Abstract
Adult-born neurons arrive to the olfactory bulb (OB) and integrate into the existing circuit throughout life. Despite the prevalence of this phenomenon, its functional impact is still poorly understood. Recent studies point to the importance of newly generated neurons to olfactory learning and memory. Adult neurogenesis is regulated by a variety of factors, notably by instances related to reproductive behavior, such as exposure to mating partners, pregnancy and lactation, and exposure to offspring. To study the contribution of olfactory neurogenesis to maternal behavior and social recognition, here we selectively disrupted OB neurogenesis using focal irradiation of the subventricular zone in adult female mice. We show that reduction of olfactory neurogenesis results in an abnormal social interaction pattern with male, but not female, conspecifics; we suggest that this effect could result from the inability to detect or discriminate male odors and could therefore have implications for the recognition of potential mating partners. Disruption of OB neurogenesis, however, neither impaired maternal-related behaviors, nor did it affect the ability of mothers to discriminate their own progeny from others.
Highlights
IntroductionAdult neurogenesis is conserved in a variety of animals, ranging from insects to humans (reviewed in Lindsey and Tropepe, 2006; Gould, 2007), suggesting that this phenomenon is important to brain function
Adult neurogenesis is conserved in a variety of animals, ranging from insects to humans, suggesting that this phenomenon is important to brain function
We show that reduction of olfactory neurogenesis results in an abnormal social interaction pattern with male, but not female, conspecifics; we suggest that this effect could result from the inability to detect or discriminate male odors and could have implications for the recognition of potential mating partners
Summary
Adult neurogenesis is conserved in a variety of animals, ranging from insects to humans (reviewed in Lindsey and Tropepe, 2006; Gould, 2007), suggesting that this phenomenon is important to brain function. Adult-born neurons that reach the olfactory system originate from neural precursors in the subventricular zone (SVZ) and migrate to the OB, where they differentiate into periglomerular and granule cells (PGs and GCs, respectively), two types of bulbar interneurons that are primarily GABAergic (Lledo and Saghatelyan, 2005) These newly generated neurons are functionally integrated into the OB circuitry, as demonstrated by recording the activity evoked by their synaptic partners (Carleton et al, 2003; Whitman and Greer, 2007), and by measuring their responses to odor stimulation (Magavi et al, 2005). In both perceptual and associative learning, newly generated neurons are differentially recruited to OB areas responsive to the odors learned (Alonso et al, 2006; Moreno et al, 2009; Sultan et al, 2010), suggesting that these neurons could contribute to changes in odor representations during learning
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