Cited by 268Neuroendocrine regulation and behaviorAnimal Behavior and ReproductionEvolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior

The genetic basis of parental care evolution in monogamous mice

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Bendesky, Andres, Kwon, Young-Mi, Lassance, Jean-Marc, Lewarch, Caitlin L., Yao, Shenqin, Peterson, Brant K., He, Meng Xiao, Dulac, Catherine +1 more·2017·Nature

Abstract

Parental care is essential for the survival of mammals, yet the mechanisms underlying its evolution remain largely unknown. Here we show that two sister species of mice, Peromyscus polionotus and Peromyscus maniculatus, have large and heritable differences in parental behaviour. Using quantitative genetics, we identify 12 genomic regions that affect parental care, 8 of which have sex-specific effects, suggesting that parental care can evolve independently in males and females. Furthermore, some regions affect parental care broadly, whereas others affect specific behaviours, such as nest building. Of the genes linked to differences in nest-building behaviour, vasopressin is differentially expressed in the hypothalamus of the two species, with increased levels associated with less nest building. Using pharmacology in Peromyscus and chemogenetics in Mus, we show that vasopressin inhibits nest building but not other parental behaviours. Together, our results indicate that variation in an ancient neuropeptide contributes to interspecific differences in parental care.

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  • Chemogenetic inhibition of paraventricular vasopressin cell activity increases nest building in male mice (while excitation decreases nest building in females), without altering other aspects of parental behavior.

    “Recent work has demonstrated that chemogenetic inhibition of PVN AVP cell activity increases nest building in male mice (while excitation decreases nest building in females), without altering other aspects of parental behavior (133).”

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  1. [16]Royle NJ Smiseth PT Kölliker M The Evolution of Parental Care OUP Oxford 2012

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Authors
Bendesky, A., Kwon, Y.-M., Lassance, J.-M., Lewarch, C. L., Yao, S., Peterson, B. K., He, M. X., Dulac, C., & Hoekstra, H. E.
Affiliations
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute (US)
  • Harvard University (US)
Corresponding author
Hoekstra, Hopi E.
Venue
Nature
Published
2017-04
Volume
544
Issue
7651
Pages
434-439
ISSN
  • 0028-0836 (ISSN-L)
  • 1476-4687
OpenAlex
W2605705881
Cited by
268
References
63
Citations by year
2026: 15 · 2025: 33 · 2024: 27 · 2023: 21 · 2022: 33 · 2021: 35 · 2020: 25 · 2019: 25 · 2018: 36 · 2017: 18
FWCI
40.74
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Nature (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
  • Digital Access to Scholarship at Harvard (DASH) (Harvard University) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
  • RePEc: Research Papers in Economics (submittedVersion)
  • Open Repository and Bibliography (University of Liège) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • Howard Hughes Medical Institute
  • National Institutes of Health (5t32gm007598-41)
  • National Institute of General Medical Sciences (T32GM008313, T32-GM007598)
  • Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (K99HD084732, R01HD082131, R00HD084732)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics › Animal Behavior and Reproduction
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Experimental and Cognitive Psychology › Evolutionary Psychology and Human Behavior
Keywords
parental care, Peromyscus polionotus, deer mouse, nest building, vasopressin, hypothalamus, quantitative genetics, sex-specific genetic effects, neuropeptide signaling, evolution of social behavior, chemogenetics
MeSH terms
Animals, Biological Evolution, Female, Hybridization, Genetic, Hypothalamus, Male, Maternal Behavior, Nesting Behavior, Pair Bond, Paternal Behavior, Peromyscus, Sex Characteristics, Species Specificity, Vasopressins, Genome, Genomics, Quantitative Trait Loci, Mice

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