Flexible scaling and persistence of social vocal communication.

ABSTRACT: Innate vocal sounds such as laughing, screaming or crying convey one's feelings to others. In many species, including humans, scaling the amplitude and duration of vocalizations is essential for effective social communication^1-3. In mice, female scent triggers male mice to emit innate courtship ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs)^4,5. However, whether mice flexibly scale their vocalizations and how neural circuits are structured to generate flexibility remain largely unknown. Here we identify mouse neurons from the lateral preoptic area (LPOA) that express oestrogen receptor 1 (LPOA^ESR1 neurons) and, when activated, elicit the complete repertoire of USV syllables emitted during natural courtship. Neural anatomy and functional data reveal a two-step, di-synaptic

SUBMITTER: Chen J 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9153763 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature