Hormonal Influences on Differentiation of Brain and Behavior

雄性和雌性哺乳动物的大脑和行为往往有很大的不同。 在早期发育过程中暴露于激素对许多物种产生神经和行为性别差异很重要，但这种情况如何以及何时发生的普遍性尚不清楚。 这个项目将研究早期激素如何在草原田鼠（Microtus ochrogaster）的大脑和社会行为中产生性别差异。草原田鼠有一个不寻常的社会结构，比大多数其他啮齿动物更类似于灵长类动物，因为它们是高度社会化的，与配偶形成终身的一夫一妻制关系，雄性和雌性父母都表现出父母的行为。 它们也是独特的，因为早期激素似乎通过与其他啮齿动物不同的机制影响草原田鼠大脑和社会行为中性别差异的发展。 该项目将侧重于：1）确定在雄性和雌性草原田鼠的早期发育过程中分泌什么样的激素，以及在什么水平上，2）生物化学地表征许多发育中的大脑区域中的神经元如何代谢这些激素，3）研究早期生活中激素的操纵如何影响后来父母和其他社会行为的性别差异，以及4）探索早期激素的操纵如何也影响负责社会行为展示的大脑区域的发育。 据估计，在发育中的男性中释放一种独特的激素组合使他们的大脑和社会行为男性化，而在女性中缺乏这些激素使他们处于女性样状态。 这项工作将推进关于不同物种如何采用不同的发育机制来产生大脑和社会/生殖行为的性别差异的科学发现。 这项工作还将促进教学，培训和实验室中的本科生和研究生的多样化群体的参与，他们将花时间研究这一发展领域。

The brain and behavior of males and female mammals often differ in dramatic ways. Exposure to hormones during early development is important for generating neural and behavioral gender differences in many species, but the universality of how and when this occurs is not well understood. This project will examine how early hormones generate gender differences in the brain and social behaviors of prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster). Prairie voles have an unusual social structure more similar to primates than most other rodents because they are highly social, form life-long monogamous bonds with their mate, and both male and female parents show parental behavior. They are also unique because early hormones appear to influence the development of gender differences in the prairie vole brain and social behaviors through mechanisms different from other rodents. This project will focus on: 1) determining what hormones are secreted, and at what levels, during early development in male and female prairie voles, 2) biochemically characterizing how neurons in numerous developing brain areas metabolize these hormones, 3) examining how manipulations of hormones during early life affect later gender differences in parental and other social behaviors, and 4) exploring how manipulations of early hormones also affect development of brain areas responsible for the display of social behaviors. It is expected that release of a unique combination of hormones in developing males masculinizes their brain and social behaviors, whereas the absence these hormones in females leaves them in a female-like state. This work will advance scientific discovery about how different species employ different developmental mechanisms to generate gender differences in the brain and social/reproductive behaviors. This work will also promote the teaching, training, and participation of a diverse group of undergraduate and graduate students in the laboratory who will spend time researching this area of development.