Presentation Details
Parabrachial CGRP neurons affect taste-guided behaviors

Christian H Lemon, Jinrong Li, Kyle T Zumpano, Catori J Roberts, Traci L Redwine, Damilola V Adesina.

University of Oklahoma, Norman, OK, USA

Abstract


The parabrachial (PB) nucleus mediates taste processing and integration with other senses. Diverse PB areas, including the lateral and medial PB, express neurons positive for calcitonin gene-related peptide (CGRP), albeit only limited data have described their influence on taste. Here, the role of PB-CGRP neurons in taste-guided behaviors was studied with chemogenetics in mice (n = 56). Using bilateral microinjections under anesthesia, a Cre-dependent virus encoding either an inhibitory designer receptor exclusively activated by designer drugs (hM4Di) or a control element (mCherry) was delivered to the PB of heterozygous Calca-Cre mice. Calca marks CGRP-positive PB cells. Following recovery, hM4Di and mCherry mice entered brief-access tests where they all received the hM4Di ligand clozapine-N-oxide (5 mg/kg, i.p.) prior to daily tests. Mice were proffered multiple 10 sec licking access trials with quinine solutions (0 [water], 0.1, 0.3, and 1 mM) during test sessions over 4 days. Some mice participated in other brief-access tests with sucrose (0, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, and 1 M). Data were collected blind to mouse condition. Preliminary analyses found a reduced avoidance of quinine in thirst-motivated hM4Di mice with silenced PB-CGRP cells (reduction (i.e., flattening) of the slope of the quinine licking avoidance function compared to control; mixed model analysis of log-transformed licks to accommodate data skew, t(46) = 2.7, p = 0.011). Furthermore, some trend was noted for a reduced preference for sucrose in male hM4Di mice (reduced slope of the sucrose preference function compared to male controls, t(74) = -2.0, p = 0.047), suggesting PB-CGRP cells affect diverse tastes. This study is still ongoing, with an emphasis on identifying covariates (e.g., sex) that may also account for observed effects.

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