Association between the serotonin transporter polymorphism and learning behavior

2015 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 24570091
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Animal physiology/Animal behavior
• Research Institution: Tokushima Bunri University
• Principal Investigator: SADAMOTO HISAYO 徳島文理大学, 薬学部, 講師 (70374220)
• Co-Investigator(Renkei-kenkyūsha): KOBAYASHI SUGURU 徳島文理大学, 香川薬学部, 助教 (50325867)
• Project Period (FY): 2012-04-01 – 2016-03-31
• Keywords: セロトニントランスポーター / 遺伝子多型 / 動物行動 / 3'UTR

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The serotonin transporter removes the neurotransmitter serotonin from the synaptic clefts and regulates the extracellular serotonin level. In the mollusc Lymnaea stagnalis, a large serotonergic neuron has been proposed as the key neuron in the neuromodulatory circuit for conditioned taste aversion learning (CTA), based on the behavioral experiments. In this study, we focused on variable number of tandem repeat (VNTR) in the 3’-untranslated region (3’-UTR) of Lymnaea serotonin transporter and the genome polymorphism, and the effects on animal behavior. We found two types of the VNTR (16 or 24 repeats) as the genome polymorphism, and each animal expressed either of one in the brain. We also obtained results indicating the effects of the VNTR on the animal behaviors, and the RNA-protein interaction specific for the VNTR.

Free Research Field

動物生理・行動