Sexual dimorphism of G protein-coupled receptor signaling in the brain.
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ABSTRACT:
SUBMITTER: Aljoudi S
PROVIDER: S-EPMC10960278 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug
REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature
Publications
Sexual dimorphism of G protein-coupled receptor signaling in the brain.
Aljoudi Sara S Hamdan Hamdan H Abd-Elrahman Khaled S KS
Neural regeneration research 20231211 8
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Project description:BackgroundSex-specific behavior may originate from differences in brain structure or function. In Drosophila, the action of the male-specific isoform of fruitless in about 2000 neurons appears to be necessary and sufficient for many aspects of male courtship behavior. Initial work found limited evidence for anatomical dimorphism in these fru+ neurons. Subsequently, three discrete anatomical differences in central brain fru+ neurons have been reported, but the global organization of sex differences in wiring is unclear.ResultsA global search for structural differences in the Drosophila brain identified large volumetric differences between males and females, mostly in higher brain centers. In parallel, saturating clonal analysis of fru+ neurons using mosaic analysis with a repressible cell marker identified 62 neuroblast lineages that generate fru+ neurons in the brain. Coregistering images from male and female brains identified 19 new dimorphisms in males; these are highly concentrated in male-enlarged higher brain centers. Seven dimorphic lineages also had female-specific arbors. In addition, at least 5 of 51 fru+ lineages in the nerve cord are dimorphic. We use these data to predict >700 potential sites of dimorphic neural connectivity. These are particularly enriched in third-order olfactory neurons of the lateral horn, where we provide strong evidence for dimorphic anatomical connections by labeling partner neurons in different colors in the same brain.ConclusionOur analysis reveals substantial differences in wiring and gross anatomy between male and female fly brains. Reciprocal connection differences in the lateral horn offer a plausible explanation for opposing responses to sex pheromones in male and female flies.
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Project description:Evidence for phenotypic plasticity in brain size and the size of different brain parts is widespread, but experimental investigations into this effect remain scarce and are usually conducted using individuals from a single population. As the costs and benefits of plasticity may differ among populations, the extent of brain plasticity may also differ from one population to another. In a common garden experiment conducted with three-spined sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus) originating from four different populations, we investigated whether environmental enrichment (aquaria provided with structural complexity) caused an increase in the brain size or size of different brain parts compared to controls (bare aquaria). We found no evidence for a positive effect of environmental enrichment on brain size or size of different brain parts in either of the sexes in any of the populations. However, in all populations, males had larger brains than females, and the degree of sexual size dimorphism (SSD) in relative brain size ranged from 5.1 to 11.6% across the populations. Evidence was also found for genetically based differences in relative brain size among populations, as well as for plasticity in the size of different brain parts, as evidenced by consistent size differences among replicate blocks that differed in their temperature.
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Project description:G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) constitute a large family of receptors that activate intracellular signaling pathways upon detecting specific extracellular ligands. While many aspects of GPCR signaling have been uncovered through decades of studies, some fundamental properties, like its channel capacity-a measure of how much information a given transmission system can reliably transduce-are still debated. Previous studies concluded that GPCRs in individual cells could transmit around one bit of information about the concentration of the ligands, allowing only for a reliable on or off response. Using muscarinic receptor-induced calcium response measured in individual cells upon repeated stimulation, we show that GPCR signaling systems possess a significantly higher capacity. We estimate the channel capacity of this system to be above two, implying that at least four concentration levels of the agonist can be distinguished reliably. These findings shed light on the basic principles of GPCR signaling.
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Project description:Sex-specific behaviours are common across animals and often associated with sexual dimorphism in the nervous system. Using micro-CT scanning we standardized sex-specific brain atlases and tested for sexual dimorphism in the brain of the orchid bee Euglossa dilemma, a species with marked sex differences in social behaviour, mating strategies and foraging. Males show greater investment in all primary visual processing neuropils and are uniquely integrated with the central complex, evidenced by a strong positive covariation. This suggests that males invest more on locomotor control, flight stability and sky-compass navigation which may have evolved in response to sex-specific behaviours, like courtship display. In contrast, females have larger mushroom bodies that strongly and positively covary with the optic lobes and have increased volume of the Kenyon cell cluster, implying greater capabilities for visual associative memory. We speculate this is an adaptation to social and nest-building behaviours, and reliance on learning visual landmarks required for central place foraging. Our study provides the first record of sexually dimorphic morphological integration in the brain of an insect, an approach that revealed sex-specific brain traits that lack an apparent morphological signal. These subtle differences provide further evidence for the causal link between brain architecture and behaviour.
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