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 Olgui rated 27 months ago -
How the brain turns on innate behavior
From the page: Innate or "instinctive" behaviors are inborn and do not require learning or prior experience to be performed. Examples include courtship and sexual behaviors, escape and defensive maneuvers, and aggression.
"By understanding ...
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4 Reviews
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- billyp42 rated 26 months ago
- From the page: "RIVERSIDE, Calif. %u2013 UC Riverside researchers have made a major leap forward in understanding how the brain programs innate behavior. The discovery could have future applications in engineering new behaviors in animals and intelligent robots.
Innate or %u201Cinstinctive%u201D behaviors are inborn and do not require learning or prior experience to be performed. Examples include courtship and sexual behaviors, escape and defensive maneuvers, and aggression.
Using the common fruit fly as a model organism, the researchers found through laboratory experiments that the innate behavior is initiated by a %u201Ccommand%u201D hormone that orchestrates activities in discrete groups of peptide neurons in the brain. Peptide neurons are brain cells that release small proteins to communicate with other brain cells and the body.
The researchers report that the command hormone, called ecdysis-triggering hormone or ETH, activates discrete groups of brain peptide neurons in a stepwise manner, making the fruit fly perform a well-defined sequence of behaviors. The researchers propose that similar mechanisms could account for innate behaviors in other animals and even humans. "
- Hagena rated 26 months ago
- Very cool.
- Olgui rated 27 months ago
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How the brain turns on innate behavior
From the page: Innate or "instinctive" behaviors are inborn and do not require learning or prior experience to be performed. Examples include courtship and sexual behaviors, escape and defensive maneuvers, and aggression.
"By understanding how innate behavior is wired in the brain, it becomes possible to manipulate behavior - change its order, delay it or even eliminate it altogether - all of which opens up ethical questions as to whether scientists should, or would want to, engineer behavior in this way in the future."
The fruit fly is a powerful tool and a classic laboratory model for understanding human diseases and genetics because it shares many genes and biochemical pathways with humans.
Image on the right shows several groups of peptide neurons (red, green colored neurons) in the fruit fly brain that regulate innate behavior.
Image credit: Y-J. Kim, UCR. Image on the left by Edith M. Wallace. Courtesy: Carnegie Institution.
- commerican rated 26 months ago
- Chemical software to control the organism. Don't think mammals are exempt from this.
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