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Theofanopoulou C. A journey from speech to dance through the field of oxytocin. Compr Psychoneuroendocrinol 2023; 16:100193. [PMID: 38108035 PMCID: PMC10724736 DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2023.100193] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/14/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023] Open
Abstract
In this article, I am going through my scientific and personal journey using my work on oxytocin as a compass. I recount how my scientific questions were shaped over the years, and how I studied them through the lens of different fields ranging from linguistics and neuroscience to comparative and population genomics in a wide range of vertebrate species. I explain how my evolutionary findings and proposal for a universal gene nomenclature in the oxytocin-vasotocin ligand and receptor families have impacted relevant fields, and how my studies in the oxytocin and vasotocin system in songbirds, humans and non-human primates have led me to now be testing intranasal oxytocin as a candidate treatment for speech deficits. I also discuss my projects on the neurobiology of dance and where oxytocin fits in the picture of studying speech and dance in parallel. Lastly, I briefly communicate the challenges I have been facing as a woman and an international scholar in science and academia, and my personal ways to overcome them.
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Affiliation(s)
- Constantina Theofanopoulou
- The Rockefeller University, New York, USA
- Center for the Ballet and the Arts, New York University, New York, USA
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2
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Venditti JA, Murrugarra E, McLean CR, Goldstein MH. Curiosity constructs communicative competence through social feedback loops. Adv Child Dev Behav 2023; 65:99-134. [PMID: 37481302 DOI: 10.1016/bs.acdb.2023.05.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 07/24/2023]
Abstract
One of the most important challenges for a developing infant is learning how best to allocate their attention and forage for information in the midst of a great deal of novel stimulation. We propose that infants of altricial species solve this challenge by learning selectively from events that are contingent on their immature behavior, such as babbling. Such a contingency filter would focus attention and learning on the behavior of social partners, because social behavior reliably fits infants' sensitivity to contingency. In this way a contingent response by a caregiver to an immature behavior becomes a source of learnable information - feedback - to the infant. Social interactions with responsive caregivers afford infants opportunities to explore the impacts of their immature behavior on their environment, which facilitates the development of socially guided learning. Furthermore, contingent interactions are opportunities to make and test predictions about the efficacy of their social behaviors and those of others. In this chapter, we will use prelinguistic vocal learning to exemplify how infants use their developing vocal abilities to elicit learnable information about language from their social partners. Specifically, we review how caregivers' contingent responses to babbling create information that facilitates infant vocal learning and drives the development of communication. Infants play an active role in this process, as their developing predictions about the consequences of their actions serve to further refine their allocation of attention and drive increases in the maturity of their vocal behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia A Venditti
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, 270 Uris Hall, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Emma Murrugarra
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, 270 Uris Hall, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Celia R McLean
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, 270 Uris Hall, Ithaca, NY, United States
| | - Michael H Goldstein
- Department of Psychology, Cornell University, 270 Uris Hall, Ithaca, NY, United States.
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Mercado E 3rd, Ashour M, McAllister S. Cognitive control of song production by humpback whales. Anim Cogn 2022. [PMID: 36058997 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-022-01675-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Revised: 08/04/2022] [Accepted: 08/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/01/2022]
Abstract
Singing humpback whales are highly versatile vocalizers, producing complex sequences of sounds that they vary throughout adulthood. Past analyses of humpback whale song have emphasized yearly variations in structural features of songs made collectively by singers within a population with comparatively little attention given to the ways that individual singers vary consecutive songs. As a result, many researchers describe singing by humpback whales as a process in which singers produce sequences of repeating sound patterns. Here, we show that such characterizations misrepresent the degree to which humpback whales flexibly and dynamically control the production of sounds and sound patterns within song sessions. Singers recorded off the coast of Hawaii continuously morphed units along multiple acoustic dimensions, with the degree and direction of morphing varying across parallel streams of successive units. Individual singers also produced multiple phrase variants (structurally similar, but acoustically distinctive sequences) within song sessions. The precision with which individual singers maintained some acoustic properties of phrases and morphing trajectories while flexibly changing others suggests that singing humpback whales actively select and adjust acoustic elements of their songs in real time rather than simply repeating stereotyped sound patterns within song sessions.
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Baciadonna L, Solvi C, del Vecchio F, Pilenga C, Baracchi D, Bandoli F, Isaja V, Gamba M, Favaro L. Vocal accommodation in penguins ( Spheniscus demersus) as a result of social environment. Proc Biol Sci 2022; 289:20220626. [PMID: 35858067 PMCID: PMC9277230 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2022.0626] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to vary the characteristics of one's voice is a critical feature of human communication. Understanding whether and how animals change their calls will provide insights into the evolution of language. We asked to what extent the vocalizations of penguins, a phylogenetically distant species from those capable of explicit vocal learning, are flexible and responsive to their social environment. Using a principal components (PCs) analysis, we reduced 14 vocal parameters of penguin's contact calls to four PCs, each comprising highly correlated parameters and which can be categorized as fundamental frequency, formant frequency, frequency modulation, and amplitude modulation rate and duration. We compared how these differed between individuals with varying degrees of social interactions: same-colony versus different-colony, same colony over 3 years and partners versus non-partners. Our analyses indicate that the more penguins experience each other's calls, the more similar their calls become over time, that vocal convergence requires a long time and relative stability in colony membership, and that partners' unique social bond may affect vocal convergence differently than non-partners. Our results suggest that this implicit form of vocal plasticity is perhaps more widespread across the animal kingdom than previously thought and may be a fundamental capacity of vertebrate vocalization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luigi Baciadonna
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Cwyn Solvi
- Ecology and Genetics Research Unit, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland
| | - Flavia del Vecchio
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | | | - David Baracchi
- Department of Biology, University of Florence, Firenze, Italy
| | | | | | - Marco Gamba
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
| | - Livio Favaro
- Department of Life Sciences and Systems Biology, University of Turin, Turin, Italy
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Abstract
Hummingbirds exhibit complex vocal repertoires that they use in their social interactions. Furthermore, they are capable of vocal production learning, an ability they share with songbirds, parrots, some non-oscine birds, and some mammals including humans. Despite these characteristics, hummingbirds have not received the same attention as other birds, especially songbirds and parrots, in the study of vocal communication. Recent studies are advancing our knowledge of vocal communication in hummingbirds showing that these birds exhibit complex social learning and extraordinary abilities for vocal production. Moreover, vocal production learning in hummingbirds provides opportunities to study the evolution and diversification of vocal signals because of the presence of dialects in some species. In addition, the presence of high-frequency vocalizations in some hummingbirds underscores the relevance of these birds to study the evolution of communication signals and sensory adaptations. Not only do some species vocalize at unusually high frequencies compared to other birds, but evidence also shows that at least one hummingbird species can hear these sounds, defying what we knew about avian hearing capabilities. Detailed descriptions of the hummingbird syrinx have shown that this organ exhibits homologous structures to those found in the syrinx of oscines, showing that vocal complexity in hummingbirds requires complex syringeal musculature. However, more research is needed to determine whether hummingbirds have unique adaptations that confer exceptional vocal and hearing abilities exceeding those found in other groups of birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fernanda G Duque
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
- Biology Department, Hofstra University, Hempstead, New York, USA
| | - Laura L Carruth
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, USA
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6
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Mercado E, Perazio CE. All units are equal in humpback whale songs, but some are more equal than others. Anim Cogn 2021; 25:149-177. [PMID: 34363127 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-021-01539-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2020] [Revised: 07/13/2021] [Accepted: 07/21/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Flexible production and perception of vocalizations is linked to an impressive array of cognitive capacities including language acquisition by humans, song learning by birds, biosonar in bats, and vocal imitation by cetaceans. Here, we characterize a portion of the repertoire of one of the most impressive vocalizers in nature: the humpback whale. Qualitative and quantitative analyses of sounds (units) produced by humpback whales revealed that singers gradually morphed streams of units along multiple acoustic dimensions within songs, maintaining the continuity of spectral content across subjectively dissimilar unit "types." Singers consistently produced some unit forms more frequently and intensely than others, suggesting that units are functionally heterogeneous. The precision with which singing humpback whales continuously adjusted the acoustic characteristics of units shows that they possess exquisite vocal control mechanisms and vocal flexibility beyond what is seen in most animals other than humans. The gradual morphing of units within songs that we observed is inconsistent with past claims that humpback whales construct songs from a fixed repertoire of discrete unit types. These findings challenge the results of past studies based on fixed-unit classification methods and argue for the development of new metrics for characterizing the graded structure of units. The specific vocal variations that singers produced suggest that humpback whale songs are unlikely to provide detailed information about a singer's reproductive fitness, but can reveal the precise locations and movements of singers from long distances and may enhance the effectiveness of units as sonar signals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eduardo Mercado
- Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Park Hall, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA.
| | - Christina E Perazio
- Department of Psychology, University at Buffalo, The State University of New York, Park Hall, Buffalo, NY, 14260, USA.,School of Social and Behavioral Sciences, University of New England, Biddeford, ME, USA
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Walløe S, Chakraborty M, Balsby TJS, Jarvis ED, Dabelsteen T, Pakkenberg B. A Relationship between the Characteristics of the Oval Nucleus of the Mesopallium and Parrot Vocal Response to Playback. Brain Behav Evol 2021; 96:37-48. [PMID: 34284396 DOI: 10.1159/000517489] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2020] [Accepted: 05/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Correlations between differences in animal behavior and brain structures have been used to infer function of those structures. Brain region size has especially been suggested to be important for an animal's behavioral capability, controlled by specific brain regions. The oval nucleus of the mesopallium (MO) is part of the anterior forebrain vocal learning pathway in the parrot brain. Here, we compare brain volume and total number of neurons in MO of three parrot species (the peach-fronted conure, Eupsittula aurea, the peach-faced lovebird, Agapornis roseicollis, and the budgerigar, Melopsittacus undulatus), relating the total neuron numbers with the vocal response to playbacks of each species. We find that individuals with the highest number of neurons in MO had the shortest vocal latency. The peach-fronted conures showed the shortest vocal latency and largest number of MO neurons, the peach-faced lovebird had intermediary levels of both, and the budgerigar had the longest latency and least number of neurons. These findings indicate the MO nucleus as one candidate region that may be part of what controls the vocal capacity of parrots.
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Affiliation(s)
- Solveig Walløe
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark.,Research Laboratory for Stereology and Neuroscience, Bispebjerg-Frederiksberg Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Mukta Chakraborty
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Laboratory of Neurogenetics of Language, Rockefeller University, New York, New York, USA
| | | | - Erich D Jarvis
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, North Carolina, USA.,Laboratory of Neurogenetics of Language, Rockefeller University, New York, New York, USA.,Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Chevy Chase, Maryland, USA
| | - Torben Dabelsteen
- Behavioural Ecology Group, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen, Copenhagen, Denmark
| | - Bente Pakkenberg
- Research Laboratory for Stereology and Neuroscience, Bispebjerg-Frederiksberg Hospital, Copenhagen, Denmark
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8
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Abstract
BACKGROUND Anatomical and cognitive adaptations to overcome morpho-mechanical limitations of laryngeal sound production, where body size and the related vocal apparatus dimensions determine the fundamental frequency, increase vocal diversity across taxa. Elephants flexibly use laryngeal and trunk-based vocalizations to form a repertoire ranging from infrasonic rumbles to higher-pitched trumpets. Moreover, they are among the few evolutionarily distantly related animals (humans, pinnipeds, cetaceans, birds) capable of imitating species-atypical sounds. Yet, their vocal plasticity has so far not been related to functions within their natural communicative system, in part because not all call types have been systematically studied. Here, we reveal how Asian elephants (Elephas maximus) produce species-specific squeaks (F0 300-2300 Hz) by using acoustic camera recordings to visualize sound emission and examining this alongside acoustic, behavioral, and morphological data across seven captive groups. RESULTS We found that squeaks were emitted through the closed mouth in synchrony with cheek depression and retraction of the labial angles. The simultaneous emission of squeaks with nasal snorts (biphonation) in one individual confirmed that squeak production was independent of nasal passage involvement and this implicated oral sound production. The squeaks' spectral structure is incongruent with laryngeal sound production and aerodynamic whistles, pointing to tissue vibration as the sound source. Anatomical considerations suggest that the longitudinal closed lips function as the vibrators. Acoustic and temporal parameters exhibit high intra- and inter-individual variability that enables individual but no call-subtype classification. Only 19 of 56 study subjects were recorded to squeak, mostly during alarming contexts and social arousal but some also on command. CONCLUSION Our results strongly suggest that Asian elephants force air from the small oral cavity through the tensed lips, inducing self-sustained lip vibration. Besides human brass players, lip buzzing is not described elsewhere in the animal kingdom. Given the complexity of the proposed mechanism, the surprising absence of squeaking in most of the unrelated subjects and the indication for volitional control, we hypothesize that squeak production involves social learning. Our study offers new insights into how vocal and cognitive flexibility enables mammals to overcome size-related limitations of laryngeal sound production. This flexibility enables Asian elephants to exploit a frequency range spanning seven octaves within their communicative system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika C. Beeck
- grid.10420.370000 0001 2286 1424Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Biology, Mammal Communication Lab, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
| | | | | | - Angela S. Stoeger
- grid.10420.370000 0001 2286 1424Department of Behavioural and Cognitive Biology, Mammal Communication Lab, University of Vienna, Vienna, Austria
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9
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Abstract
Vocal learning is the ability to imitate and modify sounds through auditory experience, a rare trait found in only a few lineages of mammals and birds. It is a critical component of human spoken language, allowing us to verbally transmit speech repertoires and knowledge across generations. In many vocal learning species, the vocal learning trait is sexually dimorphic, where it is either limited to males or present in both sexes to different degrees. In humans, recent findings have revealed subtle sexual dimorphism in vocal learning/spoken language brain regions and some associated disorders. For songbirds, where the neural mechanisms of vocal learning have been well studied, vocal learning appears to have been present in both sexes at the origin of the lineage and was then independently lost in females of some subsequent lineages. This loss is associated with an interplay between sex chromosomes and sex steroid hormones. Even in species with little dimorphism, like humans, sex chromosomes and hormones still have some influence on learned vocalizations. Here we present a brief synthesis of these studies, in the context of sex determination broadly, and identify areas of needed investigation to further understand how sex chromosomes and sex steroid hormones help establish sexually dimorphic neural structures for vocal learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ha Na Choe
- Duke University Medical Center, The Rockefeller University, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, United States of America.
| | - Erich D Jarvis
- Duke University Medical Center, The Rockefeller University, Howard Hughes Medical Institute, United States of America.
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10
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Wagner B, Bowling DL, Hoeschele M. Is consonance attractive to budgerigars? No evidence from a place preference study. Anim Cogn 2020; 23:973-987. [PMID: 32572655 PMCID: PMC7415764 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-020-01404-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2019] [Revised: 05/27/2020] [Accepted: 06/12/2020] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Consonant tone combinations occur naturally in the overtone series of harmonic sounds. These include sounds that many non-human animals produce to communicate. As such, non-human animals may be attracted to consonant intervals, interpreting them, e.g., as a feature of important social stimuli. There is preliminary evidence of attraction to consonance in various bird species in the wild, but few experimental studies with birds. We tested budgerigars (Melopsittacus undulatus) for attraction to consonant over dissonant intervals in two experiments. In Experiment 1, we tested humans and budgerigars using a place preference paradigm in which individuals could explore an environment with multiple sound sources. Both species were tested with consonant and dissonant versions of a previously studied piano melody, and we recorded time spent with each stimulus as a measure of attraction. Human females spent more time with consonant than dissonant stimuli in this experiment, but human males spent equal time with both consonant and dissonant stimuli. Neither male nor female budgerigars spent more time with either stimulus type. In Experiment 2, we tested budgerigars with more ecologically relevant stimuli comprised of sampled budgerigar vocalizations arranged into consonant or dissonant chords. These stimuli, however, also failed to produce any evidence of preference in budgerigar responses. We discuss these results in the context of ongoing research on the study of consonance as a potential general feature of auditory perception in animals with harmonic vocalizations, with respect to similarities and differences between human and budgerigar vocal behaviour, and future methodological directions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bernhard Wagner
- Acoustics Research Institute, Wohllebengasse 12-14, 1040, Vienna, Austria
| | - Daniel L Bowling
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Stanford University School of Medicine, 1201 Welch Rd. MSLS P-126, Stanford, CA, 94305-5485, USA
- Department of Cognitive Biology, Althanstrasse 14 (UZA1), 1090, Vienna, Austria
| | - Marisa Hoeschele
- Acoustics Research Institute, Wohllebengasse 12-14, 1040, Vienna, Austria.
- Department of Cognitive Biology, Althanstrasse 14 (UZA1), 1090, Vienna, Austria.
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11
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Macedo-Lima M, Remage-Healey L. Auditory learning in an operant task with social reinforcement is dependent on neuroestrogen synthesis in the male songbird auditory cortex. Horm Behav 2020; 121:104713. [PMID: 32057821 PMCID: PMC7198363 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2020.104713] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/21/2019] [Revised: 01/17/2020] [Accepted: 02/06/2020] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Animals continually assess their environment for cues associated with threats, competitors, allies, mates or prey, and experience is crucial for those associations. The auditory cortex is important for these computations to enable valence assignment and associative learning. The caudomedial nidopallium (NCM) is part of the songbird auditory association cortex and it is implicated in juvenile song learning, song memorization, and song perception. Like human auditory cortex, NCM is a site of action of estradiol (E2) and is enriched with the enzyme aromatase (E2-synthase). However, it is unclear how E2 modulates auditory learning and perception in the vertebrate auditory cortex. In this study we employ a novel, auditory-dependent operant task governed by social reinforcement to test the hypothesis that neuro-E2 synthesis supports auditory learning in adult male zebra finches. We show that local suppression of aromatase activity in NCM disrupts auditory association learning. By contrast, post-learning performance is unaffected by either NCM aromatase blockade or NCM pharmacological inactivation, suggesting that NCM E2 production and even NCM itself are not required for post-learning auditory discrimination or memory retrieval. Therefore, neuroestrogen synthesis in auditory cortex supports the association between sounds and behaviorally relevant consequences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matheus Macedo-Lima
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program, Center for Neuroendocrine Studies, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA; CAPES Foundation, Ministry of Education of Brazil, Brasília, DF, Brazil.
| | - Luke Remage-Healey
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program, Center for Neuroendocrine Studies, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA, USA.
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12
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Cornez G, Shevchouk OT, Ghorbanpoor S, Ball GF, Cornil CA, Balthazart J. Testosterone stimulates perineuronal nets development around parvalbumin cells in the adult canary brain in parallel with song crystallization. Horm Behav 2020; 119:104643. [PMID: 31785283 PMCID: PMC7065963 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2019.104643] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2019] [Revised: 11/18/2019] [Accepted: 11/19/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Perineuronal nets (PNN) of the extracellular matrix are dense aggregations of chondroitin-sulfate proteoglycans that usually surround fast-spiking parvalbumin-expressing inhibitory interneurons (PV). The development of PNN around PV appears specifically at the end of sensitive periods of visual learning and limits the synaptic plasticity in the visual cortex of mammals. Seasonal songbirds display a high level of adult neuroplasticity associated with vocal learning, which is regulated by fluctuations of circulating testosterone concentrations. Seasonal changes in testosterone concentrations and in neuroplasticity are associated with vocal changes between the non-breeding and breeding seasons. Increases in blood testosterone concentrations in the spring lead to the annual crystallization of song so that song becomes more stereotyped. Here we explore whether testosterone also regulates PNN expression in the song control system of male and female canaries. We show that, in both males and females, testosterone increases the number of PNN and of PV neurons in the three main telencephalic song control nuclei HVC, RA (nucleus robustus arcopallialis) and Area X and increases the PNN localization around PV interneurons. Singing activity was recorded in males and quantitative analyses demonstrated that testosterone also increased male singing rate, song duration and song energy while decreasing song entropy. Together, these data suggest that the development of PNN could provide the synaptic stability required to maintain the stability of the testosterone-induced crystallized song. This provides the new evidence for a role of PNN in the regulation of adult seasonal plasticity in seasonal songbirds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gilles Cornez
- GIGA Neuroscience, University of Liege, Liege 4000, Belgium
| | | | | | - Gregory F Ball
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, USA
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13
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Alalawi A, Dodu JC, Woolley-Roberts M, Brodie J, Di Marzo V, Soderstrom K. Cannabidiol improves vocal learning-dependent recovery from, and reduces magnitude of deficits following, damage to a cortical-like brain region in a songbird pre-clinical animal model. Neuropharmacology 2019; 158:107716. [PMID: 31325430 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2019.107716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/20/2018] [Revised: 04/26/2019] [Accepted: 07/17/2019] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Cannabidiol (CBD), a non-euphorigenic compound derived from Cannabis, shows promise for improving recovery following cerebral ischemia and has recently been shown effective for the treatment of childhood seizures caused by Dravet and Lennox-Gastaut syndromes. Given evidence for activity to mitigate effects of CNS insult and dysfunction, we considered the possibility that CBD may also protect and improve functional recovery of a complex learned behavior. To test this hypothesis, we have applied a songbird, the adult male zebra finch, as a novel pre-clinical animal model. Their learned vocalizations were temporarily disrupted with bilateral microlesions of HVC (used as a proper name) a pre-vocal motor cortical-like brain region that drives song. These microlesions destroy about 10% of HVC, and temporarily impair song production, syntax and phonology for about seven days. Recovery requires sensorimotor learning as it depends upon auditory feedback. Four CBD doses (0, 1, 10 and 100 mg/kg) within three surgery conditions (microlesion, no-microlesion, sham-microlesion) were evaluated (n = 5-6). Birds were recorded over 20 days: three baseline; six pre-microlesion drug treatment days and; 11 post-microlesion treatment and recovery days. Results indicate 10 and 100 mg/kg CBD effectively reduced the time required to recover vocal phonology and syntax. In the case of phonology, the magnitude of microlesion-related disruptions were also reduced. These results suggest CBD holds promise to improve functional recovery of complex learned behaviors following brain injury, and represent establishment of an important new animal model to screen drugs for efficacy to improve vocal recovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ali Alalawi
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, ECU Brody School of Medicine, Greenville, NC, 27834, USA; Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Pharmacy College, Taibah University, Medina, Saudi Arabia
| | - Julien C Dodu
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, ECU Brody School of Medicine, Greenville, NC, 27834, USA
| | | | - James Brodie
- GW Research Ltd, Sovereign House, Vision Park, Histon, Cambridge, CB24 9BZ, UK
| | - Vincenzo Di Marzo
- GW Research Ltd, Sovereign House, Vision Park, Histon, Cambridge, CB24 9BZ, UK; Endocannabinoid Research Group, Institute of Biomolecular Chemistry, Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Via Campi Flegrei, Pozzuoli (NA), 34- 80078, Italy
| | - Ken Soderstrom
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, ECU Brody School of Medicine, Greenville, NC, 27834, USA.
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14
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Abstract
BACKGROUND Vocal learning, the ability to learn to produce vocalizations through imitation, relies on specialized brain circuitry known in songbirds as the song system. While the connectivity and various physiological properties of this system have been characterized, the molecular genetic basis of neuronal excitability in song nuclei remains understudied. We have focused our efforts on examining voltage-gated ion channels to gain insight into electrophysiological and functional features of vocal nuclei. A previous investigation of potassium channel genes in zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) revealed evolutionary modifications unique to songbirds, as well as transcriptional specializations in the song system [Lovell PV, Carleton JB, Mello CV. BMC Genomics 14:470 2013]. Here, we expand this approach to sodium, calcium, and chloride channels along with their modulatory subunits using comparative genomics and gene expression analysis encompassing microarrays and in situ hybridization. RESULTS We found 23 sodium, 38 calcium, and 33 chloride channel genes (HGNC-based classification) in the zebra finch genome, several of which were previously unannotated. We determined 15 genes are missing relative to mammals, including several genes (CLCAs, BEST2) linked to olfactory transduction. The majority of sodium and calcium but few chloride channels showed differential expression in the song system, among them SCN8A and CACNA1E in the direct motor pathway, and CACNG4 and RYR2 in the anterior forebrain pathway. In several cases, we noted a seemingly coordinated pattern across multiple nuclei (SCN1B, SCN3B, SCN4B, CACNB4) or sparse expression (SCN1A, CACNG5, CACNA1B). CONCLUSION The gene families examined are highly conserved between avian and mammalian lineages. Several cases of differential expression likely support high-frequency and burst firing in specific song nuclei, whereas cases of sparse patterns of expression may contribute to the unique electrophysiological signatures of distinct cell populations. These observations lay the groundwork for manipulations to determine how ion channels contribute to the neuronal excitability properties of vocal learning systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Samantha R. Friedrich
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, 3181 Sam Jackson Park Rd L470, Portland, OR USA
| | - Peter V. Lovell
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, 3181 Sam Jackson Park Rd L470, Portland, OR USA
| | - Taylor M. Kaser
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, 3181 Sam Jackson Park Rd L470, Portland, OR USA
| | - Claudio V. Mello
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, 3181 Sam Jackson Park Rd L470, Portland, OR USA
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15
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Denisova K. Failure to attune to language predicts autism in high risk infants. Brain Lang 2019; 194:109-120. [PMID: 31133435 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2019.04.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2018] [Revised: 04/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/10/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
Young humans are typically sensitive to evolutionarily important aspects of information in the surrounding environment in a way that makes us thrive. Seeking to probe the putative disruptions of this process in infancy, I examined the statistical character of head movements in 52 9-10 mo-old infants, half at high familial risk (HR) for Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD), who underwent an fMRI scan while listening to words spoken with alternating stress patterns on syllables. Relative to low risk (LR) infants, HR infants, in particular those showing the least rapid receptive language progress, had significantly lower noise-to-signal levels and increased symmetry. A comparison of patterns during a native language and a sleep scan revealed the most atypical ordering of signatures on the 3 tasks in a subset of HR infants, suggesting that the biological mechanism of language development is least acquisitive in those HR infants who go on to develop ASD in toddlerhood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristina Denisova
- Sackler Institute for Developmental Psychobiology, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY 10032, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons, New York, NY 10032, USA; Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY 10032, USA.
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16
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Hoeschele M. Novel methodology to assess vocal learning in nature. Learn Behav 2020; 48:3-4. [PMID: 30859468 DOI: 10.3758/s13420-019-00376-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
A recent and thorough longitudinal study by Mennill and colleagues (Current Biology, 28(20), 3273-3278, 2018) provides the first direct evidence for vocal learning in wild birds. Reconciling these findings with prior laboratory evidence and indirect evidence for vocal learning in the field provides novel insight into the vocal learning process in songbirds.
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17
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Lipkind D, Geambasu A, Levelt CC. The Development of Structured Vocalizations in Songbirds and Humans: A Comparative Analysis. Top Cogn Sci 2019; 12:894-909. [PMID: 30761767 DOI: 10.1111/tops.12414] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/11/2018] [Revised: 12/27/2018] [Accepted: 01/03/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Humans and songbirds face a common challenge: acquiring the complex vocal repertoire of their social group. Although humans are thought to be unique in their ability to convey symbolic meaning through speech, speech and birdsong are comparable in their acoustic complexity and the mastery with which the vocalizations of adults are acquired by young individuals. In this review, we focus on recent advances in the study of vocal development in humans and songbirds that shed new light on the emergence of distinct structural levels of vocal behavior and point to new possible parallels between both groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dina Lipkind
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, The City University of New York.,Department of Biology, York College, The City University of New York
| | - Andreea Geambasu
- Centre for Linguistics, Leiden University.,Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University
| | - Clara C Levelt
- Centre for Linguistics, Leiden University.,Leiden Institute for Brain and Cognition, Leiden University
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18
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Vahaba DM, Remage-Healey L. Neuroestrogens rapidly shape auditory circuits to support communication learning and perception: Evidence from songbirds. Horm Behav 2018; 104:77-87. [PMID: 29555375 PMCID: PMC7025793 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2018.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/05/2018] [Revised: 03/15/2018] [Accepted: 03/15/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Contribution to Special Issue on Fast effects of steroids. Steroid hormones, such as estrogens, were once thought to be exclusively synthesized in the ovaries and enact transcriptional changes over the course of hours to days. However, estrogens are also locally synthesized within neural circuits, wherein they rapidly (within minutes) modulate a range of behaviors, including spatial cognition and communication. Here, we review the role of brain-derived estrogens (neuroestrogens) as modulators within sensory circuits in songbirds. We first present songbirds as an attractive model to explore how neuroestrogens in auditory cortex modulate vocal communication processing and learning. Further, we examine how estrogens may enhance vocal learning and auditory memory consolidation in sensory cortex via mechanisms similar to those found in the hippocampus of rodents and birds. Finally, we propose future directions for investigation, including: 1) the extent of developmental and hemispheric shifts in aromatase and membrane estrogen receptor expression in auditory circuits; 2) how neuroestrogens may impact inhibitory interneurons to regulate audition and critical period plasticity; and, 3) dendritic spine plasticity as a candidate mechanism mediating estrogen-dependent effects on vocal learning. Together, this perspective of estrogens as neuromodulators in the vertebrate brain has opened new avenues in understanding sensory plasticity, including how hormones can act on communication circuits to influence behaviors in other vocal learning species, such as in language acquisition and speech processing in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel M Vahaba
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program, Center for Neuroendocrine Studies, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, United States
| | - Luke Remage-Healey
- Neuroscience and Behavior Program, Center for Neuroendocrine Studies, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Amherst, MA 01003, United States.
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19
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Larsson M, Abbott BW. Is the Capacity for Vocal Learning in Vertebrates Rooted in Fish Schooling Behavior? Evol Biol 2018; 45:359-73. [PMID: 30459479 DOI: 10.1007/s11692-018-9457-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2017] [Accepted: 06/07/2018] [Indexed: 01/13/2023]
Abstract
The capacity to learn and reproduce vocal sounds has evolved in phylogenetically distant tetrapod lineages. Vocal learners in all these lineages express similar neural circuitry and genetic factors when perceiving, processing, and reproducing vocalization, suggesting that brain pathways for vocal learning evolved within strong constraints from a common ancestor, potentially fish. We hypothesize that the auditory-motor circuits and genes involved in entrainment have their origins in fish schooling behavior and respiratory-motor coupling. In this acoustic advantages hypothesis, aural costs and benefits played a key role in shaping a wide variety of traits, which could readily be exapted for entrainment and vocal learning, including social grouping, group movement, and respiratory-motor coupling. Specifically, incidental sounds of locomotion and respiration (ISLR) may have reinforced synchronization by communicating important spatial and temporal information between school-members and extending windows of silence to improve situational awareness. This process would be mutually reinforcing. Neurons in the telencephalon, which were initially involved in linking ISLR with forelimbs, could have switched functions to serve vocal machinery (e.g. mouth, beak, tongue, larynx, syrinx). While previous vocal learning hypotheses invoke transmission of neurons from visual tasks (gestures) to the auditory channel, this hypothesis involves the auditory channel from the onset. Acoustic benefits of locomotor-respiratory coordination in fish may have selected for genetic factors and brain circuitry capable of synchronizing respiratory and limb movements, predisposing tetrapod lines to synchronized movement, vocalization, and vocal learning. We discuss how the capacity to entrain is manifest in fish, amphibians, birds, and mammals, and propose predictions to test our acoustic advantages hypothesis.
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20
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Lovell PV, Huizinga NA, Getachew A, Mees B, Friedrich SR, Wirthlin M, Mello CV. Curation of microarray oligonucleotides and corresponding ESTs/cDNAs used for gene expression analysis in zebra finches. BMC Res Notes 2018; 11:309. [PMID: 29776372 PMCID: PMC5960091 DOI: 10.1186/s13104-018-3402-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/26/2018] [Accepted: 05/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Zebra finches are a major model organism for investigating mechanisms of vocal learning, a trait that enables spoken language in humans. The development of cDNA collections with expressed sequence tags (ESTs) and microarrays has allowed for extensive molecular characterizations of circuitry underlying vocal learning and production. However, poor database curation can lead to errors in transcriptome and bioinformatics analyses, limiting the impact of these resources. Here we used genomic alignments and synteny analysis for orthology verification to curate and reannotate ~ 35% of the oligonucleotides and corresponding ESTs/cDNAs that make-up Agilent microarrays for gene expression analysis in finches. DATA DESCRIPTION We found that: (1) 5475 out of 43,084 oligos (a) failed to align to the zebra finch genome, (b) aligned to multiple loci, or (c) aligned to Chr_un only, and thus need to be flagged until a better genome assembly is available, or (d) reflect cloning artifacts; (2) Out of 9635 valid oligos examined further, 3120 were incorrectly named, including 1533 with no known orthologs; and (3) 2635 oligos required name update. The resulting curated dataset provides a reference for correcting gene identification errors in previous finch microarrays studies, and avoiding such errors in future studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peter V Lovell
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, OHSU, Portland, OR, 97221, USA
| | - Nicole A Huizinga
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, OHSU, Portland, OR, 97221, USA
| | - Abel Getachew
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, OHSU, Portland, OR, 97221, USA
| | - Brianna Mees
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, OHSU, Portland, OR, 97221, USA
| | | | - Morgan Wirthlin
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, OHSU, Portland, OR, 97221, USA.,Computational Biology, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Claudio V Mello
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, OHSU, Portland, OR, 97221, USA.
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21
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Soha JA. Song ontogeny in Nuttall's white-crowned sparrows tutored with individual phrases. Behav Processes 2018; 163:24-31. [PMID: 29462650 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2018.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/31/2017] [Revised: 12/19/2017] [Accepted: 02/10/2018] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
Behavioral ontogeny involves the interaction of innate predispositions and experience. In bird song learning, one approach to exploring this interaction is to examine the songs rehearsed by young birds whose exposure to tutor models has been carefully controlled. Here, I analyzed the rehearsed repertoire in Nuttall's white-crowned sparrows (Zonotrichia leucophrys nuttalli) tutored with individual phrases of conspecific and heterospecific songs. The proportions of phrase types rehearsed indicate that the learning biases evident in crystallized song are manifest early on, suggesting preferential memorization rather than preferential retention during attrition. The proportion of songs beginning with whistles increased during song rehearsal and phrase sequence variability decreased, consistent with the idea that innate syntax specifications guide song rehearsal. Single-phrase tutored birds overproduced phrases to the same extent previously observed in birds tutored with full, normal song but retained fewer phrase types in their crystallized repertoires. This suggests that in this subspecies, acquired syntax information does not affect the number of phrase types memorized and rehearsed but does affect repertoire attrition at the end of the sensorimotor phase. I discuss these results with a focus on the action of innate templates in song development and subspecies differences in this process.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jill A Soha
- Department of Biology, Duke University, Box 90338, Durham, NC, 27708, United States.
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22
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Hyland Bruno J, Tchernichovski O. Regularities in zebra finch song beyond the repeated motif. Behav Processes 2017; 163:53-59. [PMID: 29122641 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2017.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/15/2017] [Revised: 10/20/2017] [Accepted: 11/05/2017] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
The proliferation of birdsong research into the neural mechanisms of vocal learning is indebted to the remarkable stereotypy of the zebra finch's song motif. Motifs are composed of several syllables, which birds learn to produce in a fixed order. But at a higher level of organization-the bout-zebra finch song is no longer stereotyped. Song bouts include several repetitions of the motif, which are often linked by a variable number of short "connector" vocalizations. In this conceptual methods paper, we show that combinatorial analysis alone yields an incomplete description of this bout-level structure. In contrast, studying birdsong as a time-varying analog signal can reveal patterns of flexibility in the rhythmic organization of song bouts. Visualizing large song-samples in sorted raster plots shows that motifs are strung together via two distinct categories of connections: tight or loose. Loose connections allow considerable timing variation across renditions. Even among co-tutored birds that acquired similar motifs, we observe strong individual variability in rhythms and temporal plasticity of song bouts. These findings suggest that vocal flexibility could potentially allow individuals to express a variety of behavioral states through their songs, even in species that sing only a single stereotyped motif.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julia Hyland Bruno
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, City University of New York, 695 Park Avenue, HN 621, New York, NY 10065, USA; Psychology PhD Program, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA.
| | - Ofer Tchernichovski
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, City University of New York, 695 Park Avenue, HN 621, New York, NY 10065, USA; Psychology PhD Program, The Graduate Center, City University of New York, 365 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10016, USA.
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23
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Tchernichovski O, Feher O, Fimiarz D, Conley D. How social learning adds up to a culture: from birdsong to human public opinion. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2017; 220:124-132. [PMID: 28057835 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.142786] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Distributed social learning may occur at many temporal and spatial scales, but it rarely adds up to a stable culture. Cultures vary in stability and diversity (polymorphism), ranging from chaotic or drifting cultures, through cumulative polymorphic cultures, to stable monolithic cultures with high conformity levels. What features can sustain polymorphism, preventing cultures from collapsing into either chaotic or highly conforming states? We investigate this question by integrating studies across two quite separate disciplines: the emergence of song cultures in birds, and the spread of public opinion and social conventions in humans. In songbirds, the learning process has been studied in great detail, while in human studies the structure of social networks has been experimentally manipulated on large scales. In both cases, the manner in which communication signals are compressed and filtered - either during learning or while traveling through the social network - can affect culture polymorphism and stability. We suggest a simple mechanism of a shifting balance between converging and diverging social forces to explain these effects. Understanding social forces that shape cultural evolution might be useful for designing agile communication systems, which are stable and polymorphic enough to promote gradual changes in institutional behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ofer Tchernichovski
- Department of Psychology, Hunter College, 695 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10065, USA
| | - Olga Feher
- Department of Psychology and Language Sciences, School of Philosophy, Psychology and Language Sciences, University of Edinburgh, 3 Charles Street, EH8 9JS, UK
| | - Daniel Fimiarz
- Division of Science, The City College of New York, New York, NY 10031, USA
| | - Dalton Conley
- Department of Sociology, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ 08544, USA
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24
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Holland TL, Soderstrom K. Chronic CB1 cannabinoid receptor antagonism persistently increases dendritic spine densities in brain regions important to zebra finch vocal learning and production in an antidepressant-sensitive manner. Brain Res 2017; 1672:1-9. [PMID: 28743448 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2017.07.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2016] [Revised: 07/14/2017] [Accepted: 07/19/2017] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
During typical late-postnatal CNS development, net reductions in dendritic spine densities are associated with activity-dependent learning. Prior results showed agonist exposure in young animals increased spine densities in a subset of song regions while adult exposures did not, suggesting endocannabinoid signaling regulates dendritic spine dynamics important to vocal development. Here we addressed this question using the CB1 receptor-selective antagonist SR141716A (SR) to disrupt endocannabinoid signaling both during and after vocal learning. We hypothesized antagonist exposure during vocal development, but not adulthood, would alter spine densities. Following 25days of exposure and a 25day maturation period, 3D reconstructions of Golgi-Cox stained neurons were used to measure spine densities. We found antagonist treatments during both age periods increased densities within Area X (basal ganglia) and following adult treatments within HVC (premotor cortical-like). Results suggest both inappropriate cannabinoid receptor stimulation and inhibition are capable of similar disregulatory effects during establishment of circuits important to vocal learning, with antagonism extending these effects through adulthood. Given clinical evidence of depressant effects of SR, we tested the ability of the antidepressant monoamine oxidase inhibitor (MAOI) phenelzine to mitigate SR-induced spine density increases. This was confirmed implicating interaction between monoamine and endocannabinoid systems. Finally, we evaluated acute effects of these drugs to alter ability of novel song exposure to increase spine densities in auditory NCM and other regions, finding when combined, SR and phenelzine increased densities within Area X. These results contribute to understanding relevance of dendritic spine dynamics in neuronal development, drug abuse, and depression.
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25
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Mol C, Chen A, Kager RWJ, Ter Haar SM. Prosody in birdsong: A review and perspective. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2017; 81:167-180. [PMID: 28232050 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2017.02.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2016] [Revised: 02/16/2017] [Accepted: 02/17/2017] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Birdsong shows striking parallels with human speech. Previous comparisons between birdsong and human vocalizations focused on syntax, phonology and phonetics. In this review, we propose that future comparative research should expand its focus to include prosody, i.e. the temporal and melodic properties that extend over larger units of song. To this end, we consider the similarities between birdsong structure and the prosodic hierarchy in human speech and between context-dependent acoustic variations in birdsong and the biological codes in human speech. Moreover, we discuss songbirds' sensitivity to prosody-like acoustic features and the role of such features in song segmentation and song learning in relation to infants' sensitivity to prosody and the role of prosody in early language acquisition. Finally, we make suggestions for future comparative birdsong research, including a framework of how prosody in birdsong can be studied. In particular, we propose to analyze birdsong as a multidimensional signal composed of specific acoustic features, and to assess whether these acoustic features are organized into prosody-like structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carien Mol
- Cognitive Neurobiology and Helmholtz Institute, Department of Psychology, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80086, 3508 TB Utrecht, The Netherlands.
| | - Aoju Chen
- Utrecht Institute of Linguistics OTS, Department of Languages, Literature and Communication, Utrecht University, Trans 10, 3512 JK Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - René W J Kager
- Utrecht Institute of Linguistics OTS, Department of Languages, Literature and Communication, Utrecht University, Trans 10, 3512 JK Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - Sita M Ter Haar
- Cognitive Neurobiology and Helmholtz Institute, Department of Psychology, Utrecht University, P.O. Box 80086, 3508 TB Utrecht, The Netherlands
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26
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Abstract
Understanding the biological foundations of language is vital to gaining insight into how the capacity for language may have evolved in humans. Animal models can be exploited to learn about the biological underpinnings of shared human traits, and although no other animals display speech or language, a range of behaviors found throughout the animal kingdom are relevant to speech and spoken language. To date, such investigations have been dominated by studies of our closest primate relatives searching for shared traits, or more distantly related species that are sophisticated vocal communicators, like songbirds. Herein I make the case for turning our attention to the Chiropterans, to shed new light on the biological encoding and evolution of human language-relevant traits. Bats employ complex vocalizations to facilitate navigation as well as social interactions, and are exquisitely tuned to acoustic information. Furthermore, bats display behaviors such as vocal learning and vocal turn-taking that are directly pertinent for human spoken language. Emerging technologies are now allowing the study of bat vocal communication, from the behavioral to the neurobiological and molecular level. Although it is clear that no single animal model can reflect the complexity of human language, by comparing such findings across diverse species we can identify the shared biological mechanisms likely to have influenced the evolution of human language.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sonja C Vernes
- Max Planck Institute for Psycholinguistics, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
- Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behavior, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
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27
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Abstract
Prosody, a salient aspect of speech that includes rhythm and intonation, has been shown to help infants acquire some aspects of syntax. Recent studies have shown that birds of two vocal learning species are able to categorize human speech stimuli based on prosody. In the current study, we found that the non-vocal learning rat could also discriminate human speech stimuli based on prosody. Not only that, but rats were able to generalize to novel stimuli they had not been trained with, which suggests that they had not simply memorized the properties of individual stimuli, but learned a prosodic rule. When tested with stimuli with either one or three out of the four prosodic cues removed, the rats did poorly, suggesting that all cues were necessary for the rats to solve the task. This result is in contrast to results with humans and budgerigars, both of which had previously been studied using the same paradigm. Humans and budgerigars both learned the task and generalized to novel items, but were also able to solve the task with some of the cues removed. In conclusion, rats appear to have some of the perceptual abilities necessary to generalize prosodic patterns, in a similar though not identical way to the vocal learning species that have been studied.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan M Toro
- ICREA, Pg. Lluis Companys 23, 08019, Barcelona, Spain.,Center for Brain and Cognition, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Roc Boronat, 138, 08018, Barcelona, Spain
| | - Marisa Hoeschele
- Department of Cognitive Biology, University of Vienna, Althanstrasse 14, 1090, Vienna, Austria.
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28
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Imai R, Sawai A, Hayase S, Furukawa H, Asogwa CN, Sanchez M, Wang H, Mori C, Wada K. A quantitative method for analyzing species-specific vocal sequence pattern and its developmental dynamics. J Neurosci Methods 2016; 271:25-33. [PMID: 27373995 DOI: 10.1016/j.jneumeth.2016.06.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/18/2016] [Revised: 06/24/2016] [Accepted: 06/25/2016] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Songbirds are a preeminent animal model for understanding the neural basis underlying the development and evolution of a complex learned behavior, bird song. However, only a few quantitative methods exist to analyze these species-specific sequential behaviors in multiple species using the same calculation method. NEW METHOD We report a method of analysis that focuses on calculating the frequency of characteristic syllable transitions in songs. This method comprises two steps: The first step involves forming correlation matrices of syllable similarity scores, named syllable similarity matrices (SSMs); these are obtained by calculating the round-robin comparison of all the syllables in two songs, while maintaining the sequential order of syllables in the songs. In the second step, each occurrence rate of three patterns of binarized "2 rows×2 columns" cells in the SSMs is calculated to extract information on the characteristic syllable transitions. RESULTS The SSM analysis method allowed obtaining species-specific features of song patterns and intraspecies individual variability simultaneously. Furthermore, it enabled quantitative tracking of the developmental trajectory of the syllable sequence patterns. COMPARISON WITH EXISTING METHOD This method enables us to extract the species-specific song patterns and dissect the regulation of song syntax development without human-biased procedures for syllable identification. This method can be adapted to study the acoustic communication systems in several animal species, such as insects and mammals. CONCLUSIONS This present method provides a comprehensive qualitative approach for understanding the regulation of species specificity and its development in vocal learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raimu Imai
- Graduate School of Life Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan
| | - Azusa Sawai
- Graduate School of Life Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan
| | - Shin Hayase
- Graduate School of Life Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan
| | - Hiroyuki Furukawa
- Graduate School of Life Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan
| | | | - Miguel Sanchez
- Graduate School of Life Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan
| | - Hongdi Wang
- Graduate School of Life Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan
| | - Chihiro Mori
- Graduate School of Life Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan
| | - Kazuhiro Wada
- Graduate School of Life Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan; Department of Biological Sciences, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan; Faculty of Science, Hokkaido University, Sapporo, Hokkaido 060-810, Japan.
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29
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Seki Y, Dooling RJ. Effect of auditory stimuli on conditioned vocal behavior of budgerigars. Behav Processes 2015; 122:87-9. [PMID: 26598232 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2015.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2015] [Revised: 10/26/2015] [Accepted: 11/03/2015] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The budgerigar (Melopsittacus undulatus) is a highly social species and serves as an excellent model of vocal learning and production. This species can be trained to vocalize as a conditioned response using an operant conditioning paradigm. In addition, the birds can be trained to produce different vocalizations in response to different visual signals. Budgerigars may be fairly unique in the capability for vocal production under operant control. Whether acoustic features of the bird's natural social milieu can influence this conditioned vocal output is uncertain. The present study asked whether conditioned vocal behavior in budgerigars can be influenced by hearing vocalizations of other birds. The results show that birds vocalizing under operant control produced louder calls in the presence of vocalizations from other birds, than in pure tones or in quiet. The acoustic variation of the conditioned vocalization also increased when it is in the context of hearing other . These results reveal a functional connection between the vocal production under operant control and the perceptual mechanisms subserving vocal production in the budgerigars' natural social milieu.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoshimasa Seki
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, United States.
| | - Robert J Dooling
- Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20742, United States
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30
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Mello CV, Clayton DF. The opportunities and challenges of large-scale molecular approaches to songbird neurobiology. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2015; 50:70-6. [PMID: 25280907 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2014.09.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/16/2014] [Revised: 09/08/2014] [Accepted: 09/22/2014] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
High-throughput methods for analyzing genome structure and function are having a large impact in songbird neurobiology. Methods include genome sequencing and annotation, comparative genomics, DNA microarrays and transcriptomics, and the development of a brain atlas of gene expression. Key emerging findings include the identification of complex transcriptional programs active during singing, the robust brain expression of non-coding RNAs, evidence of profound variations in gene expression across brain regions, and the identification of molecular specializations within song production and learning circuits. Current challenges include the statistical analysis of large datasets, effective genome curations, the efficient localization of gene expression changes to specific neuronal circuits and cells, and the dissection of behavioral and environmental factors that influence brain gene expression. The field requires efficient methods for comparisons with organisms like chicken, which offer important anatomical, functional and behavioral contrasts. As sequencing costs plummet, opportunities emerge for comparative approaches that may help reveal evolutionary transitions contributing to vocal learning, social behavior and other properties that make songbirds such compelling research subjects.
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Ganapathy G, Howard JT, Ward JM, Li J, Li B, Li Y, Xiong Y, Zhang Y, Zhou S, Schwartz DC, Schatz M, Aboukhalil R, Fedrigo O, Bukovnik L, Wang T, Wray G, Rasolonjatovo I, Winer R, Knight JR, Koren S, Warren WC, Zhang G, Phillippy AM, Jarvis ED. High-coverage sequencing and annotated assemblies of the budgerigar genome. Gigascience 2014; 3:11. [PMID: 25061512 PMCID: PMC4109783 DOI: 10.1186/2047-217x-3-11] [Citation(s) in RCA: 72] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2013] [Accepted: 06/03/2014] [Indexed: 02/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Parrots belong to a group of behaviorally advanced vertebrates and have an advanced ability of vocal learning relative to other vocal-learning birds. They can imitate human speech, synchronize their body movements to a rhythmic beat, and understand complex concepts of referential meaning to sounds. However, little is known about the genetics of these traits. Elucidating the genetic bases would require whole genome sequencing and a robust assembly of a parrot genome. FINDINGS We present a genomic resource for the budgerigar, an Australian Parakeet (Melopsittacus undulatus) -- the most widely studied parrot species in neuroscience and behavior. We present genomic sequence data that includes over 300× raw read coverage from multiple sequencing technologies and chromosome optical maps from a single male animal. The reads and optical maps were used to create three hybrid assemblies representing some of the largest genomic scaffolds to date for a bird; two of which were annotated based on similarities to reference sets of non-redundant human, zebra finch and chicken proteins, and budgerigar transcriptome sequence assemblies. The sequence reads for this project were in part generated and used for both the Assemblathon 2 competition and the first de novo assembly of a giga-scale vertebrate genome utilizing PacBio single-molecule sequencing. CONCLUSIONS Across several quality metrics, these budgerigar assemblies are comparable to or better than the chicken and zebra finch genome assemblies built from traditional Sanger sequencing reads, and are sufficient to analyze regions that are difficult to sequence and assemble, including those not yet assembled in prior bird genomes, and promoter regions of genes differentially regulated in vocal learning brain regions. This work provides valuable data and material for genome technology development and for investigating the genomics of complex behavioral traits.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Jason T Howard
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - James M Ward
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), National Institutes of Health, Research Triangle Park, Raleigh, NC 27709, USA
| | - Jianwen Li
- China National Genebank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Bo Li
- China National Genebank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Yingrui Li
- China National Genebank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Yingqi Xiong
- China National Genebank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Yong Zhang
- China National Genebank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Shiguo Zhou
- Department of Chemistry, The Laboratory for Molecular and Computational Genomics, Laboratory of Genetics and Biotechnology Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - David C Schwartz
- Department of Chemistry, The Laboratory for Molecular and Computational Genomics, Laboratory of Genetics and Biotechnology Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53706, USA
| | - Michael Schatz
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, NY 11724, USA
| | - Robert Aboukhalil
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, New York, NY 11724, USA
| | - Olivier Fedrigo
- Institute for Genome Sciences & Policy, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | - Lisa Bukovnik
- Institute for Genome Sciences & Policy, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
- Advanced Liquid Logic Morrisville, Morrisville, NC 27560, USA
| | - Ty Wang
- National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), National Institutes of Health, Research Triangle Park, Raleigh, NC 27709, USA
| | - Greg Wray
- Department of Biology, Center for Systems Biology, Duke University, Durham, NC 27710, USA
| | | | - Roger Winer
- 454 Life Sciences, Branford, Connecticut 06405, USA
| | | | - Sergey Koren
- Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20740, USA
- National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Wesley C Warren
- The Genome Institute, Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis, MO 63110, USA
| | - Guojie Zhang
- China National Genebank, BGI-Shenzhen, Shenzhen 518083, China
| | - Adam M Phillippy
- Center for Bioinformatics and Computational Biology, University of Maryland, College Park, MD 20740, USA
- National Biodefense Analysis and Countermeasures Center, Frederick, MD 21702, USA
| | - Erich D Jarvis
- Department of Neurobiology, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC 27710, USA
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Abstract
Language is a complex communicative behavior unique to humans, and its genetic basis is poorly understood. Genes associated with human speech and language disorders provide some insights, originating with the FOXP2 transcription factor, a mutation in which is the source of an inherited form of developmental verbal dyspraxia. Subsequently, targets of FOXP2 regulation have been associated with speech and language disorders, along with other genes. Here, we review these recent findings that implicate genetic factors in human speech. Due to the exclusivity of language to humans, no single animal model is sufficient to study the complete behavioral effects of these genes. Fortunately, some animals possess subcomponents of language. One such subcomponent is vocal learning, which though rare in the animal kingdom, is shared with songbirds. We therefore discuss how songbird studies have contributed to the current understanding of genetic factors that impact human speech, and support the continued use of this animal model for such studies in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michael C Condro
- Molecular, Cellular and Integrative Physiology Interdepartmental Program, University of California, Los Angeles
| | - Stephanie A White
- Department of Integrative Biology and Physiology, University of California, Los Angeles
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Russell JL, McIntyre J, Hopkins WD, Taglialatela JP. Vocal learning of a communicative signal in captive chimpanzees, Pan troglodytes. Brain Lang 2013; 127:520-525. [PMID: 24144730 PMCID: PMC3982915 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandl.2013.09.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2013] [Revised: 09/25/2013] [Accepted: 09/26/2013] [Indexed: 06/02/2023]
Abstract
We hypothesized that chimpanzees could learn to produce attention-getting (AG) sounds via positive reinforcement. We conducted a vocal assessment in 76 captive chimpanzees for their use of AG sounds to acquire the attention of an otherwise inattentive human. Fourteen individuals that did not produce AG sounds during the vocal assessment were evaluated for their ability to acquire the use of an AG sound through operant conditioning and to employ these sounds in an attention-getting context. Nine of the 14 chimpanzees were successfully shaped using positive reinforcement to produce an AG sound. In a post-training vocal assessment, eight of the nine individuals that were successfully trained to produce AG sounds generalized the use of these newly acquired signals to communicatively relevant situations. Chimpanzees possess the ability to acquire the use of a communicative signal via operant conditioning and can generalize the use of this newly acquired signal to appropriate communicative contexts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jamie L. Russell
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia
- Neuroscience Institute and The Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | | | - William D. Hopkins
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia
- Neuroscience Institute and The Language Research Center, Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia
| | - Jared P. Taglialatela
- Yerkes National Primate Research Center, Atlanta, Georgia
- Department of Biology and Physics, Kennesaw State University, Kennesaw, Georgia
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Soderstrom K, Wilson AR. Developmental pattern of diacylglycerol lipase-α (DAGLα) immunoreactivity in brain regions important for song learning and control in the zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata). J Chem Neuroanat 2013; 53:41-59. [PMID: 24140814 DOI: 10.1016/j.jchemneu.2013.09.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2013] [Revised: 09/11/2013] [Accepted: 09/15/2013] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
Zebra finch song is a learned behavior dependent upon successful progress through a sensitive period of late-postnatal development. This learning is associated with maturation of distinct brain nuclei and the fiber tract interconnections between them. We have previously found remarkably distinct and dense CB1 cannabinoid receptor expression within many of these song control brain regions, implying a normal role for endocannabinoid signaling in vocal learning. Activation of CB1 receptors via daily treatments with exogenous agonist during sensorimotor stages of song learning (but not in adulthood) results in persistent alteration of song patterns. Now we are working to understand physiological changes responsible for this cannabinoid-altered vocal learning. We have found that song-altering developmental treatments are associated with changes in expression of endocannabinoid signaling elements, including CB1 receptors and the principal CNS endogenous agonist, 2-AG. Within CNS, 2-AG is produced largely through activity of the α isoform of the enzyme diacylglycerol lipase (DAGLα). To better appreciate the role of 2-AG production in normal vocal development we have determined the spatial distribution of DAGLα expression within zebra finch CNS during vocal development. Early during vocal development at 25 days, DAGLα staining is typically light and of fibroid processes. Staining peaks late in the sensorimotor stage of song learning at 75 days and is characterized by fiber, neuropil and some staining of both small and large cell somata. Results provide insight to the normal role for endocannabinoid signaling in the maturation of brain regions responsible for song learning and vocal-motor output, and suggest mechanisms by which exogenous cannabinoid exposure alters acquisition of this form of vocal communication.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ken Soderstrom
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27834, United States.
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Peng Z, Zhang X, Liu Y, Xi C, Zeng S, Zhang X, Zuo M, xu J, Ji Y, Han Z. Ultrastructural and electrophysiological analysis of Area X in the untutored and deafened Bengalese finch in relation to normally reared birds. Brain Res 2013; 1527:87-98. [PMID: 23820426 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2013.06.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2013] [Revised: 05/28/2013] [Accepted: 06/24/2013] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
Birdsong learning bears many similarities to human speech acquisition. Although the anterior forebrain pathway (AFP) is believed to be involved in birdsong learning, the underlying neural mechanisms are unclear. We produced two types of abnormal song learning: young birds untutored from adult "song tutors", or birds deafened by bilateral cochlear removal before the onset of sensory learning. We then studied how ultrastructure and electrophysiological activity changed in an AFP nucleus, Area X, among these birds at adulthood. Our results showed that, although the size of Area X did not change significantly, the numbers of synapses per unit area and compound synapses and the percent of concave synapses increased significantly in the untutored or deafened birds. The percent of perforated synapses or axo-spinous synapses decreased compared to the normally reared birds, suggesting a decreased efficiency of synaptic transmission in the untutored or deafened birds. We then identified several types of spontaneously firing cells in Area X. Cells with fast and slow firing rates did not show significant electrophysiological differences among the groups, but cells with moderate firing rates, most likely DLM-projecting neurons, fired at significantly lower rates in the untutored and deafened birds. In addition, cells firing irregularly were only found in the deafened birds. Thus, the decreased or irregular electrophysiological activity in the untutored or deafened birds, together with the corresponding ultrastructural findings, could be implicated in the abnormal song production in these two types of birds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhe Peng
- Beijing Key Laboratory of Gene Resource and Molecular Development, Beijing Normal University, Beijing 100875, China
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Filatova OA, Burdin AM, Hoyt E. Is killer whale dialect evolution random? Behav Processes 2013; 99:34-41. [PMID: 23796775 DOI: 10.1016/j.beproc.2013.06.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2013] [Revised: 05/23/2013] [Accepted: 06/13/2013] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
The killer whale is among the few species in which cultural change accumulates over many generations, leading to cumulative cultural evolution. Killer whales have group-specific vocal repertoires which are thought to be learned rather than being genetically coded. It is supposed that divergence between vocal repertoires of sister groups increases gradually over time due to random learning mistakes and innovations. In this case, the similarity of calls across groups must be correlated with pod relatedness and, consequently, with each other. In this study we tested this prediction by comparing the patterns of call similarity between matrilines of resident killer whales from Eastern Kamchatka. We calculated the similarity of seven components from three call types across 14 matrilines. In contrast to the theoretical predictions, matrilines formed different clusters on the dendrograms made by different calls and even by different components of the same call. We suggest three possible explanations for this phenomenon. First, the lack of agreement between similarity patterns of different components may be the result of constraints in the call structure. Second, it is possible that call components change in time with different speed and/or in different directions. Third, horizontal cultural transmission of call features may occur between matrilines.
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