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Merscher AS, Gamer M. Can I see it in the eyes? An investigation of freezing-like motion patterns in response to avoidable threat. Psychophysiology 2024:e14567. [PMID: 38469631 DOI: 10.1111/psyp.14567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/24/2023] [Revised: 02/23/2024] [Accepted: 03/02/2024] [Indexed: 03/13/2024]
Abstract
Freezing is one of the most extensively studied defensive behaviors in rodents. Both reduced body and gaze movements during anticipation of threat also occur in humans and have been discussed as translational indicators of freezing but their relationship remains unclear. We thus set out to elucidate body and eye movements and concomitant autonomic dynamics in anticipation of avoidable threat. Specifically, 50 participants viewed naturalistic pictures that were preceded by a colored fixation cross, signaling them whether to expect an inevitable (shock), no (safety), or a potential shock (flight) that could be avoided by a quick button press. Body sway, eye movements, the heart rate and skin conductance were recorded. We replicated previously described reductions in body sway, gaze dispersion, and the heart rate, and a skin conductance increase in flight trials. Stronger reductions in gaze but not in body sway predicted faster motor reactions on a trial-wise basis, highlighting their functional role in action preparation. We failed to find a trait-like relationship between body and gaze movements across participants, but their temporal profiles were positively related within individuals, suggesting that both metrics partly reflect the same construct. However, future research is desirable to assess these response patterns in naturalistic environments. A more ethological examination of different movement dynamics upon threat would not only warrant better comparability between rodent and human research but also help determine whether and how eye-tracking could be implemented as a proxy for fear-related movements in restricted brain imaging environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alma-Sophia Merscher
- Experimental Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
| | - Matthias Gamer
- Experimental Clinical Psychology, Department of Psychology, University of Würzburg, Würzburg, Germany
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2
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Han Y, Sohn K, Yoon D, Park S, Lee J, Choi S. Delayed escape behavior requires claustral activity. Cell Rep 2024; 43:113748. [PMID: 38324450 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2024.113748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2022] [Revised: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 01/21/2024] [Indexed: 02/09/2024] Open
Abstract
Animals are known to exhibit innate and learned forms of defensive behaviors, but it is unclear whether animals can escape through methods other than these forms. In this study, we develop the delayed escape task, in which male rats temporarily hold the information required for future escape, and we demonstrate that this task, in which the subject extrapolates from past experience without direct experience of its behavioral outcome, does not fall into either of the two forms of behavior. During the holding period, a subset of neurons in the rostral-to-striatum claustrum (rsCla), only when pooled together, sustain enhanced population activity without ongoing sensory stimuli. Transient inhibition of rsCla neurons during the initial part of the holding period produces prolonged inhibition of the enhanced activity. The transient inhibition also attenuates the delayed escape behavior. Our data suggest that the rsCla activity bridges escape-inducing stimuli to the delayed onset of escape.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yujin Han
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Kuenbae Sohn
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Donghyeon Yoon
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Sewon Park
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea
| | - Junghwa Lee
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.
| | - Sukwoo Choi
- School of Biological Sciences, College of Natural Sciences, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea.
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3
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Li Y, Yin L, Guo R, Du Y, Wang B, Liu L, Li Z, Liu W, Zhang G, An S, Yin X, Su L. Juvenile Hormone Involved in the Defensive Behaviors of Soldiers in Termite Reticulitermes aculabialis. Insects 2024; 15:130. [PMID: 38392549 PMCID: PMC10889337 DOI: 10.3390/insects15020130] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/23/2023] [Revised: 02/08/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/24/2024]
Abstract
Eusocial insects have evolved specific defensive strategies to protect their colonies. In termite colonies, soldiers perform a colony-level defense by displaying mechanical biting, head-banging and mandible opening-closing behaviors. However, few studies have been reported on the factors modulating defensive behaviors in termites. Owing to JH (juvenile hormone) being involved in soldier differentiation, JH was speculated to affect defensive behaviors in termite soldiers. To determine the effect of JH on the defensive behaviors of termite soldiers, we performed a JHA-feeding and RaSsp1-silencing experiment and then tested the changes in defense-related behaviors, alarm pheromones and key JH signaling genes. The observed result was that after feeding workers with JHA, soldiers displayed the following: (1) decreased biting events and increased head-banging events; (2) a reduced expression of RaSsp1 and increased expression of Met (methoprene-tolerant, the nuclear receptor of JH) and Kr-h1 (the JH-inducible transcription factor Krüppel homolog 1); and (3) a decreased concentration of alarm pheromones, including α-pinene, β-pinene and limonene (+, -). Further study showed that soldiers silenced for RaSsp1 also exhibited (1) decreased biting events and increased head-banging events and (2) increased expression of Met and Kr-h1. In addition, soldiers stimulated by the alarm pheromone limonene displayed an increase in the frequency of mandible opening-closing and biting behavior. All of these results show that JHA influenced the defensive behaviors of termite soldiers, possibly via downregulating RaSsp1 expression, up-regulating Met and Kr-h1 and stimulating the secretion of alarm pheromones, suggesting that the JH pathway plays important roles in modulating social behaviors in termite colonies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yiying Li
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Letong Yin
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Ruiyao Guo
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Yunliang Du
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Bo Wang
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Long Liu
- College of Plant Protection, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Zhenya Li
- College of Plant Protection, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Wei Liu
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Guozhi Zhang
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Shiheng An
- College of Plant Protection, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Xinming Yin
- College of Plant Protection, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
| | - Lijuan Su
- College of Life Science, Henan Agricultural University, Zhengzhou 450002, China
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4
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Han HB, Shin HS, Jeong Y, Kim J, Choi JH. Dynamic switching of neural oscillations in the prefrontal-amygdala circuit for naturalistic freeze-or-flight. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2308762120. [PMID: 37669394 PMCID: PMC10500169 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2308762120] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Accepted: 08/10/2023] [Indexed: 09/07/2023] Open
Abstract
The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) and basolateral amygdala (BLA) are involved in the regulation of defensive behavior under threat, but their engagement in flexible behavior shifts remains unclear. Here, we report the oscillatory activities of mPFC-BLA circuit in reaction to a naturalistic threat, created by a predatory robot in mice. Specifically, we found dynamic frequency tuning among two different theta rhythms (~5 or ~10 Hz) was accompanied by agile changes of two different defensive behaviors (freeze-or-flight). By analyzing flight trajectories, we also found that high beta (~30 Hz) is engaged in the top-down process for goal-directed flights and accompanied by a reduction in fast gamma (60 to 120 Hz, peak near 70 Hz). The elevated beta nested the fast gamma activity by its phase more strongly. Our results suggest that the mPFC-BLA circuit has a potential role in oscillatory gear shifting allowing flexible information routing for behavior switches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hio-Been Han
- Computational Cognitive & Systems Neuroscience Laboratory, Brain Science Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul02792, Republic of Korea
- Program of Brain and Cognitive Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Hee-Sup Shin
- Center for Cognition and Sociality, Institute for Basic Science, Daejeon34126, Republic of Korea
- SL Bigen Co., Incheon21983, Republic of Korea
| | - Yong Jeong
- Program of Brain and Cognitive Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon34141, Republic of Korea
- Department of Bio and Brain Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon34141, Republic of Korea
| | - Jisoo Kim
- Computational Cognitive & Systems Neuroscience Laboratory, Brain Science Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul02792, Republic of Korea
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, CambridgeCB2 3EG, United Kingdom
| | - Jee Hyun Choi
- Computational Cognitive & Systems Neuroscience Laboratory, Brain Science Institute, Korea Institute of Science and Technology, Seoul02792, Republic of Korea
- Division of Bio-Medical Science & Technology, Korea University of Science and Technology, Daejeon34113, Republic of Korea
- Department of Physics and Center for Theoretical Physics, Seoul National University, Seoul08826, Republic of Korea
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Laine MA, Mitchell JR, Rhyner J, Clark R, Kannan A, Keith J, Pikus M, Bergeron E, Ravaglia I, Ulgenturk E, Shinde A, Shansky RM. Sounding the Alarm: Sex Differences in Rat Ultrasonic Vocalizations during Pavlovian Fear Conditioning and Extinction. eNeuro 2022; 9:ENEURO. [PMID: 36443006 DOI: 10.1523/ENEURO.0382-22.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2022] [Revised: 11/08/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Pavlovian fear conditioning is a prevalent tool in the study of aversive learning, which is a key component of stress-related psychiatric disorders. Adult rats can exhibit various threat-related behaviors, including freezing, motor responses, and ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs). While these responses can all signal aversion, we know little about how they relate to one another. Here we characterize USVs emitted by male and female rats during cued fear acquisition and extinction, and assess the relationship between different threat-related behaviors. We found that males consistently emitted >22 kHz calls (referred to here as "alarm calls") than females, and that alarm call frequency in males, but not females, related to the intensity of the shock stimulus. Interestingly, 25% of males and 45% of females did not emit any alarm calls at all. Males that did make alarm calls had significantly higher levels of freezing than males who did not, while no differences in freezing were observed between female Alarm callers and Non-alarm callers. Alarm call emission was also affected by the predictability of the shock; when unpaired from a tone cue, both males and females started emitting alarm calls significantly later. During extinction learning and retrieval sessions, males were again more likely than females to emit alarm calls, which followed an extinction-like reduction in frequency. Collectively these data suggest sex dependence in how behavioral readouts relate to innate and conditioned threat responses. Importantly, we suggest that the same behaviors can signal sex-dependent features of aversion.
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El-Seedi HR, El-Wahed AAA, Zhao C, Saeed A, Zou X, Guo Z, Hegazi AG, Shehata AA, El-Seedi HHR, Algethami AF, Al Naggar Y, Agamy NF, Rateb ME, Ramadan MFA, Khalifa SAM, Wang K. A Spotlight on the Egyptian Honeybee ( Apis mellifera lamarckii). Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:ani12202749. [PMID: 36290135 PMCID: PMC9597722 DOI: 10.3390/ani12202749] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2022] [Revised: 09/15/2022] [Accepted: 09/27/2022] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Simple Summary The Egyptian honeybee (Apis mellifera lamarckii) is one of the honeybee subspecies known for centuries since the ancient Egypt civilization. The subspecies of the Egyptian honeybee is distinguished by certain traits of appearance and behavior that were well-adapted to the environment and unique in a way that it is resistant to bee diseases, such as the Varroa disease. The subspecies is different than those found in Europe and is native to southern Egypt. Therefore, a special care should be paid to the vulnerable A. m. lamarckii subspecies and greater knowledge about the risk factors as well as conservation techniques will protect these bees. Additionally, more qualitative and quantitative measures will be taken to obtain deep insights into the A. m. lamarckii products’ chemical profile and biological characters. Abstract Egypt has an ongoing long history with beekeeping, which started with the ancient Egyptians making various reliefs and inscriptions of beekeeping on their tombs and temples. The Egyptian honeybee (Apis mellifera lamarckii) is an authentic Egyptian honeybee subspecies utilized in apiculture. A. m. lamarckii is a distinct honeybee subspecies that has a particular body color, size, and high levels of hygienic behavior. Additionally, it has distinctive characteristics; including the presence of the half-queens, an excessive number of swarm cells, high adaptability to climatic conditions, good resistance to specific bee diseases, including the Varro disorder, and continuous breeding during the whole year despite low productivity, using very little propolis, and tending to abscond readily. This review discusses the history of beekeeping in Egypt and its current situation in addition to its morphology, genetic analysis, and distinctive characters, and the defensive behaviors of native A. m. lamarckii subspecies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hesham R. El-Seedi
- International Research Center for Food Nutrition and Safety, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
- Pharmacognosy Group, Department of Pharmaceutical Biosciences, Biomedical Centre, Uppsala University, P.O. Box 591, SE-751 24 Uppsala, Sweden
- Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Science, Menoufia University, Shebin El-Koom 32512, Egypt
- International Joint Research Laboratory of Intelligent Agriculture and Agri-Products Processing, Jiangsu Education Department, Nanjing 210024, China
- Correspondence: (H.R.E.-S.); (S.A.M.K.); Tel.: +46-700-43-43-43 (H.R.E.-S.)
| | - Aida A. Abd El-Wahed
- Department of Bee Research, Plant Protection Research Institute, Agricultural Research Centre, Giza 12627, Egypt
| | - Chao Zhao
- College of Marine Sciences, Fujian Agriculture and Forestry University, Fuzhou 350002, China
| | - Aamer Saeed
- Department of Chemistry, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad 45320, Pakistan
| | - Xiaobo Zou
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
| | - Zhiming Guo
- School of Food and Biological Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang 212013, China
| | - Ahmed G. Hegazi
- Zoonotic Diseases Department, National Research Centre, Giza 12622, Egypt
| | - Awad A. Shehata
- Avian and Rabbit Diseases Department, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Sadat City, Menoufia 22857, Egypt
- PerNaturam GmbH, An der Trift 8, 56290 Gödenroth, Germany
- Prophy-Institute for Applied Prophylaxis, 59159 Bönen, Germany
| | | | - Ahmed F. Algethami
- Alnahal Aljwal Foundation Saudi Arabia, P.O. Box 617, Makkah 24211, Saudi Arabia
| | - Yahya Al Naggar
- Zoology Department, Faculty of Science, Tanta University, Tanta 31527, Egypt
| | - Neveen F. Agamy
- Nutrition Department, Food Analysis Division, High Institute of Public Health, Alexandria University, Alexandria 21561, Egypt
| | - Mostafa E. Rateb
- School of Computing, Engineering and Physical Sciences, University of the West of Scotland, Paisley PA1 2BE, UK
| | - Mohamed F. A. Ramadan
- Central Agriculture Pesticides Laboratory, Pesticide Analysis Research Department, Agriculture Research Center, Giza 24221, Egypt
| | - Shaden A. M. Khalifa
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, SE-106 91 Stockholm, Sweden
- Correspondence: (H.R.E.-S.); (S.A.M.K.); Tel.: +46-700-43-43-43 (H.R.E.-S.)
| | - Kai Wang
- Institute of Apicultural Research, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100093, China
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Feng M, Hu B, Tian Y, Wang H. Data leaking scandal, risks, and financial consumption behaviors in online tourism platforms: The role of trust on college students and teachers. Front Psychol 2022; 13:968271. [PMID: 35992403 PMCID: PMC9381835 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.968271] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/13/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Given the importance of data safety for psychology, the present study investigated the influence of data leaking scandal on campus customers' financial consumption behaviors at intelligent tourism platforms in China, and explored the roles that individual characteristics play in this process by focusing on a set of participants from colleges. Data were collected through sending out an online questionnaire, where respondents were asked to finish a series of questions about their background information, their trust, future consuming intention, and defensive behaviors toward intelligent platforms. After they finished these questions, a short description about an online tourism platform leaking customers' personal information was presented to the respondents, following which they were asked to report about their future consuming intentions and defensive behaviors again. In total, 236 participants of college students and teachers were recruited. Paired samples mean comparison showed that after the stimulus was presented, the respondents had a significant decrease in future financial consumption intention, and a significant increase in defensive behaviors toward online tourism platforms due to risks perceived. Multiple regression analysis was conducted subsequently to investigate individual characteristics that may account for part of the decrease (increase) in consuming intention (defensive behaviors). Results showed that, customers with higher level of trust and monthly income, as well as older customers, tend to experience higher level of decrease in consuming intention, and increase in defensive behaviors. These findings highlighted the importance of online tourism platforms guaranteeing data security of their customers.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mingfen Feng
- College of Economics and Management, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, China
| | - Bin Hu
- School of Finance and Trade, Wenzhou Business College, Wenzhou, China
| | - Yaqi Tian
- Department of Diplomacy and Foreign Affairs Management, China Foreign Affairs University, Beijing, China
| | - Huabing Wang
- School of Accounting, Guizhou University of Finance and Economics, Guiyang, China
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Sochard C, Bellec L, Simon JC, Outreman Y. Influence of "protective" symbionts throughout the different steps of an aphid-parasitoid interaction. Curr Zool 2021; 67:441-453. [PMID: 34616941 PMCID: PMC8489026 DOI: 10.1093/cz/zoaa053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/08/2020] [Accepted: 08/28/2020] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Microbial associates are widespread in insects, some conferring a protection to their hosts against natural enemies like parasitoids. These protective symbionts may affect the infection success of the parasitoid by modifying behavioral defenses of their hosts, the development success of the parasitoid by conferring a resistance against it or by altering life-history traits of the emerging parasitoids. Here, we assessed the effects of different protective bacterial symbionts on the entire sequence of the host-parasitoid interaction (i.e., from parasitoid attack to offspring emergence) between the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum, and its main parasitoid, Aphidius ervi and their impacts on the life-history traits of the emerging parasitoids. To test whether symbiont-mediated phenotypes were general or specific to particular aphid–symbiont associations, we considered several aphid lineages, each harboring a different strain of either Hamiltonella defensa or Regiella insecticola, two protective symbionts commonly found in aphids. We found that symbiont species and strains had a weak effect on the ability of aphids to defend themselves against the parasitic wasps during the attack and a strong effect on aphid resistance against parasitoid development. While parasitism resistance was mainly determined by symbionts, their effects on host defensive behaviors varied largely from one aphid–symbiont association to another. Also, the symbiotic status of the aphid individuals had no impact on the attack rate of the parasitic wasps, the parasitoid emergence rate from parasitized aphids nor the life-history traits of the emerging parasitoids. Overall, no correlations between symbiont effects on the different stages of the host–parasitoid interaction was observed, suggesting no trade-offs or positive associations between symbiont-mediated phenotypes. Our study highlights the need to consider various sequences of the host-parasitoid interaction to better assess the outcomes of protective symbioses and understand the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of insect–symbiont associations.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Laura Bellec
- IGEPP, INRAE, Institut Agro, Univ Rennes, 35000, Rennes, France
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Geraci A, Surian L. Toddlers' expectations of third-party punishments and rewards following an act of aggression. Aggress Behav 2021; 47:521-529. [PMID: 34101839 DOI: 10.1002/ab.21979] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/04/2020] [Revised: 04/29/2021] [Accepted: 04/30/2021] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Rewarding someone who defends the victim of an unjust aggression and punishing someone who chose not to defend her may be very important acts of reciprocation in social life. This study investigates whether 21-month-olds have some expectations concerning such punishing and rewarding actions. Infants were shown simple puppet shows and were tested using the violation-of-expectation paradigm. In Experiment 1, we found that infants looked longer when they saw a bystander puppet punishing the puppet who defended the victim rather than the puppet who did not defend her. This pattern of looking times was reversed when the punishing action was replaced with a rewarding action (Experiment 2). These findings reveal early-emerging expectations about punitive and reward motivations in third-party contexts, and provide some support for theoretical claims about the hardwiring of the human mind for cooperation and prosociality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandra Geraci
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science University of Trento Trento Italy
| | - Luca Surian
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Science University of Trento Trento Italy
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10
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandra Geraci
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
| | - Laura Franchin
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
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Abstract
Corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus are the canonical controllers of the endocrine response to stress. Here we propose a new role for these cells as a gate for state transitions that allow the organism to engage in stress-related behaviors. Specifically, we review evidence indicating that activation of these cells at critical times allows organisms to move to a state that is permissive for motor action. This is evident when the organism is under duress (defensive behavior), when the organism has successfully vanquished a threat (coping behavior), and when an organism initiates approach to a conspecific (social behavior). The motor behavior that follows from the activation of CRH neurons is not necessarily under the control of these cells but is determined by higher order circuits that discriminate more refined features of environmental context to execute the appropriate behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nuria Daviu
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Jaideep S Bains
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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12
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Sans-Dublanc A, Chrzanowska A, Reinhard K, Lemmon D, Nuttin B, Lambert T, Montaldo G, Urban A, Farrow K. Optogenetic fUSI for brain-wide mapping of neural activity mediating collicular-dependent behaviors. Neuron 2021; 109:1888-1905.e10. [PMID: 33930307 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.04.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2020] [Revised: 03/01/2021] [Accepted: 04/10/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Neuronal cell types are arranged in brain-wide circuits that guide behavior. In mice, the superior colliculus innervates a set of targets that direct orienting and defensive actions. We combined functional ultrasound imaging (fUSI) with optogenetics to reveal the network of brain regions functionally activated by four collicular cell types. Stimulating each neuronal group triggered different behaviors and activated distinct sets of brain nuclei. This included regions not previously thought to mediate defensive behaviors, for example, the posterior paralaminar nuclei of the thalamus (PPnT), which we show to play a role in suppressing habituation. Neuronal recordings with Neuropixels probes show that (1) patterns of spiking activity and fUSI signals correlate well in space and (2) neurons in downstream nuclei preferentially respond to innately threatening visual stimuli. This work provides insight into the functional organization of the networks governing innate behaviors and demonstrates an experimental approach to explore the whole-brain neuronal activity downstream of targeted cell types.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arnau Sans-Dublanc
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Anna Chrzanowska
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Katja Reinhard
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; VIB, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Dani Lemmon
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; Faculty of Pharmaceutical, Biomedical, and Veterinary Sciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Bram Nuttin
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Théo Lambert
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; imec, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Gabriel Montaldo
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; imec, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Alan Urban
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; VIB, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Neurosciences, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium
| | - Karl Farrow
- Neuro-Electronics Research Flanders, Leuven, Belgium; Department of Biology, KU Leuven, Leuven, Belgium; VIB, Leuven, Belgium.
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Basso MA, Bickford ME, Cang J. Unraveling circuits of visual perception and cognition through the superior colliculus. Neuron 2021; 109:918-937. [PMID: 33548173 PMCID: PMC7979487 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2021.01.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 21.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2020] [Revised: 12/29/2020] [Accepted: 01/13/2021] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
The superior colliculus is a conserved sensorimotor structure that integrates visual and other sensory information to drive reflexive behaviors. Although the evidence for this is strong and compelling, a number of experiments reveal a role for the superior colliculus in behaviors usually associated with the cerebral cortex, such as attention and decision-making. Indeed, in addition to collicular outputs targeting brainstem regions controlling movements, the superior colliculus also has ascending projections linking it to forebrain structures including the basal ganglia and amygdala, highlighting the fact that the superior colliculus, with its vast inputs and outputs, can influence processing throughout the neuraxis. Today, modern molecular and genetic methods combined with sophisticated behavioral assessments have the potential to make significant breakthroughs in our understanding of the evolution and conservation of neuronal cell types and circuits in the superior colliculus that give rise to simple and complex behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michele A Basso
- Fuster Laboratory of Cognitive Neuroscience, Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, Jane and Terry Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
| | | | - Jianhua Cang
- University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA, USA
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14
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Singh DK, Hari Dass SA, Abdulai-Saiku S, Vyas A. Corrigendum: Testosterone Acts Within the Medial Amygdala of Rats to Reduce Innate Fear to Predator Odor Akin to the Effects of Toxoplasma gondii Infection. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:735656. [PMID: 34566729 PMCID: PMC8459772 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.735656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/03/2021] [Accepted: 08/06/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
[This corrects the article DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00630.].
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Affiliation(s)
- Dhiraj Kumar Singh
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | | | - Samira Abdulai-Saiku
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Ajai Vyas
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
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15
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Storchi R, Milosavljevic N, Allen AE, Zippo AG, Agnihotri A, Cootes TF, Lucas RJ. A High-Dimensional Quantification of Mouse Defensive Behaviors Reveals Enhanced Diversity and Stimulus Specificity. Curr Biol 2020; 30:4619-4630.e5. [PMID: 33007242 PMCID: PMC7728163 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.09.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2020] [Revised: 07/06/2020] [Accepted: 09/03/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Instinctive defensive behaviors, consisting of stereotyped sequences of movements and postures, are an essential component of the mouse behavioral repertoire. Since defensive behaviors can be reliably triggered by threatening sensory stimuli, the selection of the most appropriate action depends on the stimulus property. However, since the mouse has a wide repertoire of motor actions, it is not clear which set of movements and postures represent the relevant action. So far, this has been empirically identified as a change in locomotion state. However, the extent to which locomotion alone captures the diversity of defensive behaviors and their sensory specificity is unknown. To tackle this problem, we developed a method to obtain a faithful 3D reconstruction of the mouse body that enabled to quantify a wide variety of motor actions. This higher dimensional description revealed that defensive behaviors are more stimulus specific than indicated by locomotion data. Thus, responses to distinct stimuli that were equivalent in terms of locomotion (e.g., freezing induced by looming and sound) could be discriminated along other dimensions. The enhanced stimulus specificity was explained by a surprising diversity. A clustering analysis revealed that distinct combinations of movements and postures, giving rise to at least 7 different behaviors, were required to account for stimulus specificity. Moreover, each stimulus evoked more than one behavior, revealing a robust one-to-many mapping between sensations and behaviors that was not apparent from locomotion data. Our results indicate that diversity and sensory specificity of mouse defensive behaviors unfold in a higher dimensional space, spanning multiple motor actions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Riccardo Storchi
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK.
| | - Nina Milosavljevic
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Annette E Allen
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Antonio G Zippo
- Institute of Neuroscience, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Milan, Italy
| | - Aayushi Agnihotri
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Timothy F Cootes
- Division of Informatics, Imaging & Data Science, School of Health Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
| | - Robert J Lucas
- Division of Neuroscience and Experimental Psychology, School of Biological Science, Faculty of Biology, Medicine and Health, University of Manchester, Manchester, UK
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16
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Lecca S, Namboodiri VM, Restivo L, Gervasi N, Pillolla G, Stuber GD, Mameli M. Heterogeneous Habenular Neuronal Ensembles during Selection of Defensive Behaviors. Cell Rep 2020; 31:107752. [PMID: 32521277 PMCID: PMC7296347 DOI: 10.1016/j.celrep.2020.107752] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/13/2020] [Revised: 04/21/2020] [Accepted: 05/19/2020] [Indexed: 01/19/2023] Open
Abstract
Optimal selection of threat-driven defensive behaviors is paramount to an animal's survival. The lateral habenula (LHb) is a key neuronal hub coordinating behavioral responses to aversive stimuli. Yet, how individual LHb neurons represent defensive behaviors in response to threats remains unknown. Here, we show that in mice, a visual threat promotes distinct defensive behaviors, namely runaway (escape) and action-locking (immobile-like). Fiber photometry of bulk LHb neuronal activity in behaving animals reveals an increase and a decrease in calcium signal time-locked with runaway and action-locking, respectively. Imaging single-cell calcium dynamics across distinct threat-driven behaviors identify independently active LHb neuronal clusters. These clusters participate during specific time epochs of defensive behaviors. Decoding analysis of this neuronal activity reveals that some LHb clusters either predict the upcoming selection of the defensive action or represent the selected action. Thus, heterogeneous neuronal clusters in LHb predict or reflect the selection of distinct threat-driven defensive behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Salvatore Lecca
- The Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, The University of Lausanne, 1005 Lausanne, Switzerland.
| | - Vijay M.K. Namboodiri
- Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Leonardo Restivo
- The Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, The University of Lausanne, 1005 Lausanne, Switzerland
| | | | | | - Garret D. Stuber
- Center for the Neurobiology of Addiction, Pain, and Emotion, Department of Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine, Department of Pharmacology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA 98195, USA
| | - Manuel Mameli
- The Department of Fundamental Neuroscience, The University of Lausanne, 1005 Lausanne, Switzerland; INSERM, UMR-S 839, 75005 Paris, France.
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17
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Singh DK, Hari Dass SA, Abdulai-Saiku S, Vyas A. Testosterone Acts Within the Medial Amygdala of Rats to Reduce Innate Fear to Predator Odor Akin to the Effects of Toxoplasma gondii Infection. Front Psychiatry 2020; 11:630. [PMID: 32714222 PMCID: PMC7343892 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2020.00630] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/17/2019] [Accepted: 06/16/2020] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Rats infected with the protozoan Toxoplasma gondii exhibit a reduced aversion to cat odor. This behavioral change is thought to increase trophic transmission of the parasite. Infected male rats also show a greater testicular synthesis of testosterone and epigenetic change in arginine vasopressin within the medial amygdala. Here, we show that exogenous supply of testosterone within MeA of uninfected castrates recapitulates reduction in innate fear akin to behavioral change attributed to the parasite. We also show that castration post establishment of chronic infection precludes changes in fear and medial amygdala arginine vasopressin in the infected male rats. These observations support the role of gonadal hormones and pursuant neuroendocrine changes in mediating the loss of fear in the infected rats. This work also demonstrates that testosterone acting specifically within the medial amygdala sufficiently explains reduced defensive behaviors often observed during the appetitive component of reproductive behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dhiraj Kumar Singh
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | | | - Samira Abdulai-Saiku
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Ajai Vyas
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
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18
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Abstract
The neural basis of defensive behaviors continues to attract much interest, not only because they are important for survival but also because their dysregulation may be at the origin of anxiety disorders. Recently, a dominant approach in the field has been the optogenetic manipulation of specific circuits or cell types within these circuits to dissect their role in different defensive behaviors. While the usefulness of optogenetics is unquestionable, we argue that this method, as currently applied, fosters an atomistic conceptualization of defensive behaviors, which hinders progress in understanding the integrated responses of nervous systems to threats. Instead, we advocate for a holistic approach to the problem, including observational study of natural behaviors and their neuronal correlates at multiple sites, coupled to the use of optogenetics, not to globally turn on or off neurons of interest, but to manipulate specific activity patterns hypothesized to regulate defensive behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Drew B Headley
- Center for Molecular & Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University - Newark, 197 University Avenue, Newark, NJ 07102, USA
| | - Vasiliki Kanta
- Center for Molecular & Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University - Newark, 197 University Avenue, Newark, NJ 07102, USA; Behavioral and Neural Sciences Graduate Program, Rutgers University - Newark, 197 University Avenue, Newark, NJ 07102, USA
| | - Pinelopi Kyriazi
- Center for Molecular & Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University - Newark, 197 University Avenue, Newark, NJ 07102, USA; Behavioral and Neural Sciences Graduate Program, Rutgers University - Newark, 197 University Avenue, Newark, NJ 07102, USA
| | - Denis Paré
- Center for Molecular & Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University - Newark, 197 University Avenue, Newark, NJ 07102, USA.
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Tong WH, Abdulai-Saiku S, Vyas A. Testosterone Reduces Fear and Causes Drastic Hypomethylation of Arginine Vasopressin Promoter in Medial Extended Amygdala of Male Mice. Front Behav Neurosci 2019; 13:33. [PMID: 30863290 PMCID: PMC6399424 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2019.00033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2018] [Accepted: 02/06/2019] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Testosterone reduces anxiety-like behaviors in rodents and increases exploration of anxiogenic parts of the environment. Effects of testosterone on innate defensive behaviors remain understudied. Here, we demonstrate that exogenous testosterone reduces aversion to cat odor in male mice. This is reflected as increased exploration of area containing cat urine when castrated male mice are supplied with exogenous testosterone. We also report that exogenous testosterone leads to DNA hypomethylation of arginine vasopressin (AVP) promoter in posterodorsal medial amygdala (MePD) and medial bed nucleus of stria terminalis (BNST). Our observations suggest that testosterone acting on AVP system within extended medial amygdala might regulate defensive behaviors in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wen Han Tong
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Samira Abdulai-Saiku
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
| | - Ajai Vyas
- School of Biological Sciences, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore, Singapore
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20
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Yamamoto R, Ahmed N, Ito T, Gungor NZ, Pare D. Optogenetic Study of Anterior BNST and Basomedial Amygdala Projections to the Ventromedial Hypothalamus. eNeuro 2018; 5:ENEURO. [PMID: 29971248 DOI: 10.1523/ENEURO.0204-18.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2018] [Accepted: 05/26/2018] [Indexed: 12/30/2022] Open
Abstract
The basomedial amygdala (BM) influences the ventromedial nucleus of the hypothalamus (VMH) through direct glutamatergic projections as well as indirectly, through the anterior part of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNSTa). However, BM and BNSTa axons end in a segregated fashion in VMH. BM projects to the core of VMH, where VMH’s projection cells are located, whereas BNSTa projects to the shell of VMH, where GABAergic cells that inhibit core neurons are concentrated. However, the consequences of this dual regulation of VMH by BM and BNSTa are unknown. To study this question, we recorded the responses of VMH’s shell and core neurons to the optogenetic activation of BM or BNSTa inputs in transgenic mice that selectively express Cre-recombinase in glutamatergic or GABAergic neurons. Glutamatergic BM inputs fired most core neurons but elicited no response in GABAergic shell neurons. Following BM infusions of AAV-EF1α-DIO-hChR2-mCherry in Vgat-ires-Cre-Ai6 mice, no anterograde labeling was observed in the VMH, suggesting that GABAergic BM neurons do not project to the VMH. In contrast, BNSTa sent mostly GABAergic projections that inhibited both shell and core neurons. However, BNSTa-evoked IPSPs had a higher amplitude in shell neurons. Since we also found that activation of GABAergic shell neurons causes an inhibition of core neurons, these results suggest that depending on the firing rate of shell neurons, BNSTa inputs could elicit a net inhibition or disinhibition of core neurons. Thus, the dual regulation of VMH by BM and BNSTa imparts flexibility to this regulator of defensive and social behaviors.
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21
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Henriques-Alves AM, Queiroz CM. Ethological Evaluation of the Effects of Social Defeat Stress in Mice: Beyond the Social Interaction Ratio. Front Behav Neurosci 2016; 9:364. [PMID: 26869895 PMCID: PMC4737906 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2015.00364] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2015] [Accepted: 12/19/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
In rodents, repeated exposure to unavoidable aggression followed by sustained sensory treat can lead to prolonged social aversion. The chronic social defeat stress model explores that phenomenon and it has been used as an animal model for human depression. However, some authors have questioned whether confounding effects may arise as the model also boosts anxiety-related behaviors. Despite its wide acceptance, most studies extract limited information from the behavior of the defeated animal. Often, the normalized occupancy around the social stimulus, the interaction zone, is taken as an index of depression. We hypothesized that this parameter is insufficient to fully characterize the behavioral consequences of this form of stress. Using an ethological approach, we showed that repeated social defeat delayed the expression of social investigation in long (10 min) sessions of social interaction. Also, the incidence of defensive behaviors, including stretched-attend posture and high speed retreats, was significantly higher in defeated mice in comparison to controls. Interestingly, a subpopulation of defeated mice showed recurrent and non-habituating stretched-attend posture and persistent flights during the entire session. Two indexes were created based on defensive behaviors to show that only recurrent flights correlates with sucrose intake. Together, the present study corroborates the idea that this model of social stress can precipitate a myriad of behaviors not readily disentangled. We propose that long sessions (>150 s) and detailed ethological evaluation during social interaction tests are necessary to provide enough information to correctly classify defeated animals in terms of resilience and susceptibility to social defeat stress.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Claudio M Queiroz
- Brain Institute, Federal University of Rio Grande do Norte Natal, Brazil
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22
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Jhangiani-Jashanmal IT, Yamamoto R, Gungor NZ, Paré D. Electroresponsive properties of rat central medial thalamic neurons. J Neurophysiol 2016; 115:1533-41. [PMID: 26763778 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00982.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2015] [Accepted: 01/12/2016] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The central medial thalamic (CMT) nucleus is a poorly known component of the middle thalamic complex that relays nociceptive inputs to the basolateral amygdala and cingulate cortex and plays a critical role in the control of awareness. The present study was undertaken to characterize the electroresponsive properties of CMT neurons. Similar to relay neurons found throughout the dorsal thalamus, CMT cells assumed tonic or burst-firing modes, depending on their membrane potentials (Vm). However, they showed little evidence of the hyperpolarization-activated mixed cationic conductance (IH)-mediated inward rectification usually displayed by dorsal thalamic relay cells at hyperpolarized Vm Two subtypes of CMT neurons were identified when comparing their responses with depolarization applied from negative potentials. Some cells generated a low-threshold spike burst followed by tonic firing, whereas others remained silent after the initial burst, irrespective of the amount of depolarizing current injected. Equal proportions of the two cell types were found among neurons retrogradely labeled from the basolateral amygdala. Their morphological properties were heterogeneous but distinct from the classical bushy relay cell type that prevails in most of the dorsal thalamus. We propose that the marginal influence of IHin CMT relative to other dorsal thalamic nuclei has significant network-level consequences. Because IHpromotes the genesis of highly coherent delta oscillations in thalamocortical networks during sleep, these oscillations may be weaker or less coherent in CMT. Consequently, delta oscillations would be more easily disrupted by peripheral inputs, providing a potential mechanism for the reported role of CMT in eliciting arousal from sleep or anesthesia.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ryo Yamamoto
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University-Newark, Newark, New Jersey
| | - Nur Zeynep Gungor
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University-Newark, Newark, New Jersey
| | - Denis Paré
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers University-Newark, Newark, New Jersey
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23
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Amir A, Lee SC, Headley DB, Herzallah MM, Pare D. Amygdala Signaling during Foraging in a Hazardous Environment. J Neurosci 2015; 35:12994-3005. [PMID: 26400931 PMCID: PMC4579372 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0407-15.2015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/30/2015] [Revised: 07/29/2015] [Accepted: 08/05/2015] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
We recorded basolateral amygdala (BL) neurons in a seminaturalistic foraging task. Rats had to leave their nest to retrieve food in an elongated arena inhabited by a mechanical predator. There were marked trial-to-trial variations in behavior. After poking their head into the foraging arena and waiting there for a while, rats either retreated to their nest or initiated foraging. Before initiating foraging, rats waited longer on trials that followed failed than successful trials indicating that prior experience influenced behavior. Upon foraging initiation, most principal cells (Type-1) reduced their firing rate, while in a minority (Type-2) it increased. When rats aborted foraging, Type-1 cells increased their firing rates, whereas in Type-2 cells it did not change. Surprisingly, the opposite activity profiles of Type-1 and Type-2 units were also seen in control tasks devoid of explicit threats or rewards. The common correlate of BL activity across these tasks was movement velocity, although an influence of position was also observed. Thus depending on whether rats initiated movement or not, the activity of BL neurons decreased or increased, regardless of whether threat or rewards were present. Therefore, BL activity not only encodes threats or rewards, but is closely related to behavioral output. We propose that higher order cortical areas determine task-related changes in BL activity as a function of reward/threat expectations and internal states. Because Type-1 and Type-2 cells likely form differential connections with the central amygdala (controlling freezing), this process would determine whether movement aimed at attaining food or exploration is suppressed or facilitated. Significance statement: For decades, amygdala research has been dominated by pavlovian and operant conditioning paradigms. This work has led to the view that amygdala neurons signal threats or rewards, in turn causing defensive or approach behaviors. However, the artificial circumstances of conditioning studies bear little resemblance to normal life. In natural conditions, subjects are simultaneously presented with potential threats and rewards, forcing them to engage in a form of risk assessment. We examined this process using a seminaturalistic foraging task. In constant conditions of threats and rewards, amygdala activity could be high or low, depending on the rats' decisions on a given trial. Therefore, amygdala activity does not only encode threats or rewards but is also closely related to behavioral output.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alon Amir
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers State University, Newark, New Jersey 07102
| | - Seung-Chan Lee
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers State University, Newark, New Jersey 07102
| | - Drew B Headley
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers State University, Newark, New Jersey 07102
| | - Mohammad M Herzallah
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers State University, Newark, New Jersey 07102
| | - Denis Pare
- Center for Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Rutgers State University, Newark, New Jersey 07102
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