Distress Vocalizations in Infant Rats: What's All the Fuss About?

Blumberg, Mark S.; Sokoloff, Greta; Kirby, Robert F.; Kent, Kristen

doi:10.1111/1467-9280.00219

Cited by 31 publications

(30 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Temperature also was not a factor. While chilled pups are licked and groomed more frequently than their control pups (Stern & Johnson, 1990), and chilled pups may vocalize at a higher rate than warm pups depending on their prior isolation history (Blumberg, Sokoloff, Kirby, & Kent, 2000;Hofer et al, 1993), our observed differences in vocalization and maternal behavior were not due to any difference in pups' core temperatures since there were no differences in this measure. Finally, body weight was not a factor in differential call rates because while the Acute Isolates emitted as few calls as the Chronic Isolates compared to Home Nest pups, their body weight was the same as the Home Nest pups and significantly greater than that of the Chronic Isolates.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 62%

Neonatal social isolation alters both maternal and pup behaviors in rats

Zimmerberg

Rosenthal

Stark

2002

Developmental Psychobiology

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The development of emotional behavior is dependent on the early experiences of the infant and the quality of maternal care. In these experiments, the effects of social isolation during the preweaning period on both pup behavior and maternal responsivity were examined. In the first study, the number of ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) emitted after brief maternal separation was measured in neonatal rats with differing histories of social isolation. The social isolation procedure consisted of 5 days of daily separation from the dam and littermates for either 3 or 6 hr. At both ages tested, socially isolated pups vocalized significantly less than control pups. In the second study, the effects of prior isolation either daily for 5 previous days (Chronic Isolation) or for 4 hr prior to testing (Acute Isolation) were examined in a T-maze choice test. Pup vocalizations in the presence of the dam and dams' maternal behavior were assessed. When the dam was confined to the start box or during the maternal free access period, both Chronic and Acute Isolates vocalized less than pups that had never left the home nest. Dams spent more time with and licked and groomed more frequently and for a longer time both Chronic and Acute Isolates compared to pups that had always been with dams in the home nest. These results suggest that early isolation experience can alter subsequent responses to separation stress in neonatal rats and that maternal behavior is sensitive to the prior experiences of offspring.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 62%

Neonatal social isolation alters both maternal and pup behaviors in rats

Zimmerberg

Rosenthal

Stark

2002

Developmental Psychobiology

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“…The second version of the epiphenomenon hypothesis suggested that all USV results from a cardiovascular maneuver called the abdominal compression reaction whose function is to increase venous return [9,10,60]. This hypothesis was also disproved [94].…”

Section: Isolation-induced Usv Is Not a By-product Of Thermal Or Cardmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The first form of the hypothesis argued that all USV results from attempts to increase thermogenesis [6][7][8]. We tested and disproved that hypothesis in several ways: The second version of the epiphenomenon hypothesis suggested that all USV results from a cardiovascular maneuver called the abdominal compression reaction whose function is to increase venous return [9,10,60]. This hypothesis was also disproved [94].…”

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confidence: 94%

Acquisition and expression of a socially mediated separation response

Shair¹

2007

Behavioural Brain Research

108

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INTRODUCTIONSocial bonds are made up of numerous subsystems mediating the overall social relationships that develop between infants and caretakers. The effects of an infant's formation of early life relationships and its social interactions with caretakers are known to last well in to adulthood with both beneficial and harmful effects [28,35,70]. In our laboratory, we study the development of social relationships between infant rats and their dams, sires, and littermates using an isolation, reunion, and re-isolation test paradigm.Infant rats emit ultrasonic vocalizations (USV) in a variety of situations, including as a response to isolation, physical manipulation, and thermal and olfactory challenge [1][2][3]6,19,25,46,79,80,82,97]. Many researchers have used the presence and absence of these sounds to make inferences about the internal state of the rodents, e.g., isolation-induced USV's have often been called "distress vocalizations" [29,76,78].The isolation-induced vocalization of a rat pup is modulated both by current social interactions and by the pup's rearing experience. This modulation of USV by social interactions provides a paradigm for investigating the neurobehavioral mechanisms underlying acquisition and expression of infant attachment. What is maternal potentiation of isolation-induced vocalizations of infant rats?Maternal potentiation of ultrasonic vocalization occurs when, after a brief contact with the dam, isolated infant rats produce USV at a rate significantly higher than they would during an isolation not preceded by dam contact. Although the definition may seem of narrow interest, there is a growing belief that the potentiation phenomenon has broad applicability for the study of early life social relationships in many species. But before going further, the reader needs to understand the usual test paradigm in our laboratory.Developmental Psychobiology, Unit 40, New York State Psychiatric Institute, 1051 Riverside Dr. NY, NY 100032, Tele 212-543-5695, Fax 212-543-5467, hns1@columbia.edu Publisher's Disclaimer: This is a PDF file of an unedited manuscript that has been accepted for publication. As a service to our customers we are providing this early version of the manuscript. The manuscript will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and review of the resulting proof before it is published in its final citable form. Please note that during the production process errors may be discovered which could affect the content, and all legal disclaimers that apply to the journal pertain. NIH Public Access NIH-PA Author ManuscriptNIH-PA Author Manuscript NIH-PA Author ManuscriptTest procedure-On the day of testing, the dam is removed from the home cage and anesthetized. The litter is allowed to adapt to her removal for ~15-20min in the home cage on a thermoregulated heating pad. Then, each pup is tested in turn. The pup is picked up and placed alone in a clean polycarbonate rectangular box (18 × 21 × 20 cm) at room temperature. The test consists of three periods, which can range from 1-5min in length (3mi...

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“…Indeed, some data in the present study would be consistent with an earlier developmental change in the relationship between two acoustic parameters (mean peak sound frequency and mean call duration) following prenatal malnutrition (discussed later). The USV characteristics may, at least in part, have been influenced by the proportion of sounds emitted as a by-product of the abdominal compression reaction, a maneuver that assists the flow of blood back to the heart when the pup is cooled (Blumberg et al, 1999;Blumberg et al, 2000). If present, however, this would have had the greatest effect at the youngest age (P7), where significant group differences in body temperature were documented.…”

Section: Usv Call Characteristicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There has been recent debate about the functional significance of such vocalizations, and it has been proposed that some may be simple by-products of the abdominal compression reaction, a maneuver that increases blood flow to the heart in response to a thermal challenge (Blumberg & Sokoloff, 2001;Blumberg, Sokoloff, & Kent, 1999;Blumberg, Sokoloff, Kirby, & Kent, 2000;Kraebel, Brasser, Campbell, Spear, & Spear, 2002). Ethologically, however, there is much evidence to suggest that these calls elicit maternal search and retrieval behavior (Allin & Banks, 1972;Noirot, 1972) and that, together with olfactory cues, they serve as robust directional cues for the localization of the pups (Allin & Banks, 1972;Brunelli, Shair, & Hofer, 1994;Smotherman, Bell, Hershberger, & Coover, 1978).…”

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confidence: 99%

Ultrasonic call characteristics of rat pups are altered following prenatal malnutrition

Tonkiss

Bonnie

Hudson

et al. 2003

Developmental Psychobiology

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The male offspring of rats provided with a protein deficient diet (6% casein) for 5 weeks prior to mating and throughout pregnancy were subjected to a brief period of isolation and cooling at postnatal Days (P)7, 9, and 11, and their ultrasonic vocalizations were compared with those of well-nourished pups. Calls were categorized into 12 different types based upon their sonographic patterns. Although call rates were equal, the call characteristics of the prenatally malnourished pups differed significantly from those of well-nourished controls. At P7, their mean peak sound frequency (irrespective of call type) was significantly higher, and constant frequency calls were of both higher frequency and longer duration. Over the age range studied, prenatally malnourished pups emitted a smaller variety of calls, with significantly fewer ascending frequency vocalizations while producing either significantly fewer (P9) or greater (P11) descending frequency calls. Altered crying patterns have been related to brain damage in human babies, with more abnormal cries being associated with more severe neurological impairment. Therefore, the present results most likely reflect altered central nervous system development and function. Ultrasonic vocalization characteristics in rat pups may provide a useful early marker of the severity of disturbance to the development of the central nervous system following an insult, and offer the potential for predicting the degree of functional and behavioral deficits later in life.

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Distress Vocalizations in Infant Rats: What's All the Fuss About?

Cited by 31 publications

References 22 publications

Neonatal social isolation alters both maternal and pup behaviors in rats

Neonatal social isolation alters both maternal and pup behaviors in rats

Acquisition and expression of a socially mediated separation response

Ultrasonic call characteristics of rat pups are altered following prenatal malnutrition

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