Social context restructures behavioral syntax in mice.

ABSTRACT:

Introduction

The study of social behavior in mice has grown increasingly relevant for unraveling associated brain circuits and advancing the development of treatments for psychiatric symptoms involving social withdrawal or social anxiety. However, a data-driven understanding of behavior and its modulation in solitary and social contexts is lacking.

Methods

In this study, we employed motion sequencing ("MoSeq") to decompose mouse behaviors into discrete units ("syllables") and investigate whether-and how-the behavioral repertoire differs between solitary and dyadic (social) settings.

Results

Our results reveal that social context significantly modulates a minority (25%) of syllables, containing predominantly stationary and undirected behaviors. Notably, these changes a

SUBMITTER: Ritter M 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12634660 | biostudies-literature | 2025

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature