immunohistochemistry, neural tract tracing, and electron microscopy to investigate the origin and synaptic characteristics of DA fibers innervating the inner ear and the hindbrain auditory efferent nucleus in the plainfin midshipman, a vocal fish that relies upon the detection of mate calls for reproductive success. We identify a DA cell group in the diencephalon as a common source for innervation of both the hindbrain auditory efferent nucleus and saccule, the main hearing endorgan of the inner ear. We show that DA terminals in the saccule contain vesicles but transmitter release appears paracrine in nature, due to the apparent lack of synaptic contacts. In contrast, in the hindbrain, DA terminals form traditional synaptic contacts with auditory efferent neuronal cell bodies and dendrites, as well as unlabeled axon terminals, which, in turn, form inhibitory-like synapses on auditory efferent somata. Our results suggest a distinct functional role for brain-derived DA in the direct and indirect modulation of the peripheral auditory system of a vocal nonmammalian vertebrate.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan T Perelmuter
- Program in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, New York, 10016.,Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, Brooklyn, New York, 11210
| | - Paul M Forlano
- Program in Behavioral and Cognitive Neuroscience, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, New York, 10016.,Program in Ecology, Evolutionary Biology and Behavior, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, New York, 10016.,Program in Neuroscience, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, New York, New York, 10016.,Department of Biology, Brooklyn College, City University of New York, Brooklyn, New York, 11210.,Aquatic Research and Environmental Assessment Center, Brooklyn College, Brooklyn NY, New York, 11210
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9
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Seasonal plasticity of auditory saccular sensitivity in “sneaker” type II male plainfin midshipman fish, Porichthys notatus. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2017; 203:211-222. [DOI: 10.1007/s00359-017-1157-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2016] [Revised: 02/16/2017] [Accepted: 02/17/2017] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
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