Brain Circuits Behind Maternal Care Offer Clues to Autism

New research sheds light on how the brain integrates sensory signals to drive maternal behaviors in mice, potentially offering insights into conditions like autism that affect sensory processing.

Investigating sensory integration in maternal behaviors

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory researchers explored how smell and sound signals are processed in the brain during pup retrieval, a maternal behavior where adult mice locate and return scattered pups to their nest. This task relies heavily on sensory cues and can be learned by non-biological caregivers, indicating its adaptability.

“When we experience the world and interact with people, we use all our senses. That’s true for animals and humans.”

Dr. Stephen Shea.

The study, led by Professor Stephen Shea and graduate student Alexandra Nowlan, focused on the role of the basal amygdala (BA) and auditory cortex (AC). Using neural tracing techniques, the researchers discovered that BA neurons relay olfactory information to the AC, where it combines with auditory signals to influence maternal responses.

Key findings in sensory signal integration

Blocking the ability of maternal mice to detect pup odors resulted in a significant decrease in their retrieval behavior, highlighting the importance of olfactory-auditory signal integration. The researchers propose that BA-mediated olfactory input modulates the auditory cortex's processing of pup cries, refining the mothers' behavioral responses.

“Pup retrieval is one of the most important things for mothers or caregivers. It requires the ability to smell and hear the pup. If these things are both important, that may mean they merge somewhere in the brain. One interesting thing we found was a projection from a location called the basal amygdala (BA),"

Dr. Stephen Shea.

Additionally, the team traced neural connections from the AC to other brain regions, including the medial geniculate, which may help direct attention during maternal tasks. This suggests that multiple brain areas collaborate to regulate these behaviors.

Implications for understanding autism

This work provides a framework for studying how sensory signals interact within the brain, particularly in the context of social behaviors. Since sensory integration is often disrupted in developmental disorders like autism, the findings could enhance our understanding of how these disruptions affect social cue interpretation.

“We think what’s reaching the AC is being filtered through social-emotional signals from BA neurons. That processing can be impaired in autism and neurodegenerative conditions. We think many parts of the brain participate in this behavior and that it’s very richly controlled.”

Dr. Stephen Shea.

Shea and his team aim to further map the connections between the BA, AC and other brain regions involved in maternal behaviors. While the research focuses on mice, the insights may inform broader studies on sensory processing across species.

Reference: Nowlan AC, Choe J, Tromblee H, Kelahan C, Hellevik K, Shea SD. Multisensory integration of social signals by a pathway from the basal amygdala to the auditory cortex in maternal mice. Current Biol. 2024:S0960982224015057. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2024.10.078

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