Department of Neurobiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA
Department of Neurobiology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
J Exp Biol. 2018 Oct 8;221(Pt 19):jeb185751. doi: 10.1242/jeb.185751.
Post-reproductive life in the female octopus is characterized by an extreme pattern of maternal care: the mother cares for her clutch of eggs without feeding until her death. These maternal behaviors are eradicated if the optic glands, the octopus analog of the vertebrate pituitary gland, are removed from brooding females. Despite the optic gland's importance in regulating maternal behavior, the molecular features underlying optic gland function are unknown. Here, we identify major signaling systems of the optic gland. Through behavioral analyses and transcriptome sequencing, we report that the optic gland undergoes remarkable molecular changes that coincide with transitions between behavioral stages. These include the dramatic upregulation and downregulation of catecholamine, steroid, insulin and feeding peptide pathways. Transcriptome analyses in other tissues demonstrate that these molecular changes are not generalized markers of senescence, but instead, specific features of the optic glands. Our study expands the classic optic gland-pituitary gland analogy and more specifically, it indicates that, rather than a single 'self-destruct' hormone, the maternal optic glands employ multiple pathways as systemic hormonal signals of behavioral regulation.
母亲在死亡前会一直照顾她的卵，而不进食。如果将亲代雌性的眼柄（章鱼类比脊椎动物垂体的器官）切除，这些母性行为就会被消除。尽管眼柄在调节母性行为方面很重要，但调节眼柄功能的分子特征尚不清楚。在这里，我们确定了眼柄的主要信号系统。通过行为分析和转录组测序，我们报告说，眼柄经历了显著的分子变化，与行为阶段之间的转变相吻合。这些变化包括儿茶酚胺、类固醇、胰岛素和摄食肽途径的急剧上调和下调。其他组织的转录组分析表明，这些分子变化不是衰老的普遍标志，而是眼柄的特定特征。我们的研究扩展了经典的眼柄-垂体类比，更具体地说，它表明，母性眼柄不是单一的“自我毁灭”激素，而是利用多种途径作为行为调节的系统激素信号。
