1
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Sofer Y, Zilkha N, Gimpel E, Wagner S, Chuartzman SG, Kimchi T. Sexually dimorphic oxytocin circuits drive intragroup social conflict and aggression in wild house mice. Nat Neurosci 2024; 27:1565-1573. [PMID: 38969756 DOI: 10.1038/s41593-024-01685-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2023] [Accepted: 05/16/2024] [Indexed: 07/07/2024]
Abstract
In nature, both males and females engage in competitive aggressive interactions to resolve social conflicts, yet the behavioral principles guiding such interactions and their underlying neural mechanisms remain poorly understood. Through circuit manipulations in wild mice, we unveil oxytocin-expressing (OT+) neurons in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) as a neural hub governing behavior in dyadic and intragroup social conflicts, influencing the degree of behavioral sexual dimorphism. We demonstrate that OT+ PVN neurons are essential and sufficient in promoting aggression and dominance hierarchies, predominantly in females. Furthermore, pharmacogenetic activation of these neurons induces a change in the 'personality' traits of the mice within groups, in a sex-dependent manner. Finally, we identify an innervation from these OT neurons to the ventral tegmental area that drives dyadic aggression, in a sex-specific manner. Our data suggest that competitive aggression in naturalistic settings is mediated by a sexually dimorphic OT network connected with reward-related circuitry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yizhak Sofer
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Noga Zilkha
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Elena Gimpel
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel
| | - Shlomo Wagner
- Sagol Department of Neurobiology, the Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center, University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel
| | | | - Tali Kimchi
- Department of Brain Sciences, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel.
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2
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Ammari R, Monaca F, Cao M, Nassar E, Wai P, Del Grosso NA, Lee M, Borak N, Schneider-Luftman D, Kohl J. Hormone-mediated neural remodeling orchestrates parenting onset during pregnancy. Science 2023; 382:76-81. [PMID: 37797007 PMCID: PMC7615220 DOI: 10.1126/science.adi0576] [Citation(s) in RCA: 16] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 08/09/2023] [Indexed: 10/07/2023]
Abstract
During pregnancy, physiological adaptations prepare the female body for the challenges of motherhood. Becoming a parent also requires behavioral adaptations. Such adaptations can occur as early as during pregnancy, but how pregnancy hormones remodel parenting circuits to instruct preparatory behavioral changes remains unknown. We found that action of estradiol and progesterone on galanin (Gal)-expressing neurons in the mouse medial preoptic area (MPOA) is critical for pregnancy-induced parental behavior. Whereas estradiol silences MPOAGal neurons and paradoxically increases their excitability, progesterone permanently rewires this circuit node by promoting dendritic spine formation and recruitment of excitatory synaptic inputs. This MPOAGal-specific neural remodeling sparsens population activity in vivo and results in persistently stronger, more selective responses to pup stimuli. Pregnancy hormones thus remodel parenting circuits in anticipation of future behavioral need.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rachida Ammari
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Francesco Monaca
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Mingran Cao
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Estelle Nassar
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Patty Wai
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Nicholas A. Del Grosso
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Matthew Lee
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Neven Borak
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Deborah Schneider-Luftman
- Bioinformatics and Biostatistics Science Technology Platform, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
| | - Johannes Kohl
- State-dependent Neural Processing Laboratory, The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd, London NW1 1AT, UK
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3
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Heitzmann LD, Challe M, Perez J, Castell L, Galibert E, Martin AO, Valjent E, Veyrunes F. Genotypic sex shapes maternal care in the African pygmy mouse, Mus minutoides. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20231224. [PMID: 37670585 PMCID: PMC10510450 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.1224] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 08/03/2023] [Indexed: 09/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Sexually dimorphic behaviours, such as parental care, have long been thought to be mainly driven by gonadal hormones. In the past two decades, a few studies have challenged this view, highlighting the direct influence of the sex chromosome complement (XX versus XY or ZZ versus ZW). The African pygmy mouse, Mus minutoides, is a wild mouse species with naturally occurring XY sex reversal induced by a third, feminizing X* chromosome, leading to three female genotypes: XX, XX* and X*Y. Here, we show that sex reversal in X*Y females shapes a divergent maternal care strategy (maternal aggression, pup retrieval and nesting behaviours) from both XX and XX* females. Although neuroanatomical investigations were inconclusive, we show that the dopaminergic system in the anteroventral periventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus is worth investigating further as it may support differences in pup retrieval behaviour between females. Combining behaviours and neurobiology in a rodent subject to natural selection, we evaluate potential candidates for the neural basis of maternal behaviours and strengthen the underestimated role of the sex chromosomes in shaping sex differences in brain and behaviours. All things considered, we further highlight the emergence of a third sexual phenotype, challenging the binary view of phenotypic sexes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Louise D. Heitzmann
- ISEM, Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Marie Challe
- ISEM, Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Julie Perez
- ISEM, Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, Montpellier, France
| | - Laia Castell
- IGF, Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, INSERM, Montpellier, France
| | - Evelyne Galibert
- IGF, Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, INSERM, Montpellier, France
| | - Agnès O. Martin
- IGF, Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, INSERM, Montpellier, France
| | - Emmanuel Valjent
- IGF, Institut de Génomique Fonctionnelle, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, INSERM, Montpellier, France
| | - Frédéric Veyrunes
- ISEM, Institut des Sciences de l'Evolution de Montpellier, Université de Montpellier, CNRS, IRD, Montpellier, France
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4
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Haimson B, Mizrahi A. Plasticity in auditory cortex during parenthood. Hear Res 2023; 431:108738. [PMID: 36931020 DOI: 10.1016/j.heares.2023.108738] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 02/09/2023] [Accepted: 03/06/2023] [Indexed: 03/11/2023]
Abstract
Most animals display robust parental behaviors that support the survival and well-being of their offspring. The manifestation of parental behaviors is accompanied by physiological and hormonal changes, which affect both the body and the brain for better care giving. Rodents exhibit a behavior called pup retrieval - a stereotyped sequence of perception and action - used to identify and retrieve their newborn pups back to the nest. Pup retrieval consists of a significant auditory component, which depends on plasticity in the auditory cortex (ACx). We review the evidence of neural changes taking place in the ACx of rodents during the transition to parenthood. We discuss how the plastic changes both in and out of the ACx support the encoding of pup vocalizations. Key players in the mechanism of this plasticity are hormones and experience, both of which have a clear dynamic signature during the transition to parenthood. Mothers, co caring females, and fathers have been used as models to understand parental plasticity at disparate levels of organization. Yet, common principles of cortical plasticity and the biological mechanisms underlying its involvement in parental behavior are just beginning to be unpacked.
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Affiliation(s)
- Baruch Haimson
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, and 2Department of Neurobiology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel.
| | - Adi Mizrahi
- The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, and 2Department of Neurobiology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem 91904, Israel.
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5
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Culbert BM, Ligocki IY, Salena MG, Wong MYL, Hamilton IM, Bernier NJ, Balshine S. Galanin expression varies with parental care and social status in a wild cooperatively breeding fish. Horm Behav 2022; 146:105275. [PMID: 36272180 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2022.105275] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2022] [Revised: 09/27/2022] [Accepted: 10/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/04/2022]
Abstract
As many busy parents will attest, caring for young often comes at the expense of having time to feed and care for oneself. Galanin is a neuropeptide that regulates food intake and modulates parental care; however, the relative importance of galanin in the regulation of feeding versus caring by parents has never been evaluated before under naturalistic settings. Here, we assessed how expression of the galanin system varied in two brain regions, the hypothalamus (which regulates feeding) and the preoptic area (which modulates social behaviours including care) in a wild cichlid fish, Neolamprologus pulcher. Females with young had higher hypothalamic expression of galanin receptor 1a, and the highest expression of galanin and galanin receptor 1a was observed in females that foraged the least. However, expression of five other feeding-related neuropeptides did not change while females were caring for young suggesting that changes in the hypothalamic galanin system may not have been directly related to changes in food intake. The preoptic galanin system was unaffected by the presence of young, but preoptic galanin expression was higher in dominant females (which are aggressive, regularly reproduce and care for young) compared to subordinate females (which are submissive, rarely reproduce but often help care for young). Additionally, preoptic galanin expression was higher in fish that performed more territory defense. Overall, our results indicate that galanin has brain-region-specific roles in modulating both parental care and social status in wild animals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brett M Culbert
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada.
| | - Isaac Y Ligocki
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA; Department of Biology, Millersville University, Millersville, PA, USA
| | - Matthew G Salena
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
| | - Marian Y L Wong
- School of Earth, Atmospheric and Life Sciences, University of Wollongong, Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia
| | - Ian M Hamilton
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA; Department of Mathematics, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, USA
| | - Nicholas J Bernier
- Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sigal Balshine
- Department of Psychology, Neuroscience & Behaviour, McMaster University, Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
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6
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Buck J, Manion MTC, Zhang W, Glasper ER, Wang KH. Comparative anatomical analysis of dopamine systems in Mus musculus and Peromyscus californicus. Brain Struct Funct 2022; 227:2219-2227. [PMID: 35501609 PMCID: PMC11115318 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-022-02497-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 04/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
Dopamine plays important roles in motivational and social behaviors in mammals, and it has been implicated in several human neurological and psychiatric disorders. Rodents are used extensively as experimental models to study dopamine function in health and disease. However, interspecies differences of dopamine systems remain incompletely characterized. Here, we assessed whether the commonly referenced anatomical organization of dopamine systems in Mus musculus differs from another rodent species, Peromyscus californicus, which exhibits unique social behaviors such as biparental care. We applied tyrosine hydroxylase immunofluorescence labeling and high-throughput microscopy to establish whole-brain maps of dopamine systems in P. californicus. By comparing these maps to those from M. musculus, we identified unexpected anatomical similarity and difference between these two species. A sex difference in dopamine neurons at the anteroventral periventricular nucleus of hypothalamus, which has been implicated in regulating the maternal behaviors of the uniparental M. musculus, is similarly present in the biparental P. californicus. In contrast, major interspecies differences from M. musculus are found in the ventral midbrain and striatum of P. californicus, including the expansion of midbrain dopamine neurons into the ventral substantia nigra and the presence of an internal capsule-like white matter tract that demarcates a dorsomedial area from the rest of the striatum. These features identified in P. californicus resemble the anatomical organization of the primate brain more closely compared to those in M. musculus. Our findings suggest that P. californicus is a unique model organism for studying the evolution of dopamine systems in mammals and the disorders of dopamine systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Justin Buck
- Department of Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
- Unit on Neural Circuits and Adaptive Behaviors, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
- Department of Neuroscience, Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
- Program in Neurobiology and Behavior, Columbia University, New York, NY, 10027, USA
| | - Matthew T C Manion
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
- Unit on Neural Circuits and Adaptive Behaviors, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA
- Program in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
| | - Wenyu Zhang
- Department of Neuroscience, Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA
| | - Erica R Glasper
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
- Program in Neuroscience and Cognitive Science, University of Maryland, College Park, MD, 20742, USA
- Department of Neuroscience and Institute for Behavioral Medicine Research, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43235, USA
| | - Kuan Hong Wang
- Unit on Neural Circuits and Adaptive Behaviors, National Institute of Mental Health, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, 20892, USA.
- Department of Neuroscience, Del Monte Institute for Neuroscience, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, NY, 14642, USA.
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7
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Kopachev N, Netser S, Wagner S. Sex-dependent features of social behavior differ between distinct laboratory mouse strains and their mixed offspring. iScience 2022; 25:103735. [PMID: 35098101 PMCID: PMC8783130 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.103735] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2021] [Revised: 11/25/2021] [Accepted: 12/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
The survival of individuals of gregarious species depends on their social interactions. In humans, atypical social behavior is a hallmark of several psychopathological conditions, many of which have sex-specific manifestations. Various laboratory mouse strains are used to reveal the mechanisms mediating typical and atypical social behavior in mammals. Here, we used three social discrimination tests to characterize social behavior in males and females of three widely used laboratory mouse strains (C57BL/6J, BALB/c, and ICR). We found marked sex- and strain-specific differences in the behavior exhibited by subjects, in a test-dependent manner. Interestingly, some characteristics were strain-dependent, while others were sex-dependent. We then crossbred C57BL/6J and BALB/c mice and found that offspring of such crossbreeding exhibit social behavior which differs from both parental strains and depends on the specific combination of parental strains. Thus, social behavior of laboratory mice is sex- and strain-specific and depends on both genetic and environmental factors. Social investigation behavior of laboratory mice is highly strain- and sex-specific Some behavioral aspects are either strain- or sex-specific, but not both Mixed offspring of distinct strains behave differently from both parental strains The behavior of mixed offspring depends on the specific combination of parents
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8
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Cunningham CB, Khana D, Carter A, McKinney EC, Moore AJ. Survey of neurotransmitter receptor gene expression into and out of parental care in the burying beetle Nicrophorus vespilloides. Ecol Evol 2021; 11:14282-14292. [PMID: 34707854 PMCID: PMC8525115 DOI: 10.1002/ece3.8144] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2021] [Revised: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/06/2021] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Understanding the genetic influences of traits of nonmodel organisms is crucial to understanding how novel traits arise. Do new traits require new genes or are old genes repurposed? How predictable is this process? Here, we examine this question for gene expression influencing parenting behavior in a beetle, Nicrophorus vespilloides. Parental care, produced from many individual behaviors, should be influenced by changes of expression of multiple genes, and one suggestion is that the genes can be predicted based on knowledge of behavior expected to be precursors to parental care, such as aggression, resource defense, and mating on a resource. Thus, testing gene expression during parental care allows us to test expectations of this "precursor hypothesis" for multiple genes and traits. We tested for changes of the expression of serotonin, octopamine/tyramine, and dopamine receptors, as well as one glutamate receptor, predicting that these gene families would be differentially expressed during social interactions with offspring and associated resource defense. We found that serotonin receptors were strongly associated with social and aggression behavioral transitions. Octopamine receptors produced a complex picture of gene expression over a reproductive cycle. Dopamine was not associated with the behavioral transitions sampled here, while the glutamate receptor was most consistent with a behavioral change of resource defense/aggression. Our results generate new hypotheses, refine candidate lists for further studies, and inform the genetic mechanisms that are co-opted during the evolution of parent-offspring interactions, a likely evolutionary path for many lineages that become fully social. The precursor hypothesis, while not perfect, does provide a starting point for identifying candidate genes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Daven Khana
- Department of GeneticsUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
| | - Annika Carter
- Department of GeneticsUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
| | | | - Allen J. Moore
- Department of EntomologyUniversity of GeorgiaAthensGeorgiaUSA
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9
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Zilkha N, Sofer Y, Kashash Y, Kimchi T. The social network: Neural control of sex differences in reproductive behaviors, motivation, and response to social isolation. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2021; 68:137-151. [PMID: 33910083 PMCID: PMC8528716 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2021.03.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2021] [Revised: 03/03/2021] [Accepted: 03/07/2021] [Indexed: 12/30/2022]
Abstract
Social animal species present a vast repertoire of social interactions when encountering conspecifics. Reproduction-related behaviors, such as mating, parental care, and aggression, are some of the most rewarding types of social interactions and are also the most sexually dimorphic ones. This review focuses on rodent species and summarizes recent advances in neuroscience research that link sexually dimorphic reproductive behaviors to sexual dimorphism in their underlying neuronal circuits. Specifically, we present a few possible mechanisms governing sexually-dimorphic behaviors, by hypothalamic and reward-related brain regions. Sex differences in the neural response to social isolation in adulthood are also discussed, as well as future directions for comparative studies with naturally solitary species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Noga Zilkha
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Yizhak Sofer
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Yael Kashash
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel
| | - Tali Kimchi
- Department of Neurobiology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot 7610001, Israel.
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10
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Löwenbrück F, Hess U. Not all "caregivers" are created equal: Liking, caring and facial expression responses to the baby schema as a function of parenthood and testosterone. Biol Psychol 2021; 163:108120. [PMID: 34044066 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsycho.2021.108120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2020] [Revised: 05/14/2021] [Accepted: 05/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The baby schema elicits care from potential caregivers. However, much of the research on the baby schema is based on self-report only. To address this issue, we explored the effects of baby schema and child age on facial expressions (EMG) and eye-blink startle, in addition to self-reported liking and caring for 43 men and 48 women (39 parents). Further, basal testosterone was assessed. All groups responded with liking and caring to high baby schema, but only women also responded with more positive facial expressions. Caring and smiling towards infants compared to first graders depended on parenthood and testosterone levels. Basal testosterone levels were negatively associated with overall responsiveness to children in women and fathers, but positively in non-fathers. Whereas the baby schema overall lead to positive affect and caring, the scope of these responses and the processes underlying them depended on gender, parenthood and hormonal status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fabian Löwenbrück
- Humboldt University Berlin, Department of Psychology, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany.
| | - Ursula Hess
- Humboldt University Berlin, Department of Psychology, Unter den Linden 6, 10099 Berlin, Germany.
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11
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Oxytocin receptor binding in the titi monkey hippocampal formation is associated with parental status and partner affiliation. Sci Rep 2020; 10:17301. [PMID: 33057124 PMCID: PMC7560868 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-74243-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2020] [Accepted: 09/25/2020] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Social cognition is facilitated by oxytocin receptors (OXTR) in the hippocampus, a brain region that changes dynamically with pregnancy, parturition, and parenting experience. We investigated the impact of parenthood on hippocampal OXTR in male and female titi monkeys, a pair-bonding primate species that exhibits biparental care of offspring. We hypothesized that in postmortem brain tissue, OXTR binding in the hippocampal formation would differ between parents and non-parents, and that OXTR density would correlate with frequencies of observed parenting and affiliative behaviors between partners. Subjects were 10 adult titi monkeys. OXTR binding in the hippocampus (CA1, CA2/3, CA4, dentate gyrus, subiculum) and presubiculum layers (PSB1, PSB3) was determined using receptor autoradiography. The average frequency of partner affiliation (Proximity, Contact, and Tail Twining) and infant carrying were determined from longitudinal observations (5-6 per day). Analyses showed that parents exhibited higher OXTR binding than non-parents in PSB1 (t(8) = - 2.33, p = 0.048), and that OXTR binding in the total presubiculm correlated negatively with Proximity (r = - 0.88) and Contact (r = - 0.91), but not Tail Twining or infant carrying. These results suggest that OXTR binding in the presubiculum supports pair bonding and parenting behavior, potentially by mediating changes in hippocampal plasticity.
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12
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A Neuro-hormonal Circuit for Paternal Behavior Controlled by a Hypothalamic Network Oscillation. Cell 2020; 182:960-975.e15. [PMID: 32763155 PMCID: PMC7445434 DOI: 10.1016/j.cell.2020.07.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2018] [Revised: 10/21/2019] [Accepted: 07/09/2020] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Parental behavior is pervasive throughout the animal kingdom and essential for species survival. However, the relative contribution of the father to offspring care differs markedly across animals, even between related species. The mechanisms that organize and control paternal behavior remain poorly understood. Using Sprague-Dawley rats and C57BL/6 mice, two species at opposite ends of the paternal spectrum, we identified that distinct electrical oscillation patterns in neuroendocrine dopamine neurons link to a chain of low dopamine release, high circulating prolactin, prolactin receptor-dependent activation of medial preoptic area galanin neurons, and paternal care behavior in male mice. In rats, the same parameters exhibit inverse profiles. Optogenetic manipulation of these rhythms in mice dramatically shifted serum prolactin and paternal behavior, whereas injecting prolactin into non-paternal rat sires triggered expression of parental care. These findings identify a frequency-tuned brain-endocrine-brain circuit that can act as a gain control system determining a species’ parental strategy. Species-specific hypothalamic dopamine neuron rhythms yield distinct prolactin release Serum prolactin primes the “parental” neural circuit for pup care during fatherhood Optogenetic control of TIDA frequency tunes prolactin and paternal behavior Prolactin receptors in the MPOA are required for paternal behavior
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13
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Kohl J. Parenting - a paradigm for investigating the neural circuit basis of behavior. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2020; 60:84-91. [PMID: 31830690 PMCID: PMC7005672 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2019.11.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/14/2019] [Revised: 11/11/2019] [Accepted: 11/12/2019] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Parenting is essential for survival and wellbeing in many species. Since it can be performed with little prior experience and entails considerable sacrifices without immediate benefits for the caregiver, this behavior is likely orchestrated by evolutionarily shaped, hard-wired neural circuits. At the same time, experience, environmental factors and internal state also make parenting highly malleable. These characteristics have made parenting an attractive paradigm for linking complex, naturalistic behavior to its underlying neural mechanisms. Recent work - based on the identification of critical neuronal populations and improved tools for dissecting neural circuits - has uncovered novel functional principles and challenged simplistic models of parenting control. A better understanding of the neural basis of parenting will provide crucial clues to how complex behaviors are organized at the level of cells, circuits and computations. Here I review recent progress, discuss emerging functional principles of parental circuits, and outline future opportunities and challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Kohl
- The Francis Crick Institute, 1 Midland Rd., London NW1 1AT, UK.
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14
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Bukhari SA, Saul MC, James N, Bensky MK, Stein LR, Trapp R, Bell AM. Neurogenomic insights into paternal care and its relation to territorial aggression. Nat Commun 2019; 10:4437. [PMID: 31570726 PMCID: PMC6768867 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-12212-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2018] [Accepted: 08/28/2019] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Motherhood is characterized by dramatic changes in brain and behavior, but less is known about fatherhood. Here we report that male sticklebacks—a small fish in which fathers provide care—experience dramatic changes in neurogenomic state as they become fathers. Some genes are unique to different stages of paternal care, some genes are shared across stages, and some genes are added to the previously acquired neurogenomic state. Comparative genomic analysis suggests that some of these neurogenomic dynamics resemble changes associated with pregnancy and reproduction in mammalian mothers. Moreover, gene regulatory analysis identifies transcription factors that are regulated in opposite directions in response to a territorial challenge versus during paternal care. Altogether these results show that some of the molecular mechanisms of parental care might be deeply conserved and might not be sex-specific, and suggest that tradeoffs between opposing social behaviors are managed at the gene regulatory level. Compared to motherhood, the molecular changes associated with fatherhood are less understood. Here, the authors investigate gene expression changes associated with paternal care in male stickleback fish, and compare them with patterns in territorial aggression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Syed Abbas Bukhari
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 1206 Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA.,Illinois Informatics Institute, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 616 E. Green St., Urbana, IL, 61820, USA.,Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behavior, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA
| | - Michael C Saul
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 1206 Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA.,Jackson Labs, 600 Main St., Bar Harbor, ME, 04609, USA
| | - Noelle James
- Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA
| | - Miles K Bensky
- Program in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA
| | - Laura R Stein
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behavior, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA.,Department of Biology, University of Oklahoma, 730 Van Vleet Oval, Room 314, Norman, OK, 73019, USA
| | - Rebecca Trapp
- Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behavior, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA.,Department of Biological Sciences, Purdue University, 915 W. State St., West Lafayette, IN, 47907, USA
| | - Alison M Bell
- Carl R. Woese Institute for Genomic Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 1206 Gregory Drive, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA. .,Department of Evolution, Ecology and Behavior, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA. .,Neuroscience Program, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA. .,Program in Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois, Urbana Champaign, 505 S. Goodwin Avenue, Urbana, IL, 61801, USA.
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15
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Zupanc GKH, Amaro SM, Lehotzky D, Zupanc FB, Leung NY. Glia-mediated modulation of extracellular potassium concentration determines the sexually dimorphic output frequency of a model brainstem oscillator. J Theor Biol 2019; 471:117-124. [PMID: 30902592 DOI: 10.1016/j.jtbi.2019.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2019] [Revised: 03/05/2019] [Accepted: 03/19/2019] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Sexual dimorphism in behavior is widespread among animals, but the cellular mechanisms underlying neural control of this phenomenon are largely unknown. One behavior that has provided some important clues about how such sex differences might develop is the electric organ discharge of Apteronotus leptorhynchus. In this weakly electric fish, the mean discharge frequencies of males and females are 880 Hz and 740 Hz, respectively, with little overlap of the two frequency bands. The discharges are controlled, in a one-to-one fashion, by the neural oscillations of the pacemaker nucleus in the medulla oblongata. Experimental evidence has shown that the astrocytic syncytium associated with the neural network that generates these oscillations is significantly larger, and stronger coupled via gap junctions, in females than in males. In the present study, modeling of this network was performed to test the hypotheses that the sex-dependent differences in the structure and properties of the astrocytic syncytium mediate better buffering of extracellular potassium in females than in males, which in turn causes, via a lowering of the potassium equilibrium potential, a decrease in the oscillation frequency. Simulations of the neural activity of the pacemaker nucleus and its individual components demonstrated that under both spontaneous and induced conditions the oscillation frequency and the potassium equilibrium potential are strongly positively correlated. These simulations predict that sufficient separation of the electric organ discharge frequencies for establishment of the sexual dimorphism can be achieved by rather minor alterations in the concentration of the extracellular potassium concentration in the pacemaker nucleus.
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Affiliation(s)
- Günther K H Zupanc
- Laboratory of Neurobiology, Department of Biology, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
| | - Stephanie M Amaro
- Laboratory of Neurobiology, Department of Biology, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Dávid Lehotzky
- Laboratory of Neurobiology, Department of Biology, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Frederick B Zupanc
- Laboratory of Neurobiology, Department of Biology, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA
| | - Nicholas Y Leung
- Laboratory of Neurobiology, Department of Biology, Northeastern University, 360 Huntington Avenue, Boston, MA 02115, USA
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16
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Vinograd A, Fuchs-Shlomai Y, Stern M, Mukherjee D, Gao Y, Citri A, Davison I, Mizrahi A. Functional Plasticity of Odor Representations during Motherhood. Cell Rep 2018; 21:351-365. [PMID: 29020623 PMCID: PMC5643523 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2017.09.038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/19/2016] [Revised: 06/21/2017] [Accepted: 09/11/2017] [Indexed: 01/24/2023] Open
Abstract
Motherhood is accompanied by new behaviors aimed at ensuring the wellbeing of the offspring. Olfaction plays a key role in guiding maternal behaviors during this transition. We studied functional changes in the main olfactory bulb (OB) of mothers in mice. Using in vivo two-photon calcium imaging, we studied the sensory representation of odors by mitral cells (MCs). We show that MC responses to monomolecular odors become sparser and weaker in mothers. In contrast, responses to biologically relevant odors are spared from sparsening or strengthen. MC responses to mixtures and to a range of concentrations suggest that these differences between odor responses cannot be accounted for by mixture suppressive effects or gain control mechanisms. In vitro whole-cell recordings show an increase in inhibitory synaptic drive onto MCs. The increase of inhibitory tone may contribute to the general decrease in responsiveness and concomitant enhanced representation of specific odors. MCs of mothers show sparser responses for pure odors MCs of mothers have stronger inhibitory drive onto MCs MCs of mothers show stronger responses to natural odors MC ensemble coding is improved for natural but not pure odors
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Affiliation(s)
- Amit Vinograd
- Department of Neurobiology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel; The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Yael Fuchs-Shlomai
- Department of Neurobiology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel; The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Merav Stern
- Department of Applied Mathematics, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Diptendu Mukherjee
- Department of Chemical Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel; The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Yuan Gao
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Ami Citri
- Department of Chemical Biology, Institute of Life Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel; The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel
| | - Ian Davison
- Department of Biology, Boston University, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Adi Mizrahi
- Department of Neurobiology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel; The Edmond and Lily Safra Center for Brain Sciences, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem 91904, Israel.
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17
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Rymer TL, Pillay N. An integrated understanding of paternal care in mammals: lessons from the rodents. J Zool (1987) 2018. [DOI: 10.1111/jzo.12575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- T. L. Rymer
- School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences; University of the Witwatersrand; Johannesburg South Africa
- College of Science and Engineering; James Cook University; Cairns QLD Australia
- Centre for Tropical Environmental and Sustainability Sciences; James Cook University; Cairns QLD Australia
| | - N. Pillay
- School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences; University of the Witwatersrand; Johannesburg South Africa
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18
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Kohl J, Dulac C. Neural control of parental behaviors. Curr Opin Neurobiol 2018; 49:116-122. [PMID: 29482085 DOI: 10.1016/j.conb.2018.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 68] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/19/2017] [Revised: 12/27/2017] [Accepted: 02/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/18/2022]
Abstract
Parenting is a multicomponent social behavior that is essential for the survival of offspring in many species. Despite extensive characterization of individual brain areas involved in parental care, we do not fully understand how discrete aspects of this behavior are orchestrated at the neural circuit level. Recent progress in identifying genetically specified neuronal populations critical for parenting, and the use of genetic and viral tools for circuit-cracking now allow us to deconstruct the underlying circuitry and, thus, to elucidate how different aspects of parental care are controlled. Here we review the latest advances, outline possible organizational principles of parental circuits and discuss future challenges.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes Kohl
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Catherine Dulac
- Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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19
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Horrell ND, Hickmott PW, Saltzman W. Neural Regulation of Paternal Behavior in Mammals: Sensory, Neuroendocrine, and Experiential Influences on the Paternal Brain. Curr Top Behav Neurosci 2018; 43:111-160. [PMID: 30206901 DOI: 10.1007/7854_2018_55] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Across the animal kingdom, parents in many species devote extraordinary effort toward caring for offspring, often risking their lives and exhausting limited resources. Understanding how the brain orchestrates parental care, biasing effort over the many competing demands, is an important topic in social neuroscience. In mammals, maternal care is necessary for offspring survival and is largely mediated by changes in hormones and neuropeptides that fluctuate massively during pregnancy, parturition, and lactation (e.g., progesterone, estradiol, oxytocin, and prolactin). In the relatively small number of mammalian species in which parental care by fathers enhances offspring survival and development, males also undergo endocrine changes concurrent with birth of their offspring, but on a smaller scale than females. Thus, fathers additionally rely on sensory signals from their mates, environment, and/or offspring to orchestrate paternal behavior. Males can engage in a variety of infant-directed behaviors that range from infanticide to avoidance to care; in many species, males can display all three behaviors in their lifetime. The neural plasticity that underlies such stark changes in behavior is not well understood. In this chapter we summarize current data on the neural circuitry that has been proposed to underlie paternal care in mammals, as well as sensory, neuroendocrine, and experiential influences on paternal behavior and on the underlying circuitry. We highlight some of the gaps in our current knowledge of this system and propose future directions that will enable the development of a more comprehensive understanding of the proximate control of parenting by fathers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nathan D Horrell
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA
| | - Peter W Hickmott
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA
| | - Wendy Saltzman
- Graduate Program in Neuroscience, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA.
- Department of Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology, University of California, Riverside, Riverside, CA, USA.
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