Olfactory-limbic connection: from scents to behavior

嗅觉与边缘系统的联系：从气味到行为

• 批准号: 445965029
• 负责人: Professor Dr. Markus Rothermel
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Institut für Physiologie
• 依托单位国家: 德国
• 项目类别: Research Grants
• 资助国家: 德国
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gepris.dfg.de/gepris/projekt/445965029?language=en
• 关键词: Olfactory; limbic; connection; scents; behavior

Social behaviors, ranging from conflictive (e.g. aggression, infanticide) to cooperative (e.g. mating, mother-pup interaction), can be observed in all sexually reproducing animal species and are crucial for their health, survival, and reproduction. These behaviors are instinctual in the sense that they can be displayed without prior training in the presence of specific sensory stimuli, largely olfactory/pheromonal in nature. However, little is known about the underlying neuronal circuits encoding these behavioral responses. Therefore, we propose to define the molecular, cellular and neural basis of olfactory-mediated social behaviors – from circuit characterization to behavioral relevance. Specifically, we aim to determine how social signals are encoded in the olfactory bulb and relayed to different central brain areas in the limbic system that are considered important for social behavior. Next, we will study how these signals are processed by specific neurons in the limbic system that express the neurotransmitter GABA and the enzyme aromatase and identify specific social behaviors in which they are activated. We will use a multi-level approach combining two-photon and microendoscopic recordings in vivo, virus-based circuit tracing, gene targeting, and behavioral testing to elucidate the anatomical-physiological properties of olfactory circuits and to address their functional role in the control of social behavior. Social behaviors are stereotyped and thus developmentally hard-wired, making them accessible to molecular genetic approaches to characterize the underlying neural circuits. We will execute three specific aims that are independent but interconnected. As a first step, we will identify the neural circuits from the olfactory bulb that target GABAergic and aromatase-expressing neurons in the medial amygdala and bed nucleus of the stria terminalis using viral tracers and determine the molecular identity of olfactory bulb neurons innervating this specific neural pathway. As a second step we will investigate the molecular range of these olfactory bulb neurons in response to chemosignals eliciting specific social behaviors using calcium imaging in vivo. Finally, we will functionally characterize the activity of GABA and aromatase positive neurons in different behavioral contexts in vivo. Taken together, this detailed study of neural pathways controlling well-defined olfactory-driven innate behaviors will provide an important landmark for understanding how the brain encodes complex behavior.

社会行为，从冲突（如侵略，杀戮）到合作（如交配，母子互动），可以在所有有性繁殖的动物物种中观察到，对它们的健康，生存和繁殖至关重要。这些行为是本能的，因为它们可以在没有事先训练的情况下在存在特定感官刺激的情况下显示出来，主要是嗅觉/信息素。然而，人们对编码这些行为反应的潜在神经元回路知之甚少。因此，我们建议定义嗅觉介导的社会行为的分子，细胞和神经基础-从电路表征到行为相关性。具体来说，我们的目标是确定社会信号是如何在嗅球中编码的，并传递到边缘系统中被认为对社会行为很重要的不同中央脑区。接下来，我们将研究边缘系统中表达神经递质GABA和芳香化酶的特定神经元如何处理这些信号，并确定它们被激活的特定社会行为。我们将使用多层次的方法，结合体内双光子和显微内窥镜记录、基于病毒的回路追踪、基因靶向和行为测试，来阐明嗅觉回路的解剖生理特性，并解决其在控制中的功能作用。社会行为。社会行为是刻板的，因此在发育过程中是固定的，这使得它们可以通过分子遗传学方法来表征潜在的神经回路。我们将执行三个独立但相互关联的具体目标。作为第一步，我们将确定从嗅球的神经回路，目标GABA能和芳香化酶表达的神经元在内侧杏仁核和床核的纹终纹使用病毒示踪剂，并确定嗅球神经元支配这一特定的神经通路的分子身份。作为第二步，我们将调查这些嗅球神经元的分子范围，在体内使用钙成像化学信号引发特定的社会行为。最后，我们将在体内不同的行为环境中的GABA和芳香化酶阳性神经元的活性的功能特征。总之，这项对控制明确的嗅觉驱动的先天行为的神经通路的详细研究将为理解大脑如何编码复杂行为提供重要的里程碑。