04-12-2023

Genetics and Behaviour

Exploring the Connection between Nature and Nature

MD NABIL HASAN
M200607006
M.Sc.
2020-2021
DEPARTMENT OF BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY,JAGANNATH UNIVERSITY
DHAKA-1100
 Outline:

 Behavior
 Genes and environment on behavior
 Gene environment correlation and interaction
 Relevant Examples

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  Genetics is the branch of biology that focuses on the study of genes, heredity, and the
variation of organisms. It explores the mechanisms by which traits are passed from one
generation to the next, encompassing the structure and function of genes, as well as
how genes interact with each other and the environment to influence the development
and characteristics of living organisms.
 In biology, behavior refers to the range of actions, reactions, or conduct of organisms in
response to stimuli or environmental factors. It encompasses observable activities,
movements, and responses exhibited by living entities, reflecting their interaction with
both internal and external conditions. Behavioral patterns can be influenced by genetic
factors, environmental cues, and the complex interplay between an organism's biology
and its surroundings.

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  Behaviors represent the means by which animals interact with, and adapt to, their
environments.
 In addition to genetic factors, large environmental effects on behavioral plasticity
also contribute substantially to individual variation in behavioral phenotypes
 All the behavior can not be observed same in both lab and field based study

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  Record of the trajectory of a mouse in an open field create such figure. Note that most of
the time is spent in the corners and along the sides of the wall, a behavior known as
thigmotaxis
 Simple behavioral test is the rotating rod (rotarod). This test is a measure of balance
(propioception).
 Rotarod is also helpful for checking various factors like effect of various drugs
 A lickometer is an instrument that detects a change in capacitance between the spout of
the water bottle and a metal plate attached to an electronic box. A change in capacitance
only occurs when the tongue of a rat or mouse makes contact with the spout.

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  A radial arms maze is used to test learning and memory. The animal is placed in the center,
and receives a food reward when it remembers to enter the correct arm of the maze, based
on previous experience.
 A vertical maze is used to measure geotactic behavior in Drosophila. Flies are negatively
geotactic, i.e. they move upwards against the gravitational field.

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  A simple “dipstick” assay can help to measure olfactory behavior of flies. Five flies of the same
sex are exposed to a scented cotton wool swab and the number of flies in the compartment
remote from the odor source, marked by the dotted line on the left, is counted every five
seconds. Ten consecutive counts are averaged to give a response score. Baseline activity is
assessed by exposing the flies to an unscented swab
 This is a Diagram of the basic olfactory learning paradigm of flies. It also help to describe the
learning method of flies

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 Ethograms that illustrate differences between aggressive behaviors between female and male
Drosophila melanogaster. Behavioral patterns that are common between males and females are
indicated in the white boxes, whereas female-specific and male-specific behaviors are highlighted in
light gray and dark gray boxes, respectively
 This figure shows mutations. The original nucleotide sequence and the encoded amino acid sequence in single
letter code are shown in (1). A missense mutation is occurred in (2). A frame shift mutation is occurred in
(3).A trucked amino acid chain is generated in(4)
 This Diagram is the illustration of genotypic effects at a single locus with two alleles that affect a
behavioral phenotype. Finally, the range of homozygous and heterozygous
effects for two alleles at a single locus affecting a behavioral phenotype is graphically depicted here.

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  The phenomenon epistasis is observed from the genetics of coat color of horses. The E
(extension locus) has a dominant allele, “E,” which allows the production of both red and black
pigment; and a recessive allele, “e,” which only allows the production of the red pigment. EE or
ee horses have black pigment somewhere on their body; ee horses are chesnut with no black. A
second locus, called Agouti (A), also has a dominant (“A”) and recessive (“a”) allele. The “A” allele
restricts the black pigment to the “points” of the horse (mane, tail, forelock, lower legs). The “a”
allele allows expression of the black expression on the entire body.
 The genotypic effects at two loci (A, B), each with two alleles are represented here. In case of “A”
no dominance or epistasis is observed and in “B” dominance of A1 and B1 is showed. Whereas in
“C” Dominance of B and in “D” epistasis is observed

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  Measures of aggressive behavior for two different Drosophila strains is represented
using the bar plot.
 Individuals of each strain are genetically identical and reared under the same
constant environmental conditions. The range of phenotypic variation in aggressive
behavior within each strain is due to environmental variation; the difference in
mean level of aggression between the strains is due to genetic differences
between the strains

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  Reaction norms that illustrate environmental effects on phenotype. This panel illustrates
phenotypic plasticity. All genotypes have higher phenotypes in environment B than
environment A. However, the genotypic values of the three genotypes are the same in both
environments; i.e. there is no genetic variation in phenotypic plasticity, and no GEI. The
reaction norms of the genotypes are parallel.
 This is an extreme example of GEI due to conditional neutrality. Here, genetic variation at
the A locus is only expressed in environment B; there is no difference in phenotype
attributable to this locus in environment A. The reaction norms are not parallel. There is
greater variance in genotypic values at the A locus in environment B than environment A. (C)
This is an extreme example of GEI due to antagonistic pleiotropy

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 • This is an example of reaction norms that illustrate sexual dimorphism in a behavioral phenotype.
Variation for avoidance response to benzaldehyde among isogenic chromosome 3 substitution lines
in Drosophila. The third chromosome of an inbred line was replaced by third chromosomes from a
natural population. The male6 and female avoidance scores of each line are connected. Extensive
crossing-over of the lines is diagnostic of genotype by sex interactions

• This diagram shows penetrance and expressivity. The dark circles represent individuals with the
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same hypothetical homozygous genotype that affects spotting (small light gray circles). Individuals
can vary for presence and absence of spots (variable penetrance), number of spots, (variable
expressivity) or both.
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  Whether conducting studies in the field or in the laboratory, measuring behaviors is
challenging, as behaviors are intrinsically plastic
 It can vary dramatically depending on the environment, including differences in nutrition,
temperature, humidity, barometric pressure, time of day, handler, lighting, age of the
individual, and maternal (developmental) and social environment.
 Furthermore, males and females can express the same behaviors differently. Thus, when
possible, sexes should be measured separately.
 In nature spontaneous mutations that have arisen during the course of evolution, known as
polymorphisms, give rise to allelic variation.
 Alleles at a single locus can affect the difference in phenotype between individuals with
alternative homozygous genotypes (homozygous effects), and heterozygote genotypes
(heterozygous effects). The heterozygous effect is the mean value of the heterozygous
genotype, expressed as a deviation from the mean of the two homozygotes, and reflects the
degree of dominance of the genotype with respect to the behavioral phenotype.

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  Epistasis occurs when the homozygous and/or heterozygous effects at one locus are dependent
on the genotype of a second locus affecting the trait.
 The tendency for the average behavior of individuals of a given genotype to vary if the
environment changes (e.g. crowded social conditions, sleep deprivation, altered nutrition) is
called behavioral plasticity.
 A genotype–environment correlation can occur if better phenotypes are given better
environments. If the environmental sensitivities are not the same for different genotypes,
genotype-by-environment interaction (GEI) is inferred.
 Sexual dimorphism refers to differences between the mean value of a trait between males and
females of the same genotype.
 Sex can be considered an environment, and sex by environment interaction is a special case of
GEI. Environmental sensitivity, epistatic interactions with other loci, and/or GEI are the reasons
why a single genotype can give rise to a range of phenotypes.
 The term penetrance is used to refer to the proportion of individuals with a given genotype that
display the phenotype associated with that genotype, while expressivity refers to quantitative
variation in expression of a phenotype among individuals of the same genotype.

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