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Applying Stereotactic Injection Technique to Study Genetic Effects on Animal Behaviors

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Host behaviour alteration by its parasite: from brain gene expression to functional test.

Lucie Grecias¹, Francois Olivier Hebert¹, Verônica Angelica Alves¹

¹Département de Biologie et Institut de Biologie Intégrative et des Systèmes (IBIS), Université Laval, Québec, Canada.

Proceedings. Biological Sciences

|November 10, 2020

Summary

Parasitic cestodes manipulate host behavior. This study found that the parasite Schistocephalus solidus alters gene expression in threespine stickleback fish, specifically targeting the inositol pathway, which can be reversed with lithium treatment.

Keywords:

brain fluoxetine gene expression lithium parasite stickleback

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Area of Science:

Parasitology
Neurobiology
Behavioral Ecology

Background:

Complex life cycle parasites often manipulate intermediate host behavior to enhance transmission.
The threespine stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus) is an intermediate host for the cestode Schistocephalus solidus, exhibiting increased risky behaviors when infected.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the proximate molecular mechanisms underlying behavioral alterations in sticklebacks infected with S. solidus.
To identify specific host genes and pathways targeted by the parasite.

Main Methods:

Comparative transcriptomics of infected and uninfected stickleback brains.
Functional testing of the inositol pathway using lithium chloride exposure.
Analysis of gene expression in fish exposed to the parasite but not successfully infected.
Comparison of gene expression profiles with selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) treated fish.

Main Results:

Infected sticklebacks exhibit altered gene expression in the inositol pathway.
Lithium treatment rescued normal behaviors in infected fish, implicating the inositol pathway.
Fish exposed to the parasite but uninfected showed a distinct gene expression profile, separating exposure effects from infection consequences.
Serotonin pathway gene expression in infected fish did not mirror that of SSRI-treated fish, despite similar behavioral changes.

Conclusions:

The inositol pathway is a likely target for S. solidus-mediated manipulation of stickleback behavior.
This research provides a molecular basis for understanding host-parasite interactions and behavioral manipulation.
The findings differentiate between general parasite exposure effects and specific infection-driven alterations.