Role of the piriform cortex in the development of social behavior in mice

RAMIREZ MF; SEIFFE A; DEGIORGI S; CORREIA GONCEBATT J; DEPINO AM

Villa Carlos Paz

Congreso; XXXIV Congreso Anual de la Sociedad Argentina de Investigación en Neurociencias; 2019

Sociedad Argentina de Investigación en Neurociencias

The autism spectrum disorder is a group of pathologies characterized by social impairment and restricted and repetitive behaviors. Currently, the etiology of this disorder is not well understood. In autistic children, early social stimulation is one of the most effective treatments. In previous studies in our laboratory, the reduced sociability observed in a pharmacologically induced model of autism was reverted by early social stimulation. Positron emission tomography of the brain followed by immunohistochemistry and HPLC studies revealed that the piriform cortex (PC) has an altered glucose metabolism, increased neuronal activity and increased dopamine metabolism in autistic-like mice. Interestingly, as in social behaviors, early social enrichment reverted those parameters to levels similar to those observed in control groups. In this project we aim to further understand, first, the cellular and molecular alterations in the PC of animals with different sociability levels, and second, the role of this structure on the development of social behaviors in mice. For the first goal, we will characterize the expression levels of dopamine Receptors D1 and D2 and oxytocin receptor (by qPCR), the levels of dopaminergic innervation and the identity of the c-Fos positive neurons of the PC (by immunofluorescence). For the second goal, we will evaluate the effects on sociability of mimicking or blocking the observed changes in dopaminergic function and/or neuronal activity in the PC.