Abstract
The ability to alter neuronal gene expression, either to affect levels of endogenous molecules or to express exogenous ones, is a powerful tool for linking brain and behavior. Scientists continue to finesse genetic manipulation in mice. Yet mice do not exhibit every behavior of interest. For example, Mus musculus do not readily imitate sounds, a trait known as vocal learning and a feature of speech. In contrast, thousands of bird species exhibit this ability. The circuits and underlying molecular mechanisms appear similar between disparate avian orders and are shared with humans. An advantage of studying vocal learning birds is that the neurons dedicated to this trait are nested within the surrounding brain regions, providing anatomical targets for relating brain and behavior. In songbirds, these nuclei are known as the song control system. Molecular function can be interrogated in non-traditional model organisms by exploiting the ability of viruses to insert genetic material into neurons to drive expression of experimenter-defined genes. To date, the use of viruses in the song control system is limited. Here, we review prior successes and test additional viruses for their capacity to transduce basal ganglia song control neurons. These findings provide a roadmap for troubleshooting the use of viruses in animal champions of fascinating behaviors—nowhere better featured than at the 12th International Congress!
Highlights
A powerful tool for testing nervous system function is the experimental manipulation of genes in the brain
A large body of research seeking to understand the role of Forkhead box P2 (FoxP2) in mediating speech and language deficits has focused on its expression within striatal medium spiny neurons (MSNs)
This is because major abnormalities in both humans and mice that carry FoxP2 mutations (Belton et al 2003; Liegeois et al 2003; Groszer et al 2008) occur in the striatum, and MSNs are the principal cell type of the striatum and the only striatal neuron type that expresses FoxP2
Summary
A powerful tool for testing nervous system function is the experimental manipulation of genes in the brain. The ~9000 extant species of birds display a vast array of fascinating behaviors including: Technological feats such as the ornamented nest building of the satin bowerbird (Ptilonorhynchus violaceus) and sophisticated tool making in New Caledonian crows (Corvus moneduloides); physical feats such as the prodigious 90,000 km (56,000 mi) migration of the arctic tern (Sterna paradisaea) to the lek-based explosive gymnastics of the goldencollared manakin (Manacus vitellinus); and the capacity for vocal learning exhibited across three avian orders: Hummingbirds (Trochiliformes), parrots (Psittaciformes) and songbirds (Passeriformes), perhaps most famously exemplified by the lyrebird (Menura novaehollandiae) For those species that are amenable to a laboratory environment such as the zebra finch songbird (Taeniopygia guttata), the ability to genetically manipulate the circuitry underlying these behaviors offers a functional test of the key physiological specializations
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