Projects
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Pheromones Modify
Behavior
A male mouse listens and sniffs as an animal enters his territory. His
sensory systems reveal that it is another mouse, but this is not enough
to dictate an appropriate behavioral response. Is the intruder male?
Should he fight to defend his territory? This behavior would be a mistake
if the intruder were a receptive female. There is no hesitation in his
response. Pheromone cues released from the other mouse ensure that social
interactions including territorial aggression, sexual behaviors, onset
of puberty and maternal responses are executed without error. Our lab
utilizes a molecular genetic approach to identify the pheromones that
initiate this process, the neurons that are stimulated and the range
of the resulting behaviors.
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Molecular
Biology of Pheromone Neurons
In the mouse, pheromone response is mediated through the vomeronasal
system by neurons that are anatomically and molecularly distinct from
the main olfactory system. These isolated neurons are an exceptional
substrate for molecular and genetic manipulation. Differential screening
of the neurons in the pheromone response circuit will provide information
about their molecular capabilities and provide tools to identify their
function.
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Pheromone
Identification
What is the molecular code that indicates gender, age and social status?
How is the information regulated as the animal matures and social hierarchy
is established? Pheromone ligands that initiate complex social behavior
are elusive. We are using a genomic approach to identify the molecules
that encode the breadth of pheromone information.
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Analysis
of Complex Behavior
Pheromones activate relatively simple neuronal circuitry that is sub
cortical and ensures that pheromone initiated behaviors are reproducible
and invariant. This neuronal organization provides a robust experimental
model to identify the specific pathways that regulate universal complex
behaviors such as mating, aggression, maternal, and dominance.
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