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Abstract: In many species, mating preferences develop at an early age through a process of instinctive learning, known as sexual imprinting. Mice use olfactory and acoustic cues from parents to learn and form memories of conspecifics and close kin, which enables them to avoid heterospecific matings as adults. Surprisingly, however, almost nothing is known about the neural circuits and mechanisms governing sexual imprinting in mice or any other species.Our project aims to identify in mice where and how the neural circuits responsible for sexual imprinting are formed during postnatal development and whether olfactory and acoustic cues cooperate to shape these circuits and control the mating preferences as adults.The project relies on complementary disciplines: team 1 with expertise in neuroscience will lead the neuroanatomical and neurophysiological part; team 2 with expertise in light propagation in highly scattering media will develop the micro-endoscopic system for in vivo photons detection and signal processing analysis; team 3 with expertise in animal behavior and communication will direct the behavioral aspects on laboratory and wild mice

Coordination in general: Serena Bovetti
Università degli Studi di Torino, Via Verdi, 8, 10124 Turin, Italy

Projekt partner: Contact: Sylvain Gigan
École normale supèrieure, 45 rue dÙlm, 75230 Paris cedex 05, France

Funded by: International Human Frontier Science Program Organization (HFSPO), 12 quai Saint Jean, 67080 Strasbourg, France