Dads matter, too: The behavioural and neurogenomic effects of receiving paternal care
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ABSTRACT:
PROVIDER: PRJNA1304590 | ENA |
REPOSITORIES: ENA
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Project description:Offspring are often influenced by the care they receive from their parents. However, we know little about the underlying neurogenomic mechanisms. Using a half-sib design, threespine stickleback fish were either raised by their fathers or hand-reared (“orphaned”). As offspring developed, they were tested in one of three behavioural assays: an open field assay with a simulated predator attack, a social behaviour assay with a simulated predator attack, and a scototaxis assay. Offspring that received parental care were bolder, more social, and less anxious. Fish in the open field assay had their brains sampled one hour following the simulated attack; brains were sampled at the same time from full-sib controls. These brains were processed for gene expression (via Tag-seq) and chromatin accessibility (via ATAC-seq). Experiencing paternal care affected brain gene expression, but sex was also a major factor, despite the fish being reproductively immature. The predator attack in the open field assay affected expression of fewer genes. Sex, and to lesser extent, paternal care, also influenced chromatin accessibility at a whole genome scale. Our findings further our understanding of the mechanistic basis for offspring response to variation in the care they receive from their parents.
2025-08-13 | GSE305202 | GEO
Project description:Offspring are often influenced by the care they receive from their parents. However, we know little about the underlying neurogenomic mechanisms. Using a half-sib design, threespine stickleback fish were either raised by their fathers or hand-reared (“orphaned”). As offspring developed, they were tested in one of three behavioural assays: an open field assay with a simulated predator attack, a social behaviour assay with a simulated predator attack, and a scototaxis assay. Offspring that received parental care were bolder, more social, and less anxious. Fish in the open field assay had their brains sampled one hour following the simulated attack; brains were sampled at the same time from full-sib controls. These brains were processed for gene expression (via Tag-seq) and chromatin accessibility (via ATAC-seq). Experiencing paternal care affected brain gene expression, but sex was also a major factor, despite the fish being reproductively immature. The predator attack in the open field assay affected expression of fewer genes. Sex, and to lesser extent, paternal care, also influenced chromatin accessibility at a whole genome scale. Our findings further our understanding of the mechanistic basis for offspring response to variation in the care they receive from their parents.
2025-08-18 | GSE305284 | GEO
Project description:Dads matter, too: The behavioural and neurogenomic effects of receiving paternal care [ATAC-Seq]
| PRJNA1304987 | ENA
Project description:Motherhood is characterized by dramatic changes in brain and behavior, but less is known about fatherhood. Here we report that male sticklebacks – a small fish in which fathers provide care – experience dramatic changes in neurogenomic state as they become fathers. Some genes are unique to different stages of paternal care, some genes are shared across stages, and some genes are added to the previously acquired neurogenomic state. Comparative genomic analysis suggests that some of these neurogenomic dynamics resemble changes associated with pregnancy and reproduction in mammalian mothers. Moreover, gene regulatory analysis identified transcription factors that are regulated in opposite directions in response to a territorial challenge versus during paternal care. Altogether these results show that some of the molecular mechanisms of parental care might be deeply conserved and might not be sex-specific, and suggest that tradeoffs between opposing social behaviors are managed at the gene regulatory level.
2019-09-15 | GSE134508 | GEO
Project description:Neurogenomic insights into paternal care and its relation to territorial aggression
| PRJNA555357 | ENA
Project description:Motherhood is characterized by dramatic changes in brain and behavior, but less is known about fatherhood. Here we report that male sticklebacks-a small fish in which fathers provide care-experience dramatic changes in neurogenomic state as they become fathers. Some genes are unique to different stages of paternal care, some genes are shared across stages, and some genes are added to the previously acquired neurogenomic state. Comparative genomic analysis suggests that some of these neurogenomic dynamics resemble changes associated with pregnancy and reproduction in mammalian mothers. Moreover, gene regulatory analysis identifies transcription factors that are regulated in opposite directions in response to a territorial challenge versus during paternal care. Altogether these results show that some of the molecular mechanisms of parental care might be deeply conserved and might not be sex-specific, and suggest that tradeoffs between opposing social behaviors are managed at the gene regulatory level.
| S-EPMC6768867 | biostudies-literature
Project description:The switch between biological states during key life-history transitions requires major reprogramming at the behavioural level that is under the control of the brain. In this study we focused on major life-history transitions in bumblebee queens (Bombus terrestris) that involve switching from virgin to mated and reproductively mature. To reveal the molecular processes underpinning the behavioural changes that accompany these transitions, we characterised the neurogenomic state of queens that succeeded or failed in making these transitions. Analyses of shared transcription patterns suggested that failures are associated with larger molecular signatures than successes. This was observed at the level of total numbers of differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and proportions of these genes that were up-regulated, and applies to both mating and reproductive maturation. ‘Failed Reproductive’ queens were the most distinct phenotype, associated with the highest number of DEGs (1,578) and two networks of co-expressed genes. Mating status influenced gene expression the least, followed by the transition between the two successful phenotypes (mating to reproductive maturation) and reproductive maturation. However, this pattern was not mirrored in terms of functional specialisations, for Gene Ontology (GO) terms, KEGG pathways and co-expression networks associated with DEGs. Out of the 21 highly connected (hub) genes associated with co-expression networks, 9 are involved in neural processes and 4 are regulators of gene expression. This study shows that different life-history transitions trigger distinct molecular profiles, within a single caste of a eusocial insect. Failure to surmount key life-history transitions has the largest effect on a queen’s neurogenomic state, and it triggers a massive overall up-regulation of gene expression. Hence, failure is an important outcome that must be taken into account when analysing the molecular regulation of important life-history transitions.
2017-10-27 | GSE92730 | GEO
Project description:Maternal care boosted by paternal imprinting in mammals
| PRJNA474669 | ENA
Project description:The brain plays a critical role in upstream regulation of processes central to mating effort, parental effort, and self-maintenance. For seasonally breeding animals, the brain is likely mediating trade-offs among these processes within a short breeding season, yet research thus far has only explored neurogenomic changes from non-breeding to breeding states or select pathways (e.g., steroids) in male and/or lab-reared animals. Here, we use RNA-seq to explore neural plasticity in three behaviorally relevant neural tissues (ventromedial telencephalon [VmT], hypothalamus [HYPO], and hindbrain), comparing free-living female tree swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) as they shift from territory establishment to incubation. We additionally highlight changes in candidate aggression-related genes to explore the potential for a neurogenomic shift in the mechanisms regulating aggression, a critical behavior both in establishing and maintaining a territory and in defense of offspring. We found hundreds of differentially expressed genes in the VmT and HYPO. Enrichment analyses for the VmT revealed higher expression of genes related to neuroplasticity and processes beneficial for competition during territory establishment, but down-regulated immune processes. The HYPO showed signs of high neuroplasticity during incubation, and a decreased potential for glucocorticoid signaling. Furthermore, expression of aggression-related genes shifted from steroidal to non-steroidal pathways across the breeding season. Altogether, we found genomic signatures suggestive of trade-offs between enhanced activity and immunity in the VmT and between stress responsiveness and parental care in the HYPO, along with a potential shift in the mechanisms regulating aggression. These data highlight important gene regulatory pathways that may underlie behavioral plasticity in females.
2019-11-19 | GSE134939 | GEO