Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology, Center for Brain Science, Harvard University, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02138, USA.
Nature. 2014 May 15;509(7500):325-30. doi: 10.1038/nature13307.
Mice display robust, stereotyped behaviours towards pups: virgin males typically attack pups, whereas virgin females and sexually experienced males and females display parental care. Here we show that virgin males genetically impaired in vomeronasal sensing do not attack pups and are parental. Furthermore, we uncover a subset of galanin-expressing neurons in the medial preoptic area (MPOA) that are specifically activated during male and female parenting, and a different subpopulation that is activated during mating. Genetic ablation of MPOA galanin neurons results in marked impairment of parental responses in males and females and affects male mating. Optogenetic activation of these neurons in virgin males suppresses inter-male and pup-directed aggression and induces pup grooming. Thus, MPOA galanin neurons emerge as an essential regulatory node of male and female parenting behaviour and other social responses. These results provide an entry point to a circuit-level dissection of parental behaviour and its modulation by social experience.
处女雄性通常会攻击幼崽，而处女雌性和有性经验的雄性和雌性则表现出亲代照顾。在这里，我们表明，在嗅球感觉方面遗传受损的处女雄性不会攻击幼崽，而是具有亲代特征。此外，我们在中脑前腹内侧核（MPOA）中发现了一小群表达甘丙肽的神经元，它们在雄性和雌性亲代养育期间特异性激活，而另一群在交配期间激活。MPOA 甘丙肽神经元的遗传消融导致雄性和雌性亲代反应明显受损，并影响雄性交配。在处女雄性中，光遗传激活这些神经元可抑制雄性间和幼崽导向的攻击，并诱导幼崽梳理。因此，MPOA 甘丙肽神经元成为雄性和雌性亲代行为以及其他社会反应的重要调节节点。这些结果为亲代行为及其受社会经验调节的回路水平剖析提供了一个切入点。
