Resumen

ROMERO-MORALES, Luis Oscar et al. Allomaternal behavior, OT and the presence of OTR in mPOA/BNST in the Mongolian gerbil (Meriones unguiculatus). Acta Zool. Mex [online]. 2025, vol.41, e2470.  Epub 03-Nov-2025. ISSN 2448-8445.  https://doi.org/10.21829/azm.2025.4112740.

Alloparental behavior is the care provided to an infant by members of the same species without being the biological parents, it includes allomaternal and allopaternal behavior. Oxytocin (OT) and its receptor (OTR) are involved in the regulation of maternal behavior; OT fibers and its receptor are present in the medial preoptic area (mPOA), the bed nucleus of stria terminalis (BNST), the medial amygdala (MeA), and olfactory bulb (OB), nuclei that regulate maternal behavior. OT and OTR play a significant role in regulating maternal behavior. However, the role of OT and OTR in the regulation of allomaternal behavior has not been established. The aim of this study was to determine whether allomaternal behavior in the Mongolian gerbil is associated with high plasma OT concentrations and the presence of OTR in mPOA, BNST, MeA, and OB. Through exposures to the pups of same species, 10 allomaternal females and 10 aggressive females with the pups were selected. Between 15 and 20 days later, allomaternal behavior tests were performed. Blood samples were then collected to quantify plasma OT concentrations by ELISA. Brains were obtained for OTR immunohistochemistry. The display of allomaternal behavior was associated with high peripheral concentrations of OT and the significant presence of OTR in mPOA/BNST. These results suggest the involvement of OT and OTR in the regulation of the allomaternal behavior of the Mongolian gerbil.

Palabras llave : allomaternal behavior; Mongolian gerbil; oxytocin; oxytocin receptor.

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