In particular, oxytocin and vasopressin are able to act at different brain sites to control social behaviors, including social recognition memory, aggressive and competitive behaviors, social bonding, and affiliative pup-oriented behaviors 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17.
For example, oxytocin, vasopressin, prolactin, and steroid hormones have been extensively investigated and shown to modify brain activity and behaviors as diverse as mating, intermale aggression, parental care, and pup-directed aggression 1, 2, 3. These substances modulate several animal behaviors, preparing the individual to respond appropriately to the environment, depending on the presence of specific internal and external cues. Hormones have been shown to alter brain activity via action upon cognate receptors in the neural tissue, which in turn lead to behavioral changes. Hormones are key regulators of diverse functions in the body. These data link oxytocin to the modulation of olfactory sensory activity, providing a possible mechanism for changes in male behavior after social experience with females. Conversely, injection of an oxytocin receptor antagonist in female-primed male animals, which normally exhibit reduced vomeronasal activity, significantly increased the number of active vomeronasal neurons. After identifying that oxytocin and vasopressin receptors are expressed in the vomeronasal organ, we injected the corresponding hormones in mice and showed that oxytocin administration reduced both pup-induced vomeronasal activity and aggressive behavior. RNA sequencing, qPCR, and in situ hybridization were used to identify expression, in the vomeronasal sensory epithelium, of candidate GPCR hormone receptors chosen by in silico analyses and educated guesses. Vomeronasal activity decreases as males switch from a pup-aggressive state to a non-aggressive parenting state, after they socially contact a female. Here, we investigated hormonal control of pup-induced activity in the vomeronasal organ, an olfactory sensory structure involved in the detection of non-volatile chemosignals. Pup-directed behaviors have been previously shown to change via action of hormones at the brain level. Behaviors are shaped by hormones, which may act either by changing brain circuits or by modifying sensory detection of relevant cues.
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