Approach Behavior In Response Research Articles

Harmonics and frequency-modulated calls indicate different motivational states in rats

Rats emit 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) via the accumbal dopaminergic system in response to rhythmic stroking (RS). However, it is unknown whether RS can lead to approach behavior, which is a reliable marker of positive affective states. To assess the effects of RS on the behavioral response and its correlation with call subtypes, we measured the total number of 50-kHz USVs (overall and within call subtypes) and approach behavior in response to RS. Rats were randomly divided into two equal groups. One group received RS and the control group received light touch (LT). RS stimulation was administered for 30 s once a day for 7 consecutive days, and USVs were recorded immediately before, during, and after stimulation. RS induced 50-kHz USVs from day 1 and led to quick approach on day 2 and after. However, those responses were absent in the LT group. Specific frequency-modulated (FM) calls observed after RS were significantly correlated with approach latency. These results suggest that RS has rewarding effects, and the specific FM calls observed immediately after RS can be used as indices of innate positive reinforcement.

Approach bias modification training to increase physical activity: A pilot randomized controlled trial in healthy volunteers

Regular physical activity is associated with better physical and mental health outcomes as well as higher quality of life. This pilot randomized controlled trial examined whether approach bias modification, an economical and easily accessible computerized cognitive training, could increase objectively and subjectively measured physical activity in individuals aiming for more physical activity. Forty healthy volunteers of normal weight were randomly allocated to six sessions of approach bias modification or no treatment. The approach bias modification adopted an implicit learning paradigm that trained participants to show approach behavior in response to visual cues of physical activity. Approach bias modification did not increase objectively and subjectively measured physical activity.

Sex-dependent effects of Cacna1c haploinsufficiency on juvenile social play behavior and pro-social 50-kHz ultrasonic communication in rats.

As cross-disorder risk gene, CACNA1C is implicated in the etiology of all major neuropsychiatric disorders characterized by deficits in social behavior and communication and there is evidence for sex-dependent influences of single-nucleotide polymorphisms within CACNA1C on diagnosis, course, and recovery in humans. In this study, we aimed, therefore, at further exploring the role of Cacna1c in regulating behavioral phenotypes, focusing on sex-specific differences in social behavior and communication during the critical developmental period of adolescence in rats. Specifically, we compared rough-and-tumble play, concomitant emission of pro-social 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations, and social approach behavior in response to playback of 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations between constitutive heterozygous Cacna1c +/- females and wildtype Cacna1c +/+ littermate controls, and contrasted present female findings to data previously reported in males. Our results show for the first time that partial depletion of Cacna1c leads to sex-dependent alterations in social behavior and communication in rats. In females, Cacna1c haploinsufficiency led to hypermasculinization, with rough-and-tumble play behavior, in general, and pinning behavior, in particular, being even higher than in males without affecting concomitant 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations. In males, in contrast, rough-and-tumble play behavior was not altered, yet emission of 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations was diminished following partial Cacna1c depletion. The behavioral responses elicited by playback of 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations were reduced upon partial Cacna1c depletion in both sexes. It thus can be concluded that Cacna1c plays a prominent sex-dependent role in regulating juvenile rat social play behavior and pro-social 50-kHz ultrasonic communication with relevance to sex-specific effects seen in neuropsychiatric disorders.

Revision and clarification of the sensitivity to punishment sensitivity to reward questionnaire

Gray's reinforcement sensitivity theory (RST; 1982, 1991) describes two distinct neurobiological systems which underlie motivation and behavioral responding: the Behavioral Activation System (BAS), relating to approach behavior in response to reward, and the Behavioral Inhibition System (BIS), relating to inhibition in response to punishment. The operationalization of RST has been hindered by existing self-report measures. The Sensitivity to Punishment and Sensitivity to Reward Questionnaire (SPSRQ; Torrubia et al., 2001) was derived directly from RST. The SPSRQ was written in Catalan with a yes/no response format. Existing English translations of the SPSRQ have been literal, impairing the comprehension of items. The present study clarified the English translation of the SPSRQ and changed the response scale to a 5-point Likert-type scale. Exploratory factor analysis indicated the resulting SPSRQ - Revised and Clarified (SPSRQ-RC) presented with two unidimensional factors, each comprised of 10 items, consistent with RST's BAS and BIS constructs. Confirmatory factor analysis maintained the factor structure and reliability of the SPSRQ-RC. Test-retest analysis indicated the measure's stability across time. Additionally, reliability and validity analyses indicated that the SPSRQ-RC has good psychometric properties. It also predicted outcomes in the expected directions. Improvements to this scale increase our ability to properly assess RST.

Rodent ultrasonic communication: Male prosocial 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations elicit social approach behavior in female rats (Rattus norvegicus).

Rats emit distinct types of ultrasonic vocalizations (USV), which serve as situation-dependent affective signals with important communicative functions. Low-frequency 22-kHz USV typically occur in aversive situations, such as social defeat, whereas high-frequency 50-kHz USV can be observed in appetitive situations, like rough-and-tumble-play in juveniles or mating in adults. The 2 main USV types serve distinct communicative functions and induce call-specific behavioral responses in the receiver. While 22-kHz USV probably serve as alarm calls, 50-kHz USV appear to serve a prosocial communicative function in the sexual and the nonsexual context. In the sexual context, however, this view has recently been challenged by playback studies where only very limited behavioral changes were observed in response to prosocial 50-kHz USV. The aim of the present study was therefore to test whether female rats display social approach behavior in response to male prosocial 50-kHz USV by means of our established playback paradigm. To this aim, we exposed female rats to playback of the following 2 acoustic stimuli: (a) natural male 50-kHz USV and (b) time- and amplitude-matched white noise, with the latter serving as acoustic control for novelty-induced changes in behavior not linked to the communicative function of male prosocial 50-kHz USV. Our present findings show that female rats display high levels of social approach behavior in response to male prosocial 50-kHz USV, but not time- and amplitude-matched white noise, supporting the conclusion that male prosocial 50-kHz USV are likely to play an important role in establishing social proximity and possibly regulate mating behavior.

Functional centrality of amygdala, striatum and hypothalamus in a "small-world" network underlying joy: an fMRI study with music.

Current knowledge about small-world networks underlying emotions is sparse, and confined to functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies using resting-state paradigms. This fMRI study applied Eigenvector Centrality Mapping (ECM) and functional connectivity analysis to reveal neural small-world networks underlying joy and fear. Joy and fear were evoked using music, presented in 4-min blocks. Results show that the superficial amygdala (SF), laterobasal amygdala (LB), striatum, and hypothalamus function as computational hubs during joy. Out of these computational hubs, the amygdala nuclei showed the highest centrality values. The SF showed functional connectivity during joy with the mediodorsal thalamus (MD) and nucleus accumbens (Nac), suggesting that SF, MD, and Nac modulate approach behavior in response to positive social signals such as joyful music. The striatum was functionally connected during joy with the LB, as well as with premotor cortex, areas 1 and 7a, hippocampus, insula and cingulate cortex, showing that sensorimotor, attentional, and emotional processes converge in the striatum during music perception. The hypothalamus showed functional connectivity during joy with hippocampus and MD, suggesting that hypothalamic endocrine activity is modulated by hippocampal and thalamic activity during sustained periods of music-evoked emotion. Our study indicates high centrality of the amygdala nuclei groups within a functional network underlying joy, suggesting that these nuclei play a central role for the modulation of emotion-specific activity within this network.

Behavioral response of male mantidTenodera aridifolia(Mantodea: Mantidae) to windy conditions as a female approach strategy

AbstractWhen sexual cannibalism presents a sexual conflict, one expects to find male traits that reduce the risk of cannibalism. In sexually cannibalistic species, selection is thought to have favored the evolution of male approach behaviors that reduce the probability that the female will kill the male. We tested the hypothesis that male mantids change their approach behavior in response to wind to reduce the risk of being noticed by females. Time between detection of the female by the male and mating was shorter under windy than windless conditions. Sexual approach behavior was observed more frequently under windy than windless conditions. Moreover, this behavior was observed more frequently when the female was walking than when the female was not walking under windy conditions. The detection rate of male mantids by females was significantly lower on swaying leaves than on fixed leaves. Our results thus indicate that male mantids were more active in response to wind. Therefore, we suggest that the male's quick approach strategy toward females when the wind is blowing at short range is adaptive in reducing the risk of detection by females.

Testing social acoustic memory in rats: Effects of stimulus configuration and long-term memory on the induction of social approach behavior by appetitive 50-kHz ultrasonic vocalizations

Rats emit distinct types of ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs), which serve as situation-dependent affective signals. In appetitive situations, such as rough-and-tumble-play, high-frequency 50-kHz USVs occur, whereas low-frequency 22-kHz USVs can be observed in aversive situations, such as social defeat. USVs serve distinct communicative functions and induce call-specific behavioral responses in the receiver. While aversive 22-kHz USVs serve as alarm calls and induce behavioral inhibition, appetitive 50-kHz USVs have a pro-social communicative function and elicit social approach behavior, supporting the notion that they serve as social contact calls to (re)establish or maintain contact among conspecifics. The aim of the present study was to use the rat’s ability to communicate in the ultrasonic range via high-frequency 50-kHz USVs in order to develop a test for social acoustic memory in rats with relevance for human verbal memory. Verbal learning and memory is among the seven cognitive domains identified as commonly deficient in human schizophrenia patients, but particularly difficult to model. We therefore tested whether the induction of social approach behavior by playback of appetitive 50-kHz USVs is dependent on (1) acoustic stimulus configuration and (2) social long-term memory, and whether (3) social long-term memory effects can be blocked by the administration of scopolamine, a muscarinic acetylcholine antagonist producing amnesia. Results show that social approach behavior in response to playback of natural 50-kHz USVs depends on acoustic stimulus configuration and occurs only when sound energy is concentrated to a critical frequency band in the ultrasonic range. Social approach behavior was detected during the first exposure to playback of 50-kHz USVs, whereas no such response was observed during the second exposure 1week later, indicating a stable memory trace. In contrast, when memory formation was blocked by i.p. administration of scopolamine (0.5mg/kg or 1.5mg/kg) immediately after the first exposure, rats displayed social approach behavior during the second exposure as well. Induction of social approach behavior in response to repeated playback of natural 50-kHz USVs may therefore provide a new and rather unique approach for testing social acoustic memory in rats with relevance to human verbal memory.

Do extraverts process social stimuli differently from introverts?

The personality trait of extraversion has been linked to the network of brain systems controlling sensitivity to cues of reward and generating approach behavior in response, but little is known about whether extraverts' neural circuits are especially sensitive to social stimuli, given their preference for social engagement. Utilizing event-related potential (ERP) methodology, this study demonstrates that variation on the extraversion dimension is associated with the extent to which social stimuli evoke enhanced allocation of attention. Specifically, higher scores on extraversion were found to be associated with higher amplitudes of the P300 component of the ERPs elicited by human faces. This finding suggests that social stimuli carry enhanced motivational significance for individuals characterized by high extraversion, and that individual differences in personality are related to meaningful individual differences in neural responses to social stimuli.

Effects of methylmercury on approach and avoidance behavior of mallard ducklings.

Mallard ducks were fed a control diet or a diet containing 0.5 or 3 ppm mercury (as methylmercury dicyandiamide) based on the dry feed. These mercury diets are approximately equivalent to 0.1 and 0.6 ppm mercury in a natural succulent diet. I measured for the ducklings the approach behavior in response to a tape-recorded maternal call and the avoidance of a frightening stimulus. There were no significant differences among controls and ducklings from mercury-treated parents in the percentage of ducklings that approached the tape-recorded call. Control ducklings, however, moved back and forth toward the call more than ducklings from mercury-treated parents and also spent more time in the end of the runway near the loudspeaker than ducklings whose parents were fed a diet containing 0.5 ppm mercury. Compared to control ducklings, ducklings from parents fed a diet containing 0.5 or 3 ppm mercruy were hyper-responsive in the test of avoidance of a frightening stimulus. Mallard eggs collected in the wild have been found to contain levels of mercury exceeding the 1 ppm (wet-weight) found in the eggs of hens fed a diet containing 0.5 ppm, but there are no reports of mallard eggs collected in the wild that were found to contain as much mercury (6 to 9 ppm) as eggs from hens fed a diet containing 3 ppm mercury. On a dry-weight basis, the concentration of mercury in the eggs was about 6 times as great as that in the feed for ducks fed the 0.5 ppm mercury diet and about 6 to 9 times as great for ducks fed the 3 ppm mercury diet.