The serotonin blocker Ketanserin reduces coral reef fish Ctenochaetus striatus aggressive behaviour during between-species social interactions.

ABSTRACT: A multitude of species engages in social interactions not only with their conspecifics but also with other species. Such interspecific interactions can be either positive, like helping, or negative, like aggressive behaviour. However, the physiological mechanisms of these behaviours remain unclear. Here, we manipulated the serotonin system, a well-known neurohormone for regulating intraspecific aggressive behaviour, to investigate its role in interspecific aggression. We tested whether serotonin blockade affects the aggressive behaviour of a coral reef fish species (Ctenochaetus striatus) that engages in mutualistic interactions with another species, the cleaner fish (Labroides dimidiatus). Although this mutualistic cleaning relationship may appear positive, cleaner fish do n

SUBMITTER: Staubli V 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10838075 | biostudies-literature | 2024

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature