Gene/Protein Disease Symptom Drug Enzyme Compound
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Query: UNIPROT:P01185 (vasopressin)
 23,126 document(s) hit in 31,850,051 MEDLINE articles (0.00 seconds)

Fukomys anselli, also known as Ansell's mole rat, is a subterranean, highly social (so-called eusocial) rodent that lives in Africa. These mole rats typically form multigenerational families consisting of a single monogamous breeding pair and their nonreproductive offspring. Research on other mammals suggests that oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (VP) as well as the distribution of OT- and VP-receptors may influence social behavior and pair bonding. Recent studies on eusocial naked mole rats have shown a possible relation between sociality and OT-immunoreactive (OT-ir) processes. In this study, we examined expression patterns of OT and VP in the brains of F. anselli and the common Sprague-Dawley (SD) laboratory rat. As in other species, the majority of OT-ir and VP-ir neurons was found in the paraventricular (Pa) and supraoptic (SO) nuclei, and scattered labeling throughout the preoptic and anterior hypothalamic areas. We found no difference in either quality or quantity of OT- and VP-ir neurons between individuals of different social and reproductive ranks. Equally unexpected was the finding of specific OT-immunoreactivity in neurons of the mammillary complex of F. anselli that was not found in SD rats. Further studies are needed to determine whether these mammillary OT-ir neurons are causally related to monogamy in F. anselli and whether these correlates of monogamy are found in other species.
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PMID:Distribution of oxytocin- and vasopressin-immunoreactive neurons in the brain of the eusocial mole rat (Fukomys anselli). 2226 48

Social monogamy is a mating strategy rarely employed by mammalian species. Laboratory studies in socially monogamous prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) demonstrate that oxytocin and vasopressin act within the mesolimbic dopamine pathway to facilitate pair-bond formation. Species differences in oxytocin receptor (OTR) and vasopressin 1a receptor (V1aR) distribution in this pathway are associated with species differences in mating strategy. Here we characterize the neuroanatomical distribution of OTR and V1aR binding sites in naturally occurring populations of Taiwan voles (M. kikuchii), which purportedly display social monogamy. Live trapping was conducted at two sites in 2009-2010 and receptor autoradiography for OTR and V1aR was performed on brains from 24 animals. OTR binding in two brain regions where OTR signaling regulates pair-bonding were directly compared with that of prairie voles. Our results show that like prairie voles, Taiwan voles exhibit OTR in the prefrontal cortex, insular cortex, claustrum, nucleus accumbens, caudate-putamen, dorsal lateral septal nucleus, central amygdala, and ventromedial hypothalamus. Unlike prairie voles, Taiwan voles exhibit OTR binding in the CA3 pathway of the hippocampus, as well as the indusium griseum, which has only previously been documented in tuco-tucos (Ctenomys haigi, C. sociabilis), Syrian hamsters (Mesocricetus auratus) and naked mole-rats (Heterocephalus glaber). V1aR binding was present in the ventral pallidum, lateral septum, nucleus basalis, bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, hippocampus, medial amygdala, and anterior, ventromedial and dorsomedial hypothalamus. Marked individual differences in V1aR binding were noted in the cingulate cortex and several thalamic nuclei, remarkably similar to prairie voles. While pharmacological studies are needed to determine whether oxytocin and vasopressin are involved in pair-bond formation in this species, our results lay a foundation for future investigations into the role of these neuropeptides in Taiwan vole social behavior.
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PMID:Distributions of oxytocin and vasopressin 1a receptors in the Taiwan vole and their role in social monogamy. 2745 37


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