Dai Bing, Zheng Bingqin, Dai Xiuzhi, Cui Xiaoyang, Yin Luping, Cai Jing, Zhuo Yizhou, Tritsch Nicolas X, Zweifel Larry S, Li Yulong, Lin Dayu
Neuroscience Institute, New York University Grossman School of Medicine, New York, NY, USA.
State Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Peking University School of Life Sciences, Beijing, China.
Nature. 2025 Mar;639(8054):430-437. doi: 10.1038/s41586-024-08459-w. Epub 2025 Jan 22.
Numerous studies support the role of dopamine in modulating aggression, but the exact neural mechanisms remain elusive. Here we show that dopaminergic cells in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) can bidirectionally modulate aggression in male mice in an experience-dependent manner. Although VTA dopaminergic cells strongly influence aggression in novice aggressors, they become ineffective in expert aggressors. Furthermore, eliminating dopamine synthesis in the VTA prevents the emergence of aggression in naive mice but leaves aggression intact in expert aggressors. VTA dopamine modulates aggression through the dorsal lateral septum (dLS), a region known for aggression control. Dopamine enables the flow of information from the hippocampus to the dLS by weakening local inhibition in novice aggressors. In expert aggressors, dLS local inhibition naturally weakens, and the ability of dopamine to modulate dLS cells diminishes. Overall, these results reveal a sophisticated role of dopamine in the rise of aggression in adult male mice.
众多研究支持多巴胺在调节攻击行为中的作用，但确切的神经机制仍不清楚。在这里，我们表明腹侧被盖区（VTA）中的多巴胺能细胞可以以经验依赖的方式双向调节雄性小鼠的攻击行为。虽然VTA多巴胺能细胞对新手攻击者的攻击行为有强烈影响，但它们对专家攻击者却无效。此外，消除VTA中的多巴胺合成可防止天真小鼠出现攻击行为，但对专家攻击者的攻击行为却没有影响。VTA多巴胺通过背外侧隔区（dLS）调节攻击行为，dLS是一个以控制攻击行为而闻名的区域。多巴胺通过减弱新手攻击者的局部抑制作用，使信息从海马体流向dLS。在专家攻击者中，dLS局部抑制作用自然减弱，多巴胺调节dLS细胞的能力也随之降低。总体而言，这些结果揭示了多巴胺在成年雄性小鼠攻击行为产生中的复杂作用。
