Journal
SCIENCE
Volume 320, Issue 5875, Pages 535-538Publisher
AMER ASSOC ADVANCEMENT SCIENCE
DOI: 10.1126/science.1154476
Keywords
-
Categories
Funding
- NIDCD NIH HHS [R01 DC008003, R01 DC008003-03] Funding Source: Medline
- PHS HHS [NIDCD 008003] Funding Source: Medline
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The mammalian vomeronasal organ detects complex chemical signals that convey information about gender, strain, and the social and reproductive status of an individual. How these signals are encoded is poorly understood. We developed transgenic mice expressing the calcium indicator G- CaMP2 and analyzed population responses of vomeronasal neurons to urine from individual animals. A substantial portion of cells was activated by either male or female urine, but only a small population of cells responded exclusively to gender- specific cues shared across strains and individuals. Female cues activated more cells and were subject to more complex hormonal regulations than male cues. In contrast to gender, strain and individual information was encoded by the combinatorial activation of neurons such that urine from different individuals activated distinctive cell populations.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available