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Schuppe ER, Tobiansky D, Goller F, Fuxjager MJ. Specialized androgen synthesis in skeletal muscles that actuate elaborate social displays. J Exp Biol 2022; 225:275472. [PMID: 35587151 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.243730] [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: 10/29/2021] [Accepted: 05/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Androgens mediate the expression of many reproductive behaviors, including the elaborate displays used to navigate courtship and territorial interactions. In some vertebrates, males can produce androgen-dependent sexual behavior even when levels of testosterone (T) is low in the bloodstream. One idea is that select tissues make their own androgens from scratch to support behavioral performance. We first study this phenomenon in the skeletal muscles that actuate elaborate sociosexual displays in downy woodpeckers and two songbirds. We show that the woodpecker display muscle maintains elevated T when the testes are regressed in the non-breeding season. Both the display muscles of woodpeckers, as well as the display muscles in the avian vocal organ (syrinx or SYR) of songbirds, express all transporters and enzymes necessary to convert cholesterol into bioactive androgens locally. In a final analysis, we broaden our study by looking for these same transporters and enzymes in mammalian muscles that operate at different speeds. Using RNA-seq data, we find that the capacity for de novo synthesis is only present in "superfast" extraocular muscle. Together, our results suggest that skeletal muscle specialized to generate extraordinary twitch-times and/or extremely rapid contractile speeds may depend on androgenic hormones produced locally within the muscle itself. Our study therefore uncovers an important new dimension of androgenic regulation of behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric R Schuppe
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, 215 Tower Road, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA
| | - Daniel Tobiansky
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Brown University, 171 Meeting Street, Providence, RI 02912, USA
| | - Franz Goller
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, USA.,Institute for Zoophysiology, University of Münster, Germany
| | - Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Ecology, Evolution, and Organismal Biology, Brown University, 171 Meeting Street, Providence, RI 02912, USA
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2
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Anderson NK, Schuppe ER, Gururaja KV, Mangiamele LA, Martinez JCC, Priti H, May RV, Preininger D, Fuxjager MJ. A Common Endocrine Signature Marks the Convergent Evolution of an Elaborate Dance Display in Frogs. Am Nat 2021; 198:522-539. [PMID: 34559606 DOI: 10.1086/716213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
AbstractUnrelated species often evolve similar phenotypic solutions to the same environmental problem, a phenomenon known as convergent evolution. But how do these common traits arise? We address this question from a physiological perspective by assessing how convergence of an elaborate gestural display in frogs (foot-flagging) is linked to changes in the androgenic hormone systems that underlie it. We show that the emergence of this rare display in unrelated anuran taxa is marked by a robust increase in the expression of androgen receptor (AR) messenger RNA in the musculature that actuates leg and foot movements, but we find no evidence of changes in the abundance of AR expression in these frogs' central nervous systems. Meanwhile, the magnitude of the evolutionary change in muscular AR and its association with the origin of foot-flagging differ among clades, suggesting that these variables evolve together in a mosaic fashion. Finally, while gestural displays do differ between species, variation in the complexity of a foot-flagging routine does not predict differences in muscular AR. Altogether, these findings suggest that androgen-muscle interactions provide a conduit for convergence in sexual display behavior, potentially providing a path of least resistance for the evolution of motor performance.
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3
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Denisov S, Vershinina O, Thingna J, Hänggi P, Ivanchenko M. Quasi-stationary states of game-driven systems: A dynamical approach. CHAOS (WOODBURY, N.Y.) 2020; 30:123145. [PMID: 33380033 DOI: 10.1063/5.0019736] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/25/2020] [Accepted: 12/02/2020] [Indexed: 06/12/2023]
Abstract
Evolutionary game theory is a framework to formalize the evolution of collectives ("populations") of competing agents that are playing a game and, after every round, update their strategies to maximize individual payoffs. There are two complementary approaches to modeling evolution of player populations. The first addresses essentially finite populations by implementing the apparatus of Markov chains. The second assumes that the populations are infinite and operates with a system of mean-field deterministic differential equations. By using a model of two antagonistic populations, which are playing a game with stationary or periodically varying payoffs, we demonstrate that it exhibits metastable dynamics that is reducible neither to an immediate transition to a fixation (extinction of all but one strategy in a finite-size population) nor to the mean-field picture. In the case of stationary payoffs, this dynamics can be captured with a system of stochastic differential equations and interpreted as a stochastic Hopf bifurcation. In the case of varying payoffs, the metastable dynamics is much more complex than the dynamics of the means.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergey Denisov
- Department of Computer Science, Oslo Metropolitan University, N-0130 Oslo, Norway
| | - Olga Vershinina
- Department of Applied Mathematics, Lobachevsky University, 603950 Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
| | - Juzar Thingna
- Center for Theoretical Physics of Complex Systems (IBS), Daejeon 34126, South Korea
| | - Peter Hänggi
- Institut für Physik, Universität Augsburg, D-86135 Augsburg, Germany
| | - Mikhail Ivanchenko
- Department of Applied Mathematics, Lobachevsky University, 603950 Nizhny Novgorod, Russia
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4
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Tobiansky DJ, Fuxjager MJ. Sex Steroids as Regulators of Gestural Communication. Endocrinology 2020; 161:5822602. [PMID: 32307535 PMCID: PMC7316366 DOI: 10.1210/endocr/bqaa064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2020] [Accepted: 04/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Gestural communication is ubiquitous throughout the animal kingdom, occurring in species that range from humans to arthropods. Individuals produce gestural signals when their nervous system triggers the production of limb and body movement, which in turn functions to help mediate communication between or among individuals. Like many stereotyped motor patterns, the probability of a gestural display in a given social context can be modulated by sex steroid hormones. Here, we review how steroid hormones mediate the neural mechanisms that underly gestural communication in humans and nonhumans alike. This is a growing area of research, and thus we explore how sex steroids mediate brain areas involved in language production, social behavior, and motor performance. We also examine the way that sex steroids can regulate behavioral output by acting in the periphery via skeletal muscle. Altogether, we outline a new avenue of behavioral endocrinology research that aims to uncover the hormonal basis for one of the most common modes of communication among animals on Earth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel J Tobiansky
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island
- Correspondence: Daniel J. Tobiansky, Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI 02912.
| | - Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island
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5
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Schuppe ER, Miles MC, Fuxjager MJ. Evolution of the androgen receptor: Perspectives from human health to dancing birds. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2020; 499:110577. [PMID: 31525432 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2019.110577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/29/2019] [Revised: 09/04/2019] [Accepted: 09/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Androgenic hormones orchestrate the development and activation of diverse reproductive phenotypes across vertebrates. Although extensive work investigates how selection for these traits modifies individual elements of this signaling system (e.g., hormone or androgen receptor [AR] levels), we know less about natural variation in the AR sequence across vertebrates. Our knowledge of AR sequence mutations is largely limited to work in human patients or cell-lines, providing a framework to contextualize single mutations at the expense of evolutionary timescale. Here we unite both perspectives in a review that explores the functional significance of AR on a domain-by-domain basis, using existing knowledge to highlight how and why each region might evolve. We then examine AR sequence variation on different timescales by examining sequence variation in clades originating in the Cambrian (vertebrates; >500 mya) and Cretaceous (birds; >65 mya). In each case, we characterize how the receptor has changed over time and discuss which regions are most likely to evolve in response to selection. Overall, domains that are required for androgenic signaling to function (e.g., DNA- and ligand-binding) tend to be conserved. Meanwhile, areas that interface with co-regulatory molecules can exhibit notable variation even between closely related species. We propose that accumulating mutations in regulatory regions is one way that AR structure might act as a substrate for selection to guide the evolution of reproductive traits. By synthesizing literature across disciplines and highlighting the evolutionary potential of specific AR regions, we hope to inspire new avenues of integrative research into endocrine system evolution.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eric R Schuppe
- Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY, 14853, USA
| | - Meredith C Miles
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA
| | - Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Brown University, Providence, RI, 02912, USA.
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Miles MC, Vitousek MN, Husak JF, Johnson MA, Martin LB, Taff CC, Zimmer C, Lovern MB, Fuxjager MJ. Standing Variation and the Capacity for Change: Are Endocrine Phenotypes More Variable Than Other Traits? Integr Comp Biol 2018; 58:751-762. [DOI: 10.1093/icb/icy062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Meredith C Miles
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27109, USA
| | - Maren N Vitousek
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
- Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY 14850, USA
| | - Jerry F Husak
- Department of Biology, University of St. Thomas, St. Paul, MN 55105, USA
| | - Michele A Johnson
- Department of Biology, Trinity University, San Antonio, TX 78212, USA
| | - Lynn B Martin
- Department of Global Health, University of South Florida, Tampa, FL 33620, USA
| | - Conor C Taff
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Cedric Zimmer
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853, USA
| | - Matthew B Lovern
- Department of Zoology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK 74078, USA
| | - Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC 27109, USA
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Johnson MA, Kircher BK, Castro DJ. The evolution of androgen receptor expression and behavior in Anolis lizard forelimb muscles. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2017; 204:71-79. [PMID: 29143128 DOI: 10.1007/s00359-017-1228-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2017] [Revised: 10/12/2017] [Accepted: 11/09/2017] [Indexed: 10/18/2022]
Abstract
The motor systems that produce behavioral movements are among the primary targets for the action of steroid hormones, including androgens. Androgens such as testosterone bind to androgen receptors (AR) to induce physiological changes in the size, strength, and energetic capacity of skeletal muscles, which can directly influence the performance of behaviors in which those muscles are used. Because tissues differentially express AR, resulting in tissue-specific sensitivity to androgens, AR expression may be a major target of selection for the evolution of behavior. Anolis lizards (i.e., anoles) provide a robust system for the study of androgen-regulated traits, including the behavioral traits that facilitate social display and locomotion. In this study, we examined six anole species that demonstrate significant variation in the behavioral use of the forelimbs to measure the proportion of myonuclei in the bicep muscles that express AR. Using phylogenetic comparative analyses, we found that species with a greater proportion of nuclei positive for AR expression in the biceps exhibited greater frequencies of locomotor movements and pushup displays. These results suggest that AR expression in skeletal muscles may influence the evolution of androgen-regulated behaviors in this group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michele A Johnson
- Department of Biology, Trinity University, San Antonio, TX, 78212, USA.
| | - Bonnie K Kircher
- Department of Biology, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL, 32611, USA
| | - Diego J Castro
- Department of Biology, Trinity University, San Antonio, TX, 78212, USA.,Escuela Internacional Sampedrana, San Pedro Sula, Honduras
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Fuxjager MJ, Miles MC, Goller F, Petersen J, Yancey J. Androgens Support Male Acrobatic Courtship Behavior by Enhancing Muscle Speed and Easing the Severity of Its Tradeoff With Force. Endocrinology 2017; 158:4038-4046. [PMID: 28938418 DOI: 10.1210/en.2017-00599] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2017] [Accepted: 08/23/2017] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Steroid hormone action in the brain regulates many animals' elaborate social displays used for courtship and competition, but it is increasingly recognized that the periphery may also be a site for potent steroidal modulation of complex behavior. However, the mechanisms of such "bottom-up" regulation of behavioral outflow are largely unclear. To study this problem, we examined how androgenic sex hormones act through the skeletal muscular system to mediate elaborate courtship acrobatics in a tropical bird called the golden-collared manakin. As part of their display, males snap their wings together above their backs at rates that are at least 2× faster than the normal wing-beat frequency used for flight. This behavior, called the roll-snap, is actuated by repeatedly activating a humeral retractor muscle-the scapulohumeralis caudalis (SH)-which produces contraction-relaxation cycling speeds similar to the "superfast" muscles of other taxa. We report that endogenous androgenic activation of androgen receptor (AR) sustains this muscle's exceptionally rapid contractile kinetics, allowing the tissue to generate distinct wing movements at oscillation frequencies >100 Hz. We also show that these effects are rooted in an AR-dependent increase to contractile velocity, which incurs no detectable cost to force generation. Thus, AR enhances SH speed necessary for courtship display performance while avoiding the expected tradeoff with strength that could otherwise negatively influence aspects of flight. Peripheral AR therefore not only sets up the muscular system to perform a complex wing display, but does so in a way that balances the functional requirements of this muscle for other life-sustaining behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew J Fuxjager
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27109
| | - Meredith C Miles
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27109
| | - Franz Goller
- Department of Biology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah 84112
| | - John Petersen
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27109
| | - Julia Yancey
- Department of Biology, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, North Carolina 27109
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9
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Androgen receptors and muscle: a key mechanism underlying life history trade-offs. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2017; 204:51-60. [DOI: 10.1007/s00359-017-1222-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2017] [Revised: 10/05/2017] [Accepted: 10/08/2017] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
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10
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Insight into the neuroendocrine basis of signal evolution: a case study in foot-flagging frogs. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2017; 204:61-70. [DOI: 10.1007/s00359-017-1218-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2017] [Revised: 09/25/2017] [Accepted: 09/26/2017] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
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Fuxjager MJ, Schlinger BA. Perspectives on the evolution of animal dancing: a case study of manakins. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2015. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2015.06.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
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12
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Quintana E, Manjarrez J, Martínez-Gómez M, D'Alba L, Rodríguez-Antolín J, Fajardo V. Sexual dimorphism in histological characteristics and contractility of the iliofibularis muscle in the lizardSceloporus torquatus. ACTA ZOOL-STOCKHOLM 2012. [DOI: 10.1111/azo.12021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Erendira Quintana
- Laboratorio de Conducta Animal; Centro de Investigaciones en Recursos Bióticos-Facultad de Ciencias; Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México; Toluca Estado de México 50000 México
| | - Javier Manjarrez
- Laboratorio de Biología Evolutiva; Centro de Investigaciones en Recursos Bióticos-Facultad de Ciencias; Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México; Toluca Estado de México 50000 México
| | - Margarita Martínez-Gómez
- Centro Tlaxcala de Biología de la Conducta-Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala; Unidad Periférica del Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; Tlaxcala Tlaxcala 90070 México
| | - Liliana D'Alba
- Department of Biology and Integrated Bioscience Program; University of Akron; Akron Ohio 44325-3908 USA
| | - Jorge Rodríguez-Antolín
- Centro Tlaxcala de Biología de la Conducta-Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala; Unidad Periférica del Instituto de Investigaciones Biomédicas; Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México; Tlaxcala Tlaxcala 90070 México
| | - Victor Fajardo
- Laboratorio de Conducta Animal; Centro de Investigaciones en Recursos Bióticos-Facultad de Ciencias; Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México; Toluca Estado de México 50000 México
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Wade J. Relationships among hormones, brain and motivated behaviors in lizards. Horm Behav 2011; 59:637-44. [PMID: 20816970 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2010.08.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/11/2010] [Accepted: 08/25/2010] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Lizards provide a rich opportunity for investigating the mechanisms associated with arousal and the display of motivated behaviors. They exhibit diverse mating strategies and modes of conspecific communication. This review focuses on anole lizards, of which green anoles (Anolis carolinensis) have been most extensively studied. Research from other species is discussed in that context. By considering mechanisms collectively, we can begin to piece together neural and endocrine factors mediating the stimulation of sexual and aggressive behaviors in this group of vertebrates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juli Wade
- Michigan State University, Department of Psychology, East Lansing, MI 48824, USA.
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Huyghe K, Husak JF, Moore IT, Vanhooydonck B, Van Damme R, Molina-Borja M, Herrel A. Effects of testosterone on morphology, performance and muscle mass in a lizard. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2010; 313:9-16. [DOI: 10.1002/jez.569] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
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15
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Cox R, Stenquist D, Henningsen J, Calsbeek R. Manipulating Testosterone to Assess Links between Behavior, Morphology, and Performance in the Brown Anole Anolis sagrei. Physiol Biochem Zool 2009; 82:686-98. [DOI: 10.1086/605391] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
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Sampedro C, Font E, Desfilis E. Size variation and cell proliferation in chemosensory brain areas of a lizard (Podarcis hispanica): effects of sex and season. Eur J Neurosci 2008; 28:87-98. [PMID: 18662337 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2008.06287.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Many lizards rely on chemoreception for crucial aspects of their biology, including exploration, prey and predator detection, and intraspecific communication. Here we investigate sex and seasonal variation in size and proliferative activity in chemosensory areas of the lizard brain. We captured adult Iberian wall lizards (Podarcis hispanica) of either sex in the breeding (April) and non-breeding (November) season, injected them with 5-bromo-2'-deoxyuridine (BrdU) and killed them 3 weeks later. We removed the brains, measured the length of the olfactory bulbs, and counted BrdU-labelled cells in the main and accessory olfactory bulbs (MOB, AOB), lateral cortex (LC) and nucleus sphericus (NS). Our results show that, relative to body size, males have larger MOBs and AOBs than females; however, relative to brain size, males have larger AOBs, but not larger MOBs than females. Additionally, males produce more new cells than females in the olfactory bulbs, LC and NS. We failed to detect significant seasonal changes or sex x season interaction in size or proliferative activity in these areas. Sex differences in the addition of newly generated cells--mainly neurons--may be partly responsible for the size differences in chemosensory brain areas. The presence of sexual dimorphism in AOB is expected given the available behavioural evidence, which suggests that males of P. hispanica are more responsive than females to socially relevant chemical stimuli. This is the first demonstration of sexual dimorphism in size and proliferative activity in chemosensory areas of a non-mammalian species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carlos Sampedro
- Unidad de Etología, Instituto Cavanilles de Biodiversidad y Biología Evolutiva, Universidad de Valencia, Paterna, Spain.
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