Meeting Abstract
The mouse olfactory system is an ideal system for investigating the genetic and neural mechanisms underlying diverse behavioral responses. There are currently over 530 functional vomeronasal receptors, as well as a large array of corresponding pheromone ligands. In the last ten years, the gene families of receptors and ligands in the mouse reference genome have become more well-described. It is now possible to more robustly investigate the diversity of olfactory receptors and ligands across mouse species and subspecies. We use deep RNA sequencing to develop transcriptomes for vomeronasal organ and liver tissues of six strains of mice. By examining the evolutionary patterns and selective pressures at play in the receptor-ligand diversity in the mouse olfactory system across species, we can better understand the genetic logic behind complex social behaviors, such as individual recognition. More specifically, understanding the receptor-ligand complement across mouse species will help create a framework in which to investigate the neural mechanisms for signal detection and the encoding of complex social information and chemosensory cues.
