The Trans-generational Influence of Maternal Care on Offspring Gene Expression and Behavior in Rodents

2013 ◽  
pp. 182-202 ◽  
Author(s):  
Frances A. Champagne ◽  
James P. Curley
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Maternal Care ◽  
And Behavior

scholarly journals Evolutionary Patterns of Sex-Biased Genes in Three Species of Haplodiploid Insects

Insects ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 11 (6) ◽  
pp. 326
Author(s):  
Yu-Jun Wang ◽  
Hua-Ling Wang ◽  
Xiao-Wei Wang ◽  
Shu-Sheng Liu
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Slow Rate ◽  
Species Complex ◽  
Evolutionary Patterns ◽  
Protein Coding ◽  
Coding Sequences ◽  
Species Comparisons ◽  
Differential Gene ◽  
Males And Females ◽  
And Behavior

Females and males often differ obviously in morphology and behavior, and the differences between sexes are the result of natural selection and/or sexual selection. To a great extent, the differences between the two sexes are the result of differential gene expression. In haplodiploid insects, this phenomenon is obvious, since males develop from unfertilized zygotes and females develop from fertilized zygotes. Whiteflies of the Bemisia tabaci species complex are typical haplodiploid insects, and some species of this complex are important pests of many crops worldwide. Here, we report the transcriptome profiles of males and females in three species of this whitefly complex. Between-species comparisons revealed that non-sex-biased genes display higher variation than male-biased or female-biased genes. Sex-biased genes evolve at a slow rate in protein coding sequences and gene expression and have a pattern of evolution that differs from those of social haplodiploid insects and diploid animals. Genes with high evolutionary rates are more related to non-sex-biased traits—such as nutrition, immune system, and detoxification—than to sex-biased traits, indicating that the evolution of protein coding sequences and gene expression has been mainly driven by non-sex-biased traits.

scholarly journals Effects of the domestic thyroid stimulating hormone receptor (TSHR) variant on the hypothalamic-pituitary-thyroid axis and behavior in chicken

Genetics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 217 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Amir Fallahshahroudi ◽  
Martin Johnsson ◽  
Enrico Sorato ◽  
S J Kumari A Ubhayasekera ◽  
Jonas Bergquist ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Hormone Receptor ◽  
Thyroid Stimulating Hormone ◽  
Phenotypic Traits ◽  
Wild Type ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Red Junglefowl ◽  
Pituitary Thyroid Axis ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Stimulating Hormone

Abstract Domestic chickens are less fearful, have a faster sexual development, grow bigger, and lay more eggs than their primary ancestor, the red junglefowl. Several candidate genetic variants selected during domestication have been identified, but only a few studies have directly linked them with distinct phenotypic traits. Notably, a variant of the thyroid stimulating hormone receptor (TSHR) gene has been under strong positive selection over the past millennium, but it’s function and mechanisms of action are still largely unresolved. We therefore assessed the abundance of the domestic TSHR variant and possible genomic selection signatures in an extensive data set comprising multiple commercial and village chicken populations as well as wild-living extant members of the genus Gallus. Furthermore, by mean of extensive backcrossing we introgressed the wild-type TSHR variant from red junglefowl into domestic White Leghorn chickens and investigated gene expression, hormone levels, cold adaptation, and behavior in chickens possessing either the wild-type or domestic TSHR variant. While the domestic TSHR was the most common variant in all studied domestic populations and in one of two red junglefowl population, it was not detected in the other Gallus species. Functionally, the individuals with the domestic TSHR variant had a lower expression of the TSHR in the hypothalamus and marginally higher in the thyroid gland than wild-type TSHR individuals. Expression of TSHB and DIO2, two regulators of sexual maturity and reproduction in birds, was higher in the pituitary gland of the domestic-variant chickens. Furthermore, the domestic variant was associated with higher activity in the open field test. Our findings confirm that the spread of the domestic TSHR variant is limited to domesticated chickens, and to a lesser extent, their wild counterpart, the red junglefowl. Furthermore, we showed that effects of genetic variability in TSHR mirror key differences in gene expression and behavior previously described between the red junglefowl and domestic chicken.

Aberrant Brain Activity in Individuals With Psychopathy Links to Receptor Distribution, Gene Expression, and Behavior

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juergen Dukart ◽  
Ross D. Markello ◽  
Adrian Raine ◽  
Simon B. Eickhoff ◽  
Timm B. Poeppl
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Brain Activity ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Receptor Distribution

The Biology of Experience

2019 ◽  
pp. 72-97
Author(s):  
Riane Eisler
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Stress Hormone ◽  
Negative Behaviors ◽  
Brain Circuits ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Fight Or Flight

Biology and experience are not generally seen as connected, yet experience is integral to gene expression, both individually and collectively. Dramatically illustrating how experience can influence whether genetic capacities are expressed or inhibited in humans and other species, this chapter looks at studies showing that our brain circuits, and therefore our abilities and behavior, are strongly shaped by the environment, which for humans is primarily our surrounding culture as mediated by families, education, religion, politics, and economics. Our large-brained species is flexible: we are equipped for destructiveness and creativity, rote conformity and independence, and cruelty and caring. There are many examples of how cultural environments affect the expression of genetic potentials, including fascinating findings from the emerging field of epigenetics showing that these effects can be transmitted from generation to generation; research showing that the brains of people with a background of abuse and violence tend to have lower levels of serotonin, a calming neurotransmitter, and higher levels of cortisol, the major stress hormone; and studies on how chronic or intense stress brings into play hormones such as cortisol, norepinephrine, and epinephrine associated with fight-or-flight responses, including aggressive and other negative behaviors. While highly stressful traditions of domination and violence are still deeply entrenched in many cultures worldwide, there are interventions that can help us build a more secure, just, sustainable, and peaceful world for individuals, families, and communities.

scholarly journals Acute social isolation alters neurogenomic state in songbird forebrain

2019 ◽  
Vol 117 (38) ◽  
pp. 23311-23316 ◽  
Author(s):  
Julia M. George ◽  
Zachary W. Bell ◽  
Daniel Condliffe ◽  
Kirstin Dohrer ◽  
Teresa Abaurrea ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Social Isolation ◽  
Axonal Guidance ◽  
Sequencing Analysis ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Auditory Forebrain ◽  
Gene Sets ◽  
Brain And Behavior ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
The Brain

Prolonged social isolation has negative effects on brain and behavior in humans and other social organisms, but neural mechanisms leading to these effects are not understood. Here we tested the hypothesis that even brief periods of social isolation can alter gene expression and DNA methylation in higher cognitive centers of the brain, focusing on the auditory/associative forebrain of the highly social zebra finch. Using RNA sequencing, we first identified genes that individually increase or decrease expression after isolation and observed general repression of gene sets annotated for neurotrophin pathways and axonal guidance functions. We then pursued 4 genes of large effect size: EGR1 and BDNF (decreased by isolation) and FKBP5 and UTS2B (increased). By in situ hybridization, each gene responded in different cell subsets, arguing against a single cellular mechanism. To test whether effects were specific to the social component of the isolation experience, we compared gene expression in birds isolated either alone or with a single familiar partner. Partner inclusion ameliorated the effect of solo isolation on EGR1 and BDNF, but not on FKBP5 and UTS2B nor on circulating corticosterone. By bisulfite sequencing analysis of auditory forebrain DNA, isolation caused changes in methylation of a subset of differentially expressed genes, including BDNF. Thus, social isolation has rapid consequences on gene activity in a higher integrative center of the brain, triggering epigenetic mechanisms that may influence processing of ongoing experience.

scholarly journals Genome Architecture Facilitates Phenotypic Plasticity in the Honeybee (Apis mellifera)

2020 ◽  
Vol 37 (7) ◽  
pp. 1964-1978 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth J Duncan ◽  
Megan P Leask ◽  
Peter K Dearden
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Gene Clusters ◽  
Linear Sequence ◽  
Honeybee Worker ◽  
Environmental Trigger ◽  
Plastic Changes ◽  
Genomic Regions ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Honeybee Genome

Abstract Phenotypic plasticity, the ability of an organism to alter its phenotype in response to an environmental cue, facilitates rapid adaptation to changing environments. Plastic changes in morphology and behavior are underpinned by widespread gene expression changes. However, it is unknown if, or how, genomes are structured to ensure these robust responses. Here, we use repression of honeybee worker ovaries as a model of plasticity. We show that the honeybee genome is structured with respect to plasticity; genes that respond to an environmental trigger are colocated in the honeybee genome in a series of gene clusters, many of which have been assembled in the last 80 My during the evolution of the Apidae. These clusters are marked by histone modifications that prefigure the gene expression changes that occur as the ovary activates, suggesting that these genomic regions are poised to respond plastically. That the linear sequence of the honeybee genome is organized to coordinate widespread gene expression changes in response to environmental influences and that the chromatin organization in these regions is prefigured to respond to these influences is perhaps unexpected and has implications for other examples of plasticity in physiology, evolution, and human disease.

scholarly journals Early postnatal infection with neurotropic influenza A virus: effects on gene expression and behavior in mice

2008 ◽  
Vol 2 (S1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Linnéa Asp ◽  
Simret Beraki ◽  
Krister Kristensson ◽  
Sven OveÖgren ◽  
Håkan Karlsson
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Influenza A Virus ◽  
Influenza A ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Postnatal Infection

scholarly journals Glucocorticoid receptor action in metabolic and neuronal function

F1000Research ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 6 ◽  
pp. 1208 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael J. Garabedian ◽  
Charles A. Harris ◽  
Freddy Jeanneteau
Keyword(s):  
Gene Expression ◽  
Glucocorticoid Receptor ◽  
Metabolic Diseases ◽  
Cell Types ◽  
Health And Disease ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
External Signals ◽  
The Brain

Glucocorticoids via the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) have effects on a variety of cell types, eliciting important physiological responses via changes in gene expression and signaling. Although decades of research have illuminated the mechanism of how this important steroid receptor controls gene expression using in vitro and cell culture–based approaches, how GR responds to changes in external signals in vivo under normal and pathological conditions remains elusive. The goal of this review is to highlight recent work on GR action in fat cells and liver to affect metabolism in vivo and the role GR ligands and receptor phosphorylation play in calibrating signaling outputs by GR in the brain in health and disease. We also suggest that both the brain and fat tissue communicate to affect physiology and behavior and that understanding this “brain-fat axis” will enable a more complete understanding of metabolic diseases and inform new ways to target them.

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