Paternal deprivation alters the development of catecholaminergic innervation in the prefrontal cortex and related limbic brain regions.
The impact of paternal care on the development of catecholaminergic fiber innervations in the prefrontal cortex, nucleus accumbens, hippocampus and the amygdala was quantitatively investigated in the biparental Octodon degus. Two age (juvenile, adult) and rearing groups: (1) degus reared without father and (2) degus raised by both parents were compared. Juvenile father-deprived animals showed significantly elevated densities of TH-immunoreactive fibers in all analyzed regions, except in the orbitofrontal cortex, as compared to biparentally reared animals. This difference between the two rearing groups was still evident in adulthood in the prelimbic and infralimbic cortices and in the hippocampal formation. Interestingly, the elevated TH fiber density in both nucleus accumbens subregions was reversed in adulthood, i.e. adult father-deprived animals showed strongly reduced TH fiber densities as compared to biparentally reared animals. We show here that paternal care plays a critical role in the functional maturation of catecholaminergic innervation patterns in prefrontal and limbic brain circuits.
Department of Zoology/Developmental Neurobiology, Institute for Biology, Otto-von-Guericke University, Leipziger Str 44, 39120 Magdeburg, Germany. katharina.braun@ovgu.de
Katharina
K
Braun
Katja
K
Seidel
Romy
R
Holetschka
Nicole
N
Groeger
Gerd
G
Poeggel
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D000906:Antibodies / Q000378:metabolism; D015153:Blotting, Western; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008032:Limbic System / Q000196:embryology*; D008853:Microscopy / Q000379:methods; D046329:Octodon; D010333:Paternal Deprivation; D017397:Prefrontal Cortex / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000196:embryology*; D051381:Rats; D014446:Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase / Q000276:immunology
D000906:Antibodies; D014446:Tyrosine 3-Monooxygenase