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Fukui K, Sato K, Murakawa S, Minami M, Amano T. Estrogen signaling modulates behavioral selection toward pups and amygdalohippocampal area in the rhomboid nucleus of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis circuit. Neuropharmacology 2022; 204:108879. [PMID: 34785164 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2021.108879] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 09/15/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Gonadal steroid hormone influences behavioral choice of adult animals toward pups, parental or aggressive. We previously reported that long-term administration of 17β-estradiol (E2) to male mice during sexual maturation induces aggressive behavior toward conspecific pups, which is called "infanticide," and significantly enhanced excitatory synaptic transmission in the rhomboid nucleus of bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTrh), which is an important brain region for infanticide. However, it is unclear how estrogen receptor-dependent signaling after sexual maturity regulates neural circuits including the BSTrh. Here we revealed that E2 administration to gonadectomized mice in adulthood elicited infanticidal behavior and enhanced excitatory synaptic transmission in the BSTrh by increasing the probability of glutamate release from the presynaptic terminalis. Next, we performed whole-brain mapping of E2-sensitive brain regions projecting to the BSTrh and found that amygdalohippocampal area (AHi) neurons that project to the BSTrh densely express estrogen receptor 1 (Esr1). Moreover, E2 treatment enhanced synaptic connectivity in the AHi-BSTrh pathway. Together, these results suggest that reinforcement of excitatory inputs from AHi neurons into the BSTrh by estrogen receptor-dependent signaling may contribute to the expression of infanticide.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kiyoshiro Fukui
- Department of Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University, 060-0812, Japan
| | - Keiichiro Sato
- Department of Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University, 060-0812, Japan
| | - Shunsaku Murakawa
- Department of Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University, 060-0812, Japan
| | - Masabumi Minami
- Department of Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University, 060-0812, Japan
| | - Taiju Amano
- Department of Pharmacology, Graduate School of Pharmaceutical Sciences, Hokkaido University, 060-0812, Japan.
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Navarro-Moreno C, Sanchez-Catalan MJ, Barneo-Muñoz M, Goterris-Cerisuelo R, Belles M, Lanuza E, Agustin-Pavon C, Martinez-Garcia F. Pregnancy Changes the Response of the Vomeronasal and Olfactory Systems to Pups in Mice. Front Cell Neurosci 2021; 14:593309. [PMID: 33390905 PMCID: PMC7775479 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2020.593309] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/10/2020] [Accepted: 11/16/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Motherhood entails changes in behavior with increased motivation for pups, induced in part by pregnancy hormones acting upon the brain. This work explores whether this alters sensory processing of pup-derived chemosignals. To do so, we analyse the expression of immediate early genes (IEGs) in the vomeronasal organ (VNO; Egr1) and centers of the olfactory and vomeronasal brain pathways (cFos) in virgin and late-pregnant females exposed to pups, as compared to buttons (socially neutral control). In pup-exposed females, we quantified diverse behaviors including pup retrieval, sniffing, pup-directed attack, nest building and time in nest or on nest, as well as time off nest. Pups induce Egr1 expression in the VNO of females, irrespective of their physiological condition, thus suggesting the existence of VNO-detected pup chemosignals. A similar situation is found in the accessory olfactory bulb (AOB) and posteromedial part of the medial bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BSTMPM). By contrast, in the medial amygdala and posteromedial cortical amygdala (PMCo), responses to pups-vs-buttons are different in virgin and late-pregnant females, thus suggesting altered sensory processing during late pregnancy. The olfactory system also shows changes in sensory processing with pregnancy. In the main olfactory bulbs, as well as the anterior and posterior piriform cortex, buttons activate cFos expression in virgins more than in pregnant females. By contrast, in the anterior and especially posterior piriform cortex, pregnant females show more activation by pups than buttons. Correlation between IEGs expression and behavior suggests the existence of two vomeronasal subsystems: one associated to pup care (with PMCo as its main center) and another related to pup-directed aggression observed in some pregnant females (with the BSTMPM as the main nucleus). Our data also suggest a coactivation of the olfactory and vomeronasal systems during interaction with pups in pregnant females.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cinta Navarro-Moreno
- Lab of Functional Neuroanatomy (NeuroFun-UJI-UV), Unitat Predepartamental de Medicina, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain
| | - Maria Jose Sanchez-Catalan
- Lab of Functional Neuroanatomy (NeuroFun-UJI-UV), Unitat Predepartamental de Medicina, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain
| | - Manuela Barneo-Muñoz
- Lab of Functional Neuroanatomy (NeuroFun-UJI-UV), Unitat Predepartamental de Medicina, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain
| | - Rafael Goterris-Cerisuelo
- Lab of Functional Neuroanatomy (NeuroFun-UJI-UV), Unitat Predepartamental de Medicina, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain
| | - Maria Belles
- Lab of Functional Neuroanatomy (NeuroFun-UJI-UV), Unitat Predepartamental de Medicina, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain
| | - Enrique Lanuza
- Lab of Functional Neuroanatomy (NeuroFun-UJI-UV), Departament de Biologia Cellular, Funcional i Antropologia, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain
| | - Carmen Agustin-Pavon
- Lab of Functional Neuroanatomy (NeuroFun-UJI-UV), Departament de Biologia Cellular, Funcional i Antropologia, Faculty of Biological Sciences, Universitat de València, Valencia, Spain
| | - Fernando Martinez-Garcia
- Lab of Functional Neuroanatomy (NeuroFun-UJI-UV), Unitat Predepartamental de Medicina, Faculty of Health Sciences, Universitat Jaume I, Castellón de la Plana, Spain
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