# Neuro-Evolutionary Basis of Vertebrate Social Behavior

> **NIH NIH F99** · NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE · 2024 · $42,836

## Abstract

Project Summary
Sociality involves the ability for animals to live together in cooperative groups, is essential for the survival and
development of many species. However, the neural circuits and mechanisms for directed, context-dependent
pro-social behaviors remain unclear. Here in Aim 1 (the F99 predoctoral phase), I examine how mouse mothers
(‘dams’) can sense sickness in offspring and provide appropriate caregiving to their young. Sickness behaviors
occur in response to inflammation, and include effects such as fatigue, appetite loss, and temperature changes.
These behaviors can serve as socially-useful signals enabling avoidance to limit infection, or approach to solicit
caregiving. Differences in context such as familiarity and social relationship may therefore account for mixed
results regarding conspecific sick avoidance or approach. I use 24/7 longitudinal video monitoring to assess how
maternal behaviors change over the course of sickness induced by lipopolysaccharide (LPS), a bacterial
endotoxin commonly used to study sickness behavior. I have found that dams provide caregiving in the form of
increased physical contact toward LPS-injected pups. Dams also exhibit greater approach and time spent near
LPS-injected offspring in a social preference test. Oxytocin is a potent neuromodulator involved in regulating
prosocial behaviors, and is thought to facilitate the salience of social stimuli. It is released throughout the brain
and body via the paraventricular nucleus (PVN) and supraoptic nucleus of the hypothalamus. A major open
question in the field is how distinct parvocellular and magnocellular oxytocin neuron subpopulations contribute
to maternal care, due in part to challenges with targeting these subtypes. The Froemke lab was the first to make
optically-tagged recordings of oxytocin cells in mothers. I propose using these techniques in conjunction with
double transgenic mice developed in our lab to record from oxytocin neuron subtypes in the dam PVN during
interactions with sick vs. healthy pups. In addition to my in vivo recordings using high density silicon probes, I
will test how chemogenetic activation and suppression of these neurons impacts caregiving behavior. I
hypothesize that parvocellular neuron firing in the PVN will facilitate caregiving, and my preliminary recordings
of dam PVN units demonstrate increased responsiveness during interactions with LPS-injected pups. I will further
ask how what sensory signals from sick pups drive PVN activity. Caregiving behavior likely requires multi-sensory
integration given avoidance by dams in the presence of olfactory cues alone from sick offspring. In this way, I
will uncover how sensory signals of perceived sickness in pups promote maternal caregiving behavior via the
oxytocin system. In the K00 postdoctoral phase, I propose a project using similar longitudinal monitoring
techniques as in my predoctoral work to examine how the social environment in fish schooling impacts social
circu...

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 11001736
- **Project number:** 1F99NS139546-01
- **Recipient organization:** NEW YORK UNIVERSITY SCHOOL OF MEDICINE
- **Principal Investigator:** Asha Caslin
- **Activity code:** F99 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $42,836
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2024-07-01 → 2025-06-30

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/11001736

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 11001736, Neuro-Evolutionary Basis of Vertebrate Social Behavior (1F99NS139546-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-26 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/11001736. Licensed CC0.

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