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Wang Y, You L, Tan K, Li M, Zou J, Zhao Z, Hu W, Li T, Xie F, Li C, Yuan R, Ding K, Cao L, Xin F, Shang C, Liu M, Gao Y, Wei L, You Z, Gao X, Xiong W, Cao P, Luo M, Chen F, Li K, Wu J, Hong B, Yuan K. A common thalamic hub for general and defensive arousal control. Neuron 2023; 111:3270-3287.e8. [PMID: 37557180 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2023.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/11/2022] [Revised: 05/25/2023] [Accepted: 07/11/2023] [Indexed: 08/11/2023]
Abstract
The expression of defensive responses to alerting sensory cues requires both general arousal and a specific arousal state associated with defensive emotions. However, it remains unclear whether these two forms of arousal can be regulated by common brain regions. We discovered that the medial sector of the auditory thalamus (ATm) in mice is a thalamic hub controlling both general and defensive arousal. The spontaneous activity of VGluT2-expressing ATm (ATmVGluT2+) neurons was correlated with and causally contributed to wakefulness. In sleeping mice, sustained ATmVGluT2+ population responses were predictive of sensory-induced arousal, the likelihood of which was markedly decreased by inhibiting ATmVGluT2+ neurons or multiple downstream pathways. In awake mice, ATmVGluT2+ activation led to heightened arousal accompanied by excessive anxiety and avoidance behavior. Notably, blocking their neurotransmission abolished alerting stimuli-induced defensive behaviors. These findings may shed light on the comorbidity of sleep disturbances and abnormal sensory sensitivity in specific brain disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiwei Wang
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Ling You
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China
| | - KaMun Tan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Meijie Li
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Jingshan Zou
- Hospital of Chengdu University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Traditional Chinese Medicine Hospital of Sichuan Province, Chengdu 610036, China
| | - Zhifeng Zhao
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China; Department of Automation, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Wenxin Hu
- School of Aerospace Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Tianyu Li
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Fenghua Xie
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua Laboratory of Brain and Intelligence (THBI), Beijing 100084, China
| | - Caiqin Li
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Ruizhi Yuan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Kai Ding
- Department of Chemical Engineering, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Lingwei Cao
- Zhili College, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Fengyuan Xin
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Congping Shang
- National Institute of Biological Sciences (NIBS), Beijing 102206, China
| | - Miaomiao Liu
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Laboratory Animal Resources Center, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Yixiao Gao
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China; Department of Basic Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua-Peking Joint Center for Life Sciences, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Liqiang Wei
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China; School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua-Peking Joint Center for Life Sciences, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Zhiwei You
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua-Peking Joint Center for Life Sciences, Beijing 100084, China; Laboratory of Dynamic Immunobiology, Institute for Immunology, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Xiaorong Gao
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua Laboratory of Brain and Intelligence (THBI), Beijing 100084, China
| | - Wei Xiong
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China; School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Chinese Institute for Brain Research, Beijing 102206, China
| | - Peng Cao
- National Institute of Biological Sciences (NIBS), Beijing 102206, China
| | - Minmin Luo
- National Institute of Biological Sciences (NIBS), Beijing 102206, China; Chinese Institute for Brain Research, Beijing 102206, China
| | - Feng Chen
- Department of Automation, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Kun Li
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China; School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua-Peking Joint Center for Life Sciences, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Jiamin Wu
- IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China; Department of Automation, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China
| | - Bo Hong
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua Laboratory of Brain and Intelligence (THBI), Beijing 100084, China.
| | - Kexin Yuan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Medicine, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China; IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research at Tsinghua, Beijing 100084, China; Tsinghua Laboratory of Brain and Intelligence (THBI), Beijing 100084, China.
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Bialy M, Bogacki-Rychlik W, Przybylski J, Zera T. The Sexual Motivation of Male Rats as a Tool in Animal Models of Human Health Disorders. Front Behav Neurosci 2019; 13:257. [PMID: 31956302 PMCID: PMC6947634 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00257] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Accepted: 10/30/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Normal or dysfunctional sexual behavior seems to be an important indicator of health or disease. Many health disorders in male patients affect sexual activity by directly causing erectile dysfunction, affecting sexual motivation, or both. Clinical evidence indicates that many diseases strongly disrupt sexual motivation and sexual performance in patients with depression, addiction, diabetes mellitus and other metabolic disturbances with obesity and diet-related factors, kidney and liver failure, circadian rhythm disorders, sleep disturbances including obstructive sleep apnea syndrome, developmental and hormonal disorders, brain damages, cardiovascular diseases, and peripheral neuropathies. Preclinical studies of these conditions often require appropriate experimental paradigms, including animal models. Male sexual behavior and motivation have been intensively investigated over the last 80 years in animal rat model. Sexual motivation can be examined using such parameters as: anticipatory behavior and 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations reflecting the emotional state of rats, initiation of copulation, efficiency of copulation, or techniques of classical (pavlovian) and instrumental conditioning. In this review article, we analyze the behavioral parameters that describe the sexual motivation and sexual performance of male rats in the context of animal experimental models of human health disorders. Based on analysis of the parameters describing the heterogeneous and complex structure of sexual behavior in laboratory rodents, we propose an approach that is useful for delineating distinct mechanisms affecting sexual motivation and sexual performance in selected disease states and the efficacy of therapy in preclinical investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Bialy
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Physiology, Laboratory of Centre for Preclinical Research, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Wiktor Bogacki-Rychlik
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Physiology, Laboratory of Centre for Preclinical Research, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Jacek Przybylski
- Department of Biophysics and Human Physiology, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
| | - Tymoteusz Zera
- Department of Experimental and Clinical Physiology, Laboratory of Centre for Preclinical Research, Medical University of Warsaw, Warsaw, Poland
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Armbruster D, Strobel A, Kirschbaum C, Brocke B. The impact of sex and menstrual cycle on the acoustic startle response. Behav Brain Res 2014; 274:326-33. [PMID: 25151928 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2014.08.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2014] [Revised: 08/01/2014] [Accepted: 08/04/2014] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Sex differences in fear and anxiety have been widely reported although results are not entirely consistent depending on measures used. Also, a possible influence of the menstrual cycle is often not taken into account, and effect sizes are not always discussed. In a sample of healthy young adults (n=111 women without hormonal contraceptives and n=107 men) the acoustic startle response (ASR) and emotional ASR modulation were analysed. We found no significant effect of sex on ASR (p=.269) but a significant effect of menstrual cycle (p=.027, η(2)=0.105). Compared to men, women showed increased ASR during the late luteal phase probably reflecting elevated negative emotionality, and during ovulation which, however, might be due to increased auditory sensitivity and changes in general CNS arousal. Neither sex nor menstrual cycle affected startle modulation. Thus, at least in young adults, menstrual cycle but not sex per se appears to contribute significantly to ASR variance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Diana Armbruster
- Institute of Personality and Individual Differences, Technische Universitaet Dresden, Dresden 01062, Germany.
| | - Alexander Strobel
- Institute of Personality and Individual Differences, Technische Universitaet Dresden, Dresden 01062, Germany
| | - Clemens Kirschbaum
- Institute of Biopsychology, Technische Universitaet Dresden, Dresden, Germany
| | - Burkhard Brocke
- Institute of Personality and Individual Differences, Technische Universitaet Dresden, Dresden 01062, Germany
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Yang CF, Chiang MC, Gray DC, Prabhakaran M, Alvarado M, Juntti SA, Unger EK, Wells JA, Shah NM. Sexually dimorphic neurons in the ventromedial hypothalamus govern mating in both sexes and aggression in males. Cell 2013; 153:896-909. [PMID: 23663785 PMCID: PMC3767768 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2013.04.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 457] [Impact Index Per Article: 41.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2012] [Revised: 02/11/2013] [Accepted: 04/05/2013] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Sexual dimorphisms in the brain underlie behavioral sex differences, but the function of individual sexually dimorphic neuronal populations is poorly understood. Neuronal sexual dimorphisms typically represent quantitative differences in cell number, gene expression, or other features, and it is unknown whether these dimorphisms control sex-typical behavior exclusively in one sex or in both sexes. The progesterone receptor (PR) controls female sexual behavior, and we find many sex differences in number, distribution, or projections of PR-expressing neurons in the adult mouse brain. Using a genetic strategy we developed, we have ablated one such dimorphic PR-expressing neuronal population located in the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH). Ablation of these neurons in females greatly diminishes sexual receptivity. Strikingly, the corresponding ablation in males reduces mating and aggression. Our findings reveal the functions of a molecularly defined, sexually dimorphic neuronal population in the brain. Moreover, we show that sexually dimorphic neurons can control distinct sex-typical behaviors in both sexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cindy F Yang
- Program in Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA 94158, USA
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12
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Male risk taking, female odors, and the role of estrogen receptors. Physiol Behav 2012; 107:751-61. [PMID: 22472459 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.03.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2011] [Revised: 03/07/2012] [Accepted: 03/15/2012] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Male risk-taking and decision making are affected by sex-related cues, with men making riskier choices and decisions after exposure to either women or stimuli associated with women. In non-human species females and, or their cues can also increase male risk taking. Under the ecologically relevant condition of predation threat, brief exposure of male mice to the odors of a sexually receptive novel female reduces the avoidance of, and aversive responses to, a predator. We briefly review evidence showing that estrogen receptors (ERs), ERα and ERβ, are associated with the mediation of these risk taking responses. We show that ERs influence the production of the female odors that affect male risk taking, with the odors of wild type (ERαWT, ERβWT), oxytocin (OT) wildtype (OTWT), gene-deleted 'knock-out' ERβ (ERβKO), but not ERαKO or oxytocin (OT) OTKO or ovariectomized (OVX) female mice reducing the avoidance responses of male mice to cat odor. We further show that administration of specific ERα and ERβ agonists to OVX females results in their odors increasing male risk taking and boldness towards a predator. We also review evidence that ERs are involved in the mediation of the responses of males to female cues, with ERα being associated with the sexual and both ERβ and ERα with the sexual and social mechanisms underlying the effects of female cues on male risk taking. The implications and relations of these findings with rodents to ERs and the regulation of human risk taking are briefly considered.
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García-Dalmán C, González-Mariscal G. Major role of suckling stimulation for inhibition of estrous behaviors in lactating rabbits: acute and chronic effects. Horm Behav 2012; 61:108-13. [PMID: 22107911 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2011.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2011] [Revised: 10/28/2011] [Accepted: 11/05/2011] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Lactation in rabbits induces anestrus: sexual receptivity and scent-marking (chinning) are reduced despite the brevity of suckling (one daily nursing bout, lasting around 3 min). The mechanisms underlying this effect are unknown but, as chinning, lordosis, and ambulation in an open field are immediately inhibited by the peripheral stimulation received during mating we hypothesized that, across lactation, suckling stimulation would provoke a similar effect. To test this possibility we provided litters of 1, 3, 5, or 10 pups across lactation days 1-15 and quantified chinning and ambulation frequencies, the lordosis quotient, and milk output. Baseline chinning frequency, determined before the daily nursing bout, was low across lactation days 1-15 in does nursing 3, 5 or 10 pups but it increased steadily across days 1-10 in rabbits suckling one pup. Yet, a single young was sufficient to abolish chinning for about 1h, after which this behavior rose again. Suckling litters of all sizes reduced (but did not abolish) ambulation frequency, both chronically (baseline levels declined across days 1-5) and acutely. Sexual receptivity was significantly reduced on lactation day 15 only in does that had nursed 10 pups. Large litter size promoted a larger milk output and a normal duration of nursing episodes. Results support a major role of suckling stimulation for the suppression of estrous behaviors and ambulation through as yet unidentified mechanisms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cipatli García-Dalmán
- Centro de Investigación en Reproducción Animal, CINVESTAV-Universidad Autónoma de Tlaxcala, Apdo. Postal 62. Tlaxcala, Tlax. 90000, Mexico.
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