biostudies-literatureUnknown15(1)Islam MTNaito FoundationKao Research Council for the Study of Healthcare ScienceTakeda Science FoundationKanazawa University CHOZEN projectMEXT Japanese Government Scholarship for International StudentsDaiichi Sankyo Foundation of Life ScienceSelf-grooming plays an essential role in hygiene maintenance, thermoregulation, and stress response. However, the neural populations involved in self-grooming remain largely unknown. The paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus (PVH) has been implicated in the regulation of self-grooming. Arginine vasopressin-producing neurons are among the major neuronal populations in the PVH (PVH^AVP), which play important roles in water homeostasis, blood pressure regulation, feeding, and stress response. Here, we report the critical role of PVH^AVP neurons in the induction of self-grooming. Optogenetic activation of PVH^AVP neurons immediately induced self-grooming in freely moving mice. Chemogenetic activation of these neurons also increased time spent self-grooming. In contMolecular brain47https://www.ebi.ac.uk/biostudies/studies/S-EPMC9125887biostudies-literatureParaventricular hypothalamic vasopressin neurons induce self-grooming in mice.PMC9125887Maejima TMieda MMatsui AIslam MTfalseParaventricular hypothalamic vasopressin neurons induce self-grooming in mice.Self-grooming plays an essential role in hygiene maintenance, thermoregulation, and stress response. However, the neural populations involved in self-grooming remain largely unknown. The paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus (PVH) has been implicated in the regulation of self-grooming. Arginine vasopressin-producing neurons are among the major neuronal populations in the PVH (PVH^AVP), which play important roles in water homeostasis, blood pressure regulation, feeding, and stress response. Here, we report the critical role of PVH^AVP neurons in the induction of self-grooming. Optogenetic activation of PVH^AVP neurons immediately induced self-grooming in freely moving mice. Chemogenetic activation of these neurons also increased time spent self-grooming. In cont2022-01-01T00:00:00Z2022 May2025-04-22T13:08:33.837Z2025-02-19T04:56:46.641ZS-EPMC91258873560681610.1186/s13041-022-00932-9