Expression of μ- and δ-opioid receptors in song control regions of adult male zebra finches (Taenopygia guttata)

Khurshid, Nazia; Agarwal, Varsha; Iyengar, Soumya

doi:10.1016/j.jchemneu.2008.12.001

Cited by 30 publications

(47 citation statements)

References 84 publications

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“…A recent study also reports m opioid receptor immunopositivity in VTA and POM in adult male zebra finches (Khurshid et al, 2010); other receptor subtypes were not measured and this species is not seasonal, so direct comparisons with the present study are limited. Systemi- cally administered fentanyl, a m opioid receptor-specific agonist, decreased singing in European starlings, particularly those males that normally sang at a high rate (Schroeder and Riters, 2006); central injections to specific brain regions are required to determine if the effect is mediated by reward centers studied here, by the song system itself, regions of which also express m opioid receptors Deviche, 1995, 1999;Khurshid et al, 2009), or perhaps is due to a non-specific narcotic effect. The present study shows a season-associated change in opioid receptor densities in a brain region (cPOM) mediating motivation and reward.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Opioid receptor densities analyzed across seasons in the POM and VTA of the dark-eyed junco, Junco hyemalis

Woods

Deviche

Corbitt

2010

Journal of Chemical Neuroanatomy

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Opioid receptor densities analyzed across seasons in the POM and VTA of the dark-eyed junco, Junco hyemalis

Woods

Deviche

Corbitt

2010

Journal of Chemical Neuroanatomy

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“…Western immunoblot indicated a dark band at 48kDa, the molecular weight for the mu-opioid receptor protein [14, 23]. Two additional bands were observed at approximately 50 and 160 kDa.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mu-opioid receptor densities are depleted in regions implicated in agonistic and sexual behavior in male European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) defending nest sites and courting females

Kelm

Forbes-Lorman

Auger

et al. 2011

Behavioural Brain Research

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Social status and resource availability can strongly influence individual behavioral responses to conspecifics. In European starlings, males that acquire nest sites sing in response to females and dominate other males. Males without nest sites sing, but not to females, and they do not interact agonistically with other males. Little is known about the neural regulation of status- or resource-appropriate behavioral responses to conspecifics. Opioid neuropeptides are implicated in birdsong and agonistic behavior, suggesting that opioids may underlie differences in the production of these behaviors in males with and without nest sites. Here, we examined densities of immunolabeled mu-opioid receptors in groups of male starlings. Males that defended nest boxes dominated other males and sang at higher rates when presented with a female than males without nest boxes, independent of testosterone concentrations. Multiple regression analyses showed nest box ownership (not agonistic behavior or singing) predicted the optical density of receptor labeling in the medial bed nucleus of stria terminalis, paraventricular nucleus, ventral tegmental area and the medial preoptic nucleus. Compared to males without nest boxes, males with nest boxes had lower densities of immunolabeled mu-opioid receptors in these regions. Singing additionally predicted the area covered by labeling in the ventral tegmental area. The results suggest that elevated opioid activity in these regions suppresses courtship and agonistic behavioral responses to conspecifics in males without nest boxes. The findings are consistent with a dynamic role for opioid receptors in adjusting social behavior so that it is appropriate given the resources available to an individual.

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“…number of cells and their transcriptional activity, RNA quality and reverse transcriptase efficiency [11]. In recent avian gene expression experiments, genes such as 18S (18S ribosomal RNA), ACTB (beta actin) and GAPDH (glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase) have been used most frequently [12]–[17] but several studies have shown that using single or inappropriate reference genes for normalization may dramatically bias the results of mRNA copy number quantification [10], [18]–[20].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reference Genes for Quantitative Gene Expression Studies in Multiple Avian Species

et al. 2014

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Quantitative real-time PCR (qPCR) rapidly and reliably quantifies gene expression levels across different experimental conditions. Selection of suitable reference genes is essential for meaningful normalization and thus correct interpretation of data. In recent years, an increasing number of avian species other than the chicken has been investigated molecularly, highlighting the need for an experimentally validated pan-avian primer set for reference genes. Here we report testing a set for 14 candidate reference genes (18S, ABL, GAPDH, GUSB, HMBS, HPRT, PGK1, RPL13, RPL19, RPS7, SDHA, TFRC, VIM, YWHAZ) on different tissues of the mallard (Anas platyrhynchos), domestic chicken (Gallus gallus domesticus), common crane (Grus grus), white-tailed eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla), domestic turkey (Meleagris gallopavo f. domestica), cockatiel (Nymphicus hollandicus), Humboldt penguin (Sphenicus humboldti), ostrich (Struthio camelus) and zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata), spanning a broad range of the phylogenetic tree of birds. Primer pairs for six to 11 genes were successfully established for each of the nine species. As a proof of principle, we analyzed expression levels of 10 candidate reference genes as well as FOXP2 and the immediate early genes, EGR1 and CFOS, known to be rapidly induced by singing in the avian basal ganglia. We extracted RNA from microbiopsies of the striatal song nucleus Area X of adult male zebra finches after they had sang or remained silent. Using three different statistical algorithms, we identified five genes (18S, PGK1, RPS7, TFRC, YWHAZ) that were stably expressed within each group and also between the singing and silent conditions, establishing them as suitable reference genes. In conclusion, the newly developed pan-avian primer set allows accurate normalization and quantification of gene expression levels in multiple avian species.

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Expression of μ- and δ-opioid receptors in song control regions of adult male zebra finches (Taenopygia guttata)

Cited by 30 publications

References 84 publications

Opioid receptor densities analyzed across seasons in the POM and VTA of the dark-eyed junco, Junco hyemalis

Opioid receptor densities analyzed across seasons in the POM and VTA of the dark-eyed junco, Junco hyemalis

Mu-opioid receptor densities are depleted in regions implicated in agonistic and sexual behavior in male European starlings (Sturnus vulgaris) defending nest sites and courting females

Reference Genes for Quantitative Gene Expression Studies in Multiple Avian Species

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