Evidence map›Paper›PMID 38709918›Full record

ArticleProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America2024

A vasopressin circuit that modulates mouse social investigation and anxiety-like behavior in a sex-specific manner.

Nicole Rigney, Elba Campos-Lira, Matthew K Kirchner, Wei Wei, Selma Belkasim, Rachael Beaumont, Sumeet Singh, Sara Guedez Suarez, Delenn Hartswick, Javier E Stern and 2 more

Erratum issuedAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. An erratum has been issued. Cited by 15 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
15citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

15 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. Article
  3. Oxytocin neurons in the anterior and posterior paraventricular nucleus have distinct behavioral functions and electrophysiological profiles.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2026
    Article
  4. The Anterior BNST Is Required for Novelty-Driven Social Interaction.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2026
    Article
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  6. Review
  7. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Nicole RigneyNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.ORCID 0000-0002-6315-8628
Elba Campos-LiraNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.
Matthew K KirchnerNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.ORCID 0000-0001-6960-7685
Wei WeiNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.
Selma BelkasimNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.ORCID 0009-0001-7943-595X
Rachael BeaumontNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.ORCID 0000-0002-6760-4920
Sumeet SinghNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.
Sara Guedez SuarezNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.ORCID 0009-0009-5411-1981
Delenn HartswickNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.ORCID 0009-0004-2675-481X
Javier E SternNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.
Geert J de VriesNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.ORCID 0000-0002-1263-3775
Aras PetrulisNeuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA 30302.ORCID 0000-0003-1189-564X

Funding

Sex Differences in the Neural Control of Social Behavior; SupplementR01MH121603 · NIMH · GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY · PI DE VRIES, GEERT J., PETRULIS, ARAS T · 2020 to 2024
$2.0M
MARC Supplement at Georgia State University: Workforce Diversity Through Enhanced MentoringT34GM131939 · NIGMS · GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY · PI FRANTZ, KYLE J., GAUCHER, ERIC · 2019 to 2023
$1.7M
The role of sexually dimorphic vasopressin in social behaviorF31MH125659 · NIMH · GEORGIA STATE UNIVERSITY · PI RIGNEY, NICOLE · 2021 to 2023
$120k
HHS | NIH | National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) F31MH125659HHS | NIH | National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) R01MH121603NIGMS NIH HHS T34 GM131939NIMH NIH HHS F31 MH125659NIMH NIH HHS R01 MH121603
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

One of the largest sex differences in brain neurochemistry is the expression of the neuropeptide arginine vasopressin (AVP) within the vertebrate brain, with males having more AVP cells in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) than females. Despite the long-standing implication of AVP in social and anxiety-like behaviors, the circuitry underlying AVP's control of these behaviors is still not well defined. Using optogenetic approaches, we show that inhibiting AVP BNST cells reduces social investigation in males, but not in females, whereas stimulating these cells increases social investigation in both sexes, but more so in males. These cells may facilitate male social investigation through their projections to the lateral septum (LS), an area with the highest density of sexually differentiated AVP innervation in the brain, as optogenetic stimulation of BNST AVP → LS increased social investigation and anxiety-like behavior in males but not in females; the same stimulation also caused a biphasic response of LS cells ex vivo. Blocking the vasopressin 1a receptor (V1aR) in the LS eliminated all these responses. Together, these findings establish a sexually differentiated role for BNST AVP cells in the control of social investigation and anxiety-like behavior, likely mediated by their projections to the LS.

Indexed as

AnxietyArginine VasopressinSocial BehaviorAnimalsBehavior, AnimalFemaleMaleMiceMice, Inbred C57BLNeuronsOptogeneticsReceptors, VasopressinSeptal NucleiArginine VasopressinReceptors, Vasopressinanxietymicesex differencessocial behaviorvasopressin

Identifiers

PMID38709918
PMCPMC11098102

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.