So far in this course we have dealt entirely with the evolution of characters that are controlled by simple Mendelian inheritance at a single locus. There are notes on the course website about gametic disequilibrium and how allele frequencies change at two loci simultaneously, but we didn’t discuss them. In every example we’ve considered we’ve imagined that we could understand something about evolution by examining the evolution of a single gene. That’s the domain of classical population genetics. For the next few weeks we’re going to be exploring a field that’s actually older than classical population genetics, although the approach we’ll be taking to it involves the use of population genetic machinery. If you know a little about the history of evolutionary biology, you may know that after the rediscovery of Mendel’s work in 1900 there was a heated debate between the “biometricians” (e.g., Galton and Pearson) and the “Mendelians” (e.g., de Vries, Correns, Bateson, and Morgan). Biometricians asserted that the really important variation in evolution didn’t follow Mendelian rules. Height, weight, skin color, and similar traits seemed to

Human biochemical genetics

https://bic.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/Rossi_09_TMS%20safety%20review.pdf

Safety, ethical considerations, and application guidelines for the use of transcranial magnetic stimulation in clinical practice and research

In response to stress, the brain activates several neuropeptide-secreting systems. This eventually leads to the release of adrenal corticosteroid hormones, which subsequently feed back on the brain and bind to two types of nuclear receptor that act as transcriptional regulators. By targeting many genes, corticosteroids function in a binary fashion, and serve as a master switch in the control of neuronal and network responses that underlie behavioural adaptation. In genetically predisposed individuals, an imbalance in this binary control mechanism can introduce a bias towards stress-related brain disease after adverse experiences. New candidate susceptibility genes that serve as markers for the prediction of vulnerable phenotypes are now being identified.

Stress and the brain: from adaptation to disease

KEGG(Kyoto Encyclopedia of Genes and Genomes)〔和文〕 (特集 ゲノム医学の現在と未来--基礎と臨床) -- (データベース)

Trust pervades human societies. Trust is indispensable in friendship, love, families and organizations, and plays a key role in economic exchange and politics. In the absence of trust among trading partners, market transactions break down. In the absence of trust in a country's institutions and leaders, political legitimacy breaks down. Much recent evidence indicates that trust contributes to economic, political and social success. Little is known, however, about the biological basis of trust among humans. Here we show that intranasal administration of oxytocin, a neuropeptide that plays a key role in social attachment and affiliation in non-human mammals, causes a substantial increase in trust among humans, thereby greatly increasing the benefits from social interactions. We also show that the effect of oxytocin on trust is not due to a general increase in the readiness to bear risks. On the contrary, oxytocin specifically affects an individual's willingness to accept social risks arising through interpersonal interactions. These results concur with animal research suggesting an essential role for oxytocin as a biological basis of prosocial approach behaviour.

/pdf/oxytocin-increases-trust-in-humans-cvexsf54bg.pdf

Oxytocin increases trust in humans

Vasopressin and oxytocin release within the brain: a dynamic concept of multiple and variable modes of neuropeptide communication

https://www.cell.com/trends/neurosciences/pdf/S0166-2236(12)00152-X.pdf

Balance of brain oxytocin and vasopressin: implications for anxiety, depression, and social behaviors

Increased brain and plasma oxytocin after nasal and peripheral administration in rats and mice

The hypothalamic-neurohypophysial system regulates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis under stress: an old concept revisited.

Oxytocin is a classic reproductive neuropeptide in the female mammal, but its functions in the brain of the male have been less well studied. As stress induces intracerebral oxytocin release independently of gender, we postulated that central oxytocin may play a role in the control of stress responses. In both male and virgin female rats, oxytocin receptor blockade in the brain by intracerebral infusion of a selective oxytocin antagonist (des Gly-NH2 d(CH2)5 [Tyr(Me)2, Thr4] OVT; 0.75 microgram/5 microliter increased the activity of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis as indicated by a significantly enhanced basal and stress-induced (exposure to the elevated plus-maze, forced swimming) secretion of corticotropin (ACTH) and corticosterone into blood. The anxiety-related behaviour on the plus-maze was not altered by the antagonist in either males or females. Infusion of the oxytocin antagonist into the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus by reversed microdialysis resulted in a significant increase in basal release of ACTH in both male and virgin female rats. These results demonstrate a novel, gender-independent physiological function of endogenous brain oxytocin in the regulation of neuroendocrine stress responses. Under basal conditions, the inhibition of the HPA axis occurs, at least in part, within the paraventricular nucleus.

Brain oxytocin inhibits basal and stress-induced activity of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis in male and female rats: partial action within the paraventricular nucleus.

Rainer Landgraf

Papers

Vasopressin and oxytocin release within the brain: a dynamic concept of multiple and variable modes of neuropeptide communication

Balance of brain oxytocin and vasopressin: implications for anxiety, depression, and social behaviors

Increased brain and plasma oxytocin after nasal and peripheral administration in rats and mice

The hypothalamic-neurohypophysial system regulates the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis under stress: an old concept revisited.

Brain oxytocin inhibits basal and stress-induced activity of the hypothalamo-pituitary-adrenal axis in male and female rats: partial action within the paraventricular nucleus.