Specialized Chemosignaling that Generates Social and Survival Behavior in Mammals

Abstract A subset of chemosensory ligands, such as pheromones and kairomones, activate sensory circuits that are specialized to elicit a “preset” behavior without associative learning. This observation suggests that there exists a special type of olfactory sensory neurons with properties that distinguish them from common odorant detectors. A handful of ligands that generate specialized social and survival behavior when detected by the mouse have now been identified. Study of these ligands reveals that specialized sensory neurons reside in both the vomeronasal organ and the main olfactory epithelium, come in a variety of transcriptional profiles, and are likely to employ different strategies of central circuit logic to generate preset behavior. However, exactly how the olfactory system harnesses the brain to guide an individual's behavioral decision remains a mystery.