Urocortin-3 neurons in the mouse perifornical area promote infant-directed neglect and aggression

Abstract

While recent studies have uncovered dedicated neural pathways mediating the positive control of parenting, the regulation of infant-directed aggression and how it relates to adult-adult aggression is poorly understood. Here we show that <i>urocortin-3</i> (<i>Ucn3</i>)-expressing neurons in the hypothalamic perifornical area (PeFA<i>^Ucn3</i>) are activated during infant-directed attacks in males and females, but not other behaviors. Functional manipulations of PeFA<i>^Ucn3</i> neurons demonstrate the role of this population in the negative control of parenting in both sexes. PeFA<i>^Ucn3</i> neurons receive input from areas associated with vomeronasal sensing, stress, and parenting, and send projections to hypothalamic and limbic areas. Optogenetic activation of PeFA<i>^Ucn3</i> axon terminals in these regions triggers various aspects of infant-directed agonistic responses, such as neglect, repulsion, and aggression. Thus, PeFA<i>^Ucn3</i> neurons emerge as a dedicated circuit component controlling infant-directed neglect and aggression, providing a new framework to understand the positive and negative regulation of parenting in health and disease.