Oxytocin regulation of social transmission of fear in zebrafish reveals its evolutionary conserved role in emotional contagion

• DOI: 10.1101/2021.10.06.463413
• Publication Date: 2021-10-07T06:15:13Z
• Authors: Ibukun Akinrinade; Kyriacos Kareklas; Michael Gliksberg; Giovanni Petri; Gil Levkowitz; Rui F. Oliveira
• Keywords: Emotional contagion; Oxytocin receptor; Vasotocin

Abstract Emotional contagion is the most ancestral form of empathy that relies on simple perception-action mechanisms, top which more complex forms empathic behaviors, such as consolation and helping, have evolved. Here we tested to what extent proximate mechanisms emotional are evolutionary conserved by assessing role oxytocin, known regulate behaviors in mammals, social fear zebrafish, represents an divergent line tetrapods, within vertebrates. Using mutants for ligand fish oxytocin nonapeptide both its receptors zebrafish showed necessary observer copy distressed behavior conspecific demonstrators. Exogeneous administration mutant rescued ability observers express transmission, indicating not only but also sufficient contagion. The brain regions ventral telencephalon associated with homologous those be involved same process rodents (e.g. striatum, lateral septum), receive direct projections from oxytocinergic neurons located pre-optic area. Finally, ruled out hypothesis transmission merely motor imitation, it rather emotion discrimination. Together our results support a key regulator basic across One-Sentence Summary Oxytocin supporting among