Gene Editing Can Change The Social Behavior of Animals in Unexpected Ways

The technique can be used to change genetic coding with great precision, and it can also be used to fix genetic defects. The results are not what scientists were expecting when they used it to change animal behavior.

A group of hamsters were used to knock out the Avpr1a receptor, which is acted on by the hormone vasopressin. Social actions linked to Vasopressin include bonding, cooperation, communication, dominance, and aggression.

The team behind the study expected social communication and aggressive behavior to be reduced.

The hamsters without the receptor had higher levels of social communication and aggression. Sex differences in aggressiveness disappeared as well, with hamsters of both sexes showing high levels of aggression towards other same-sex individuals.

H.Elliott Albers is a neuroscientist at Georgia State University.

Even though we know that vasopressin increases social behaviors by acting within a number of brain regions, it is possible that the more global effects of the Avpr1a receptor are less effective.

Hamsters can be used as stand-ins for humans in experiments because of their similar social organization. Syrian hamsters were used to have an influence on sociality. Their stress response is the same as ours, they produce the hormone cortisol when stressed.

This means that the results of the research could apply to humans. It could give scientists a better idea of how genes interact with neural circuits in our brain to control how we treat other people.

Albers says we don't understand the system as well as we thought.

One of the behaviors altered in the hamsters given the CRISPR treatment was Flank marking, a scent-marking behavior used by many rodents, which left their scent on the environment in order to assert dominance and a choice of mate.

While flank marking is not something that humans do, variations in other types of social behavior are key indicators when it comes to neural conditions. The scientists are hopeful that their work could shed some light on these conditions.

The study shows how well developed the editing technology is, and how it can make a difference. Future studies in hamsters are expected to look at the same receptor.

Albers says that it is important to understand the neuroscience involved in human social behavior.

Understanding the role of vasopressin in behavior is necessary to help identify potential new and more effective treatment strategies for a diverse group of neurological disorders.

The research has been published.