NIH Reporter #5R01MH131861-05

Epigenetic regulation of social and behavioral plasticity in ants

This NIH grant funds research on how epigenetic mechanisms regulate social behavior plasticity in ants, focusing on neuropeptides and transcription factors that influence social roles and behaviors.

Description

The goal of this proposal is to determine how epigenetic pathways regulate plasticity in social behaviors using the model ant Harpegnathos saltator. The research will test the hypothesis that external social cues are conveyed to chromatin by neuropeptides that regulate downstream transcription factors and associated epigenetic pathways to enable stable changes in social behavior. Epigenetic pathways are often disrupted in neurodevelopmental and behavioral disorders. Harpegnathos ants are an ideal model system to study brain epigenetics because workers and queens have the same genes but display distinct social behaviors. Adult workers can become queens via a phenotypic transition involving plastic changes in reproduction, metabolism, and behavior. Preliminary data indicate that the neuropeptide corazonin is downregulated as workers become queens and that vasopressin is expressed in worker brains, especially in those not expressing high levels of corazonin. The project aims to determine whether these neuropeptides act on distinct or overlapping pathways and drive different social behaviors. Further, the research will explore transcription factors such as Kr-h1 and Fd3F, which are involved in maintaining social behavior and promoting social plasticity, respectively. The experiments will leverage in vivo gene expression manipulation and functional genomics analyses. The findings are expected to have broad implications for understanding the molecular regulation of social behavior.

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