L13 - Trust, Agression & Addiction Flashcards
What type of neurones are found in the PVN
Vasopressin (VP)
Oxytocin (OXC)
Many axons of VP and OXC neurones project to _________ (AKA ___________) and release these hormones ….
Posterior pituitary
Neurohypothysis
Secrete directly into the bloodstream
OXC and VP neurones also form ________ to
Central circuits
Stimulate neurones in other regions that express OxtR and AVPR
VP important in
Kidney function
Oxt important in
Parturition and lactation
More recent studies show a role for Oxt and AVP in
Directing social behaviours through complex interactions with other brain regions
What model system did Carter and Young study - why?
Prairie voles
Some strains form very close pair bonds and males show good paternal behaviour
Some voles dont form the pair bonds and males are hihgly polygamous and ignore their offspring
Describe where OxtR are found in highly pair bonded animals
In regions that govern addictive behaviours
Title of the paper in the trust lecture
Microsatellite instability generates diversity in brain and socio-behavoural traits
Hammock // Young
What is the AVP gene controlled by
A microsatellite lying upstream of the first exon
What is a microsatellite
Non coding region - enhancer like
How does the microsatellitee vary in different animals
Different voles have different numbers of the repeats so it is longer/shorter
What does the lenght of the microsatellite determine
How the gene is regulated
Longer the microsatellite the more gene will be produced
What were the behavoural differences between voles with long and short microsatellites
No difference in nesting, nursing posture or maternal pup grooming
SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE in paternal pup grooming - voles with long microsatellite sequence lick and groom longer
Describe the effects of long and short microsatellites on social recognition and behaviour
Long males - more likely to investigate social stimulus and spend longer investigated - no dif when stimulus is a non-social odour
Long males - more social approaches made rapidlty
Long males - spend more time with original partner
Long microsatellite =
Hypothesis:
More socaible
Long microsatellites alter receptor activity
What was the data to suppoort the hypothesis of satellites alter receptor levels
Associaited with robus genotype differences in V1aR biding in brains
In brain regions associated with addiciton a long allele confererred a higher level of receptor binding
Link the results to humans
Cryptic microsatellite found in humans and other apes
Describe what was seen in Walum et al paper
In humans vasopressin receptor 1a gene comes in a number of forms.
Men who had two copies of one form of the gene - RS3 334 less likely to be married and more liekly to report difficulties in releationships (partners also more likely to report)
A balance between ______ and ___________ govern ______________
Oxytocin
VP
Social behaviours
Imbalance of OXt and Vp =
Effects on health and well being
From Scott et al …
Tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) expressing neurones in the anteroventral periventricular nucelus in mouse hypothalamus are more numerous in …
Virgin females and males
From Scott et al …
TH expressing neurones govern…
Paternal behaviours in a sex specific manner
From Scott et al …
Effects of ablating TH neurones in females
Effects of optogenetically (or increased expression) activating TH neurones in females
Imparis maternal behaviour
Enhance maternal care
