美国纽约大学兰贡医学中心Dayu Lin团队发现后杏仁核（PA）调节雄性小鼠的性行为和攻击行为。 2020年7月27日，《自然-神经科学》杂志发表了这一成果。

他们确定PA中表达雌激素受体α（Esr1）的细胞是下丘脑兴奋性输入的主要来源，以及雄性小鼠交配和战斗的关键介体。他们发现两个截然不同的PA亚群，它们在连接性、基因表达、体内反应和社会行为相关性方面存在差异。投射视前内侧内侧核（MPN）的PAEsr1 +细胞在交配过程中被激活，是雄性性行为所必需和充分的，而投射下丘脑腹侧外侧部分（VMHvl）的PAEsr1 +细胞则在雄性间的攻击中被激发并促进攻击。

这些发现使PA成为雄性侵略和繁殖环路中的关键节点。Yamaguchi等确定鲜为人知的杏仁核区域，杏仁核后部是雄性小鼠社交行为的关键节点。杏仁核后部的两个大部分不重叠的亚群形成投射到不同的下丘脑区域平行投影，以调节交配和战斗。

据介绍，性行为和攻击行为是动物生存和繁殖的基础。MPN和VMHvl分别是雄性性行为和攻击行为的重要区域。虽然已经确定了对VMHvl和MPN的关键抑制性输入，但对社会行为而言至关重要的下丘脑兴奋性输入仍然不清楚。

附：英文原文

Title: Posterior amygdala regulates sexual and aggressive behaviors in male mice

Author: Takashi Yamaguchi, Dongyu Wei, Soomin C. Song, Byungkook Lim, Nicolas X. Tritsch, Dayu Lin

Issue&Volume: 2020-07-27

Abstract: Sexual and aggressive behaviors are fundamental to animal survival and reproduction. The medial preoptic nucleus (MPN) and ventrolateral part of the ventromedial hypothalamus (VMHvl) are essential regions for male sexual and aggressive behaviors, respectively. While key inhibitory inputs to the VMHvl and MPN have been identified, the extrahypothalamic excitatory inputs essential for social behaviors remain elusive. Here we identify estrogen receptor alpha (Esr1)-expressing cells in the posterior amygdala (PA) as a main source of excitatory inputs to the hypothalamus and key mediators for mating and fighting in male mice. We find two largely distinct PA subpopulations that differ in connectivity, gene expression, in vivo responses and social behavior relevance. MPN-projecting PAEsr1+ cells are activated during mating and are necessary and sufficient for male sexual behaviors, while VMHvl-projecting PAEsr1+ cells are excited during intermale aggression and promote attacks. These findings place the PA as a key node in both male aggression and reproduction circuits. Yamaguchi et al. identify a little-known amygdalar region, the posterior amygdala, as a key node in male mouse social behaviors. Two largely non-overlapping subpopulations in the posterior amygdala form parallel projections to distinct hypothalamic regions to regulate mating and fighting.

DOI: 10.1038/s41593-020-0675-x

Source: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41593-020-0675-x