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Abnormal behavioral organization of grooming in mice lacking the vitamin D receptor gene.
- Source :
-
Journal of neurogenetics [J Neurogenet] 2005 Jan-Mar; Vol. 19 (1), pp. 1-24. - Publication Year :
- 2005
-
Abstract
- Vitamin D is a steroid hormone with several important functions in the nervous system. Numerous human and animal data link alterations in the vitamin D system to various behavioral disorders. Grooming is an important element of rodent behavior with a general pattern of cephalocaudal progression (paw licking - nose/face wash - body wash - tail/genitals wash). Here we studied whether genetic ablation of vitamin D nuclear receptors (VDR) in mice may be associated with altered behavioral sequencing of grooming. Overall, VDR null mutant mice showed abnormal grooming, including a higher percentage of "incorrect" transitions and longer duration of "incorrect" grooming (contrary to the cephalocaudal progression); a higher percentage of interrupted grooming bouts; and the atypical regional distribution of grooming (more leg grooming, less body and tail/genitals grooming), compared to their wild-type controls. Grooming of heterozygous mice was similar to the wild-type group, indicating that abnormal grooming patterning is inherited as a recessive. In contrast, behavioral sequencing of another complex behavior (mating with a female) was unaltered in all three genotypes, suggesting grooming-specific abnormal sequencing in these mutant mice. Our results suggest that a neurosteroid vitamin D and VDR may play an important role in controlling sequencing of grooming in mice, and further confirm the important role of the vitamin D system and VDR in the regulation of behavior.
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 0167-7063
- Volume :
- 19
- Issue :
- 1
- Database :
- MEDLINE
- Journal :
- Journal of neurogenetics
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 16076629
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1080/01677060590949683