Neural distribution of oxytocin receptors during development in zebra finches Open Access
Davis, Matthew (2017)
Published
Abstract
Juvenile zebra finches memorize and learn to sing the song of a single male caregiver during a complex vocal learning process. Juveniles are highly motivated to interact with their tutor, and they learn song best when they can do so. It is currently unknown what neurological mechanism may contribute to the social motivation of juvenile finches, but social motivation and affiliation of juvenile mammals may be facilitated by the nonapeptides oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (VP). Three nonapeptide receptors, the oxytocin, vasopressin 1a, and vasopressin 2 receptors, have been proposed to facilitate the effects of OT and VP on social behavior. Variation in the neural distribution of these receptors can greatly alter their effects on behavior. Here we used qPCR to quantify mRNA expression of nonapeptide receptors in four brain regions: lateral septum(LS), caudomedial nidopallium (NCM), HVC, and dorsal arcopallium (Ad). We have shown that zebra finches express nonapeptide receptors in regions that underlie social motivation or song learning throughout the entirety of development. Expression differed according to age, but not sex, in multiple brain regions. While the distribution of nonapeptide receptors was previously known for adult finches, this was the first study to find expression of nonapeptide receptors in juvenile songbirds. Our study has provided the groundwork for the use of zebra finches as a model for understanding the relationship between the nonapeptide system and juvenile social motivation in the context of behavioral and neurological development.
Table of Contents
Introduction……………………………….…………………………….……………….…
Background………………….……………………………………………………...
Hypothesis……………………………………………………………………….…..
Experimental Approach…………………………………………….……..….
Nonapeptide Receptors……………….……………………………………...
Regions of Interest…………………………………………………………......
Methods………………………………………………………………………………………..
Animals…………………………………………………………………………………..
Brain Sectioning………………………………………………………………..….
Nissl Staining………………………………………………………………..……..
Tissue Collection……………………………………………..……………………
RNA isolation and cDNA Synthesis………………………..…………...
Quantification of Receptor Expression………………..………………
Data Analysis….....…………………...…………………..…………………...
Results…………………………………...………………………………………………....
OT-like Receptor………………...…...………………………………………...
V1a-like Receptor………………...…...………………………………………..
V2-like Receptor………………...…...………………………………………...
Discussion……………………………...……………………………………………….....
Lateral Septum………………...…………………………………………...…...
Caudomedial Nidopallium…...…………………………………………….…
HVC…...………………………...……………………………………….…...........
Dorsal Arcopallium……………...………………………………………........
Other Considerations……………...………….………………………..…....
References……………………………...…………………………………………………..
Tables and Figures…………………...…………………………………………….....
Table 1. Reference and Target Genes quantified with qPCR.
Table 2. Results of whole LMM analyses……………......…........
Table 3. Results of LMM analyses within gene……......….......
Table 4. Results of LMM analysis for the OT-like receptor....
Table 5. Results of LMM analysis for the V1a-like receptor..
Table 6. Results of LMM analysis for the V2-like receptor....
Figure 1. Timeline of song learning in zebra finches...........
Figure 2. Examples of locations of brain punches...............
Figure 3. Phases of song learning used in data analysis......
Figure 4. OT-like receptor expression in males and females of each age group………………...………………………………...……………..
Figure 5. Expression of nonapeptide receptor RNA during the phases of song learning..………………...…………...…………………
Figure 6. V1a-like receptor expression in males and females of each age group................................................
Figure 7. V2-like receptor expression in males and females of each age group...............………………...…………………...…….....
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