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Leca JB. Towards a three-level neo-Tinbergenian approach to object play: Structure, causes and consequences of a behavioral puzzle. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 152:105290. [PMID: 37348665 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105290] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2023] [Revised: 05/11/2023] [Accepted: 06/19/2023] [Indexed: 06/24/2023]
Abstract
My main goal in this paper is to propose a reformulation of foundational models in behavioral research, including Tinbergen's (1963) well-known four levels of analysis (namely, ontogenetic, mechanistic, functional, and evolutionary questions) and Mayr's (1961) dichotomy between proximate and ultimate causations. After critically evaluating these influential but problematic models, I present a three-level neo-Tinbergenian approach to behavior that considers the triadic integration of behavioral causes, structure, and consequences along a single temporal continuum. I then argue that object-directed play is a good candidate behavior to apply this new paradigm by presenting significant examples of the combined analysis of at least two of these three levels. Finally, I show how stone handling, a form of culturally-transmitted object play in macaques, is perfectly amenable to this unified three-level explanatory framework. My proposed approach fits recent theoretical and empirical advances in behavioral biology, has a heuristic value, and may provide numerous benefits to a range of behavioral scientists.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Baptiste Leca
- Department of Psychology, University of Lethbridge, AB, Canada; School of Natural and Engineering Sciences National Institute of Advanced Studies, Bangalore, India.
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Teves ME, Roldan ERS. Sperm bauplan and function and underlying processes of sperm formation and selection. Physiol Rev 2022; 102:7-60. [PMID: 33880962 PMCID: PMC8812575 DOI: 10.1152/physrev.00009.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/06/2020] [Revised: 04/14/2021] [Accepted: 04/19/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023] Open
Abstract
The spermatozoon is a highly differentiated and polarized cell, with two main structures: the head, containing a haploid nucleus and the acrosomal exocytotic granule, and the flagellum, which generates energy and propels the cell; both structures are connected by the neck. The sperm's main aim is to participate in fertilization, thus activating development. Despite this common bauplan and function, there is an enormous diversity in structure and performance of sperm cells. For example, mammalian spermatozoa may exhibit several head patterns and overall sperm lengths ranging from ∼30 to 350 µm. Mechanisms of transport in the female tract, preparation for fertilization, and recognition of and interaction with the oocyte also show considerable variation. There has been much interest in understanding the origin of this diversity, both in evolutionary terms and in relation to mechanisms underlying sperm differentiation in the testis. Here, relationships between sperm bauplan and function are examined at two levels: first, by analyzing the selective forces that drive changes in sperm structure and physiology to understand the adaptive values of this variation and impact on male reproductive success and second, by examining cellular and molecular mechanisms of sperm formation in the testis that may explain how differentiation can give rise to such a wide array of sperm forms and functions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maria Eugenia Teves
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, Virginia
| | - Eduardo R S Roldan
- Department of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Madrid, Spain
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Dierick HA, Ben-Shahar Y, Raman B, Gabbiani F. Genetic and viral approaches to record or manipulate neurons in insects. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2021; 48:79-88. [PMID: 34710643 PMCID: PMC8648980 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2021.10.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2021] [Revised: 10/12/2021] [Accepted: 10/13/2021] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
The development of genetically encoded tools to record and manipulate neurons in vivo has greatly increased our understanding of how neuronal activity affects behavior. Recent advances enable the use of these tools in species not typically considered genetically tractable. This progress is revolutionizing neuroscience in general, and insect neuroethology in particular. Here we cover the latest innovations and some of their applications in phylogenetically diverse insect species. We discuss the importance and implications of these approaches for both basic and translational research. We focus on genetically encoded and virally encoded tools used for calcium imaging, optogenetics, and synaptic silencing. Finally, we discuss potential future developments of universally applicable, modular, and user-friendly genetic toolkits for neuroethological studies of insect behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Herman A Dierick
- Dep. of Human and Molecular Genetics, Baylor College of Medicine, United States
| | | | - Baranidharan Raman
- Dep. of Bioengineering, Washington University in St. Louis, United States
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Nine Levels of Explanation : A Proposed Expansion of Tinbergen's Four-Level Framework for Understanding the Causes of Behavior. HUMAN NATURE-AN INTERDISCIPLINARY BIOSOCIAL PERSPECTIVE 2021; 32:748-793. [PMID: 34739657 DOI: 10.1007/s12110-021-09414-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 08/23/2021] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
Abstract
Tinbergen's classic "On Aims and Methods of Ethology" (Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie, 20, 1963) proposed four levels of explanation of behavior, which he thought would soon apply to humans. This paper discusses the need for multilevel explanation; Huxley and Mayr's prior models, and others that followed; Tinbergen's differences with Lorenz on "the innate"; and Mayr's ultimate/proximate distinction. It synthesizes these approaches with nine levels of explanation in three categories: phylogeny, natural selection, and genomics (ultimate causes); maturation, sensitive period effects, and routine environmental effects (intermediate causes); and hormonal/metabolic processes, neural circuitry, and eliciting stimuli (proximate causes), as a respectful extension of Tinbergen's levels. The proposed classification supports and builds on Tinbergen's multilevel model and Mayr's ultimate/proximate continuum, adding intermediate causes in accord with Tinbergen's emphasis on ontogeny. It requires no modification of Standard Evolutionary Theory or The Modern Synthesis, but shows that much that critics claim was missing was in fact part of Neo-Darwinian theory (so named by J. Mark Baldwin in The American Naturalist in 1896) all along, notably reciprocal causation in ontogeny, niche construction, cultural evolution, and multilevel selection. Updates of classical examples in ethology are offered at each of the nine levels, including the neuroethological and genomic findings Tinbergen foresaw. Finally, human examples are supplied at each level, fulfilling his hope of human applications as part of the biology of behavior. This broad ethological framework empowers us to explain human behavior-eventually completely-and vindicates the idea of human nature, and of humans as a part of nature.
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Goymann W, Schwabl H. The tyranny of phylogeny-A plea for a less dogmatic stance on two-species comparisons: Funding bodies, journals and referees discourage two- or few-species comparisons, but such studies provide essential insights complementary to phylogenetic comparative studies. Bioessays 2021; 43:e2100071. [PMID: 34155665 DOI: 10.1002/bies.202100071] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2021] [Revised: 06/04/2021] [Accepted: 06/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Phylogenetically controlled studies across multiple species correct for taxonomic confounds in physiological performance traits. Therefore, they are preferred over comparisons of two or few closely-related species. Funding bodies, referees and journal editors nowadays often even reject to consider detailed comparisons of two or few closely related species. Here, we plea for a less dogmatic stance on such comparisons, because phylogenetic studies come with their own limitations similar in magnitude as those of two-species comparisons. Two-species comparisons are particularly relevant and instructive for understanding physiological pathways and de novo mutations in three contexts: in a purely mechanistic context, when differences in the regulation of a trait are the focus of investigation, when a physiological trait lacks a direct connection to fitness, and when physiological measures cannot easily be standardized among laboratories. In conclusion, phylogenetic comparative and two-species studies have different strengths and weaknesses and combining these complementary approaches will help integrating biology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wolfgang Goymann
- Department of Behavioural Neurobiology, Max Planck Institute for Ornithology, Seewiesen, Germany
| | - Hubert Schwabl
- School of Biological Sciences, Washington State University, Pullman, Washington, USA
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Roldan ERS, Teves ME. Understanding sperm physiology: Proximate and evolutionary explanations of sperm diversity. Mol Cell Endocrinol 2020; 518:110980. [PMID: 32853744 DOI: 10.1016/j.mce.2020.110980] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2020] [Revised: 08/05/2020] [Accepted: 08/06/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Much can be gained from the comprehensive study of a biological system. Based on what is known as Mayr's proximate-ultimate causation and the subsequent expansion to Tinbergen's four questions, biological traits can be understood by taking into account different approximations that try to explain mechanisms, development, adaptive significance or phylogeny. These, in principle, separate areas, can be integrated crossing boundaries, but bearing in mind that answers to one question would not explain a different query. Studies of sperm biology have, until now, not benefited much from this framework and potential integration. Proximate causes (particularly mechanisms) have been the subject of interest for reproductive biologists, and evolutionary explanations have been the domain of behavioural ecologists with interest in adaptive significance of traits in the context of post-copulatory sexual selection. This review will summarize opportunities for research in the different areas, focusing on sperm preparation for fertilization and suggesting possible integration within and between proximate and evolutionary studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduardo R S Roldan
- Department of Biodiversity and Evolutionary Biology, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (CSIC), Madrid, Spain.
| | - Maria Eugenia Teves
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA.
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Badcock PB, Friston KJ, Ramstead MJD. The hierarchically mechanistic mind: A free-energy formulation of the human psyche. Phys Life Rev 2019; 31:104-121. [PMID: 30704846 PMCID: PMC6941235 DOI: 10.1016/j.plrev.2018.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 60] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2018] [Revised: 09/04/2018] [Accepted: 10/10/2018] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
This article presents a unifying theory of the embodied, situated human brain called the Hierarchically Mechanistic Mind (HMM). The HMM describes the brain as a complex adaptive system that actively minimises the decay of our sensory and physical states by producing self-fulfilling action-perception cycles via dynamical interactions between hierarchically organised neurocognitive mechanisms. This theory synthesises the free-energy principle (FEP) in neuroscience with an evolutionary systems theory of psychology that explains our brains, minds, and behaviour by appealing to Tinbergen's four questions: adaptation, phylogeny, ontogeny, and mechanism. After leveraging the FEP to formally define the HMM across different spatiotemporal scales, we conclude by exploring its implications for theorising and research in the sciences of the mind and behaviour.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul B Badcock
- Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, 3052, Australia; Melbourne School of Psychological Sciences, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, 3010, Australia; Orygen, the National Centre of Excellence in Youth Mental Health, Melbourne, 3052, Australia.
| | - Karl J Friston
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, WC1N3BG, UK
| | - Maxwell J D Ramstead
- Wellcome Trust Centre for Neuroimaging, University College London, London, WC1N3BG, UK; Department of Philosophy, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 2T7, Canada; Division of Social and Transcultural Psychiatry, Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec, H3A 1A1, Canada
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Campos Barbosa Júnior E, da Rocha PLB. Analysis of the accuracy and consistency of the behavioral ecology literature that investigates Tinbergen’s question “What does the behavior exist for?”. ANIM BIOL 2018. [DOI: 10.1163/15707563-17000068] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Abstract
Tinbergen’s question “What does the behavior exist for?” has contributed to the establishment of behavioral ecology. However, communication within this discipline could be impaired if one does not realize that the question may refer to distinct temporal scopes. Answering it requires specific methodological approaches for each scope: different interpretations of the question refer to different processes. Here we evaluate whether the behavioral ecology literature avoids these pitfalls. We analyze a sample of the articles related to Tinbergen’s question, evaluating if they: precisely delimit the temporal scope of the question; use methodology appropriate to the temporal scope of the article; accurately define the terms used to refer to the survival value of behavior; and use the terms consistently. Additionally, we evaluate whether the citation of these articles is impaired by misinterpretations regarding the temporal scope and terms associated with the question. Of the 22 analyzed articles, three present problems in defining the time of the question, but in the other 19, methods suited to the time studied were used. Four terms (fitness, effect, adaptation, and function) were used to refer to the utility of the behavior, but only one article defined all of them. We found no communication problems in the citing process regarding the time of interest of the question and the terms used to refer to the usefulness of the behavior in the 16 analyzed citation events. Low/medium- and high-impact articles were similar in terms of the problems found. We suggest future articles should define the terms used, in order to avoid miscommunication in the field.
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Miloyan B, Suddendorf T. Feelings of the future. Trends Cogn Sci 2015; 19:196-200. [DOI: 10.1016/j.tics.2015.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 52] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2014] [Revised: 01/26/2015] [Accepted: 01/31/2015] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
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