The functional contributions of the dorsal premammillary nucleus of the hypothalamus on C57Bl/6 mice's social defense behavior.

• Grant number: 21/05413-8
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: September 01, 2021
• End date: December 31, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Morphology - Anatomy
• Principal Investigator: Simone Cristina Motta
• Grantee: Carolina Zerbini
• Host Institution: Instituto de Ciências Biomédicas (ICB). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Social defensive behavior is extremely important for the establishment of groups among cospecific animals, like human beings, and their neural bases were studied in rats, animals with complex social behavior. These studies have shown that passive defense, which seeks to avoid new attacks, has in the dorsal nucleus of hypothalamus (PMD) one of its main elements, so that in case of PMD lesion this behavior is abruptly reduced. To follow in the understanding of the dynamic of this circuit, however, the use of genetically modified animals is a powerful weapon, and therefore it is necessary to confirm the function of the PMD in social defensive behavior in mice. Here, it is proposed the use of Cre-Lox technology, with bilateral injections in the PMD of a Cre-dependent AAV (adeno- associated virus) capable of activating intracellular caspase pathway, leading the interest cells to apoptosis. By this, it would be possible to analyse the mice's defensive behavior without the PMD contributions, and so to define its function in the defensive circuitry of these rodents.