Topic: instinctive behaviours

Instinctive behaviours, such as hunting and defense, are part of the natural repertoire of behaviours that are shaped by evolution and critical for the survival of both individual and species. The midbrain periaqueductal gray (PAG) has emerged as a bottleneck in the routing of most instinctive behaviours, translating sensory and cognitive information into an appropriate motor response. Yet, the exact mechanisms of this translation remain elusive. We aimed to identify the neural circuits in the brainstem bridging the initiation and execution of instinctive behaviours in mice by developing an an

Instinctive behaviours such as defence, feeding and reproduction have evolved across animal phyla and ensure survival of both the individual and its kin. A brainstem region central to the initiation of virtually all instinctive behaviours is the periaqueductal gray (PAG). Although stereotyped to some degree, the expression of instinctive behaviours exhibits significant variability within and across individuals. Previous work has mostly focussed on behavioural variability arising from plasticity mechanisms occurring in forebrain regions projecting to the PAG, including the hypothalamus, amygdal