title: Brain-immune interactions and the neural basis of disease-avoidant ingestive behaviour.
abstract: Neuro-immune interactions are widely manifested in animal physiology. Since immunity competes for energy with other physiological functions, it is subject to a circadian trade-off between other energy-demanding processes, such as neural activity, locomotion and thermoregulation. When immunity is challenged, this trade-off is tilted to an adaptive energy protecting and reallocation strategy that is identified as 'sickness behaviour'. We review diverse disease-avoidant behaviours in the context of ingestion, indicating that several adaptive advantages have been acquired by animals (including humans) during phylogenetic evolution and by ontogenetic experiences: (i) preventing waste of energy by reducing appetite and consequently foraging/hunting (illness anorexia), (ii) avoiding unnecessary danger by promoting safe environments (preventing disease encounter by olfactory cues and illness potentiation neophobia), (iii) help fighting against pathogenic threats (hyperthermia/somnolence), and (iv) by associative learning evading specific foods or environments signalling danger (conditioned taste avoidance/aversion) and/or at the same time preparing the body to counteract by anticipatory immune responses (conditioning immunomodulation). The neurobiology behind disease-avoidant ingestive behaviours is reviewed with special emphasis on the body energy balance (intake versus expenditure) and an evolutionary psychology perspective.
authors: Physiology and Behaviour Laboratory, ETH (Swiss Federal Institute of Technology)-Zurich, Schwerzenbach 8603, Switzerland.
authors: Gustavo
authors: G
authors: Pacheco-López
authors: Federico
authors: F
authors: Bermúdez-Rattoni
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000276:immunology*; D003141:Communicable Diseases / Q000276:immunology*; D002149:Energy Intake / Q000276:immunology; D004734:Energy Metabolism / Q000276:immunology; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D012903:Smell / Q000276:immunology; D013649:Taste / Q000276:immunology