Working-for-Food Behaviors: A Preclinical Study in Prader-Willi Mutant Mice

Lassi, Glenda; Maggi, Silvia; Balzani, Edoardo; Cosentini, Ilaria; Garcia-Garcia, Celina; Tucci, Valter

Abstract

Abnormal feeding behavior is one of the main symptoms of Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS). By studying a PWS mouse
mutant line, which carries a paternally inherited deletion of the small nucleolar RNA 116 (Snord116), we observed significant changes
in working-for-food behavioral responses at various timescales. In particular, we report that PWS mutant mice show a significant delay
compared to wild-type littermate controls in responding to both hour-scale and seconds-to-minutes-scale time intervals. This timing
shift in mutant mice is associated with better performance in the working-for-food task, and results in better decision making in these
mutant mice. The results of our study reveal a novel aspect of the organization of feeding behavior, and advance the understanding of
the interplay between the metabolic functions and cognitive mechanisms of PWS.

Citation

Lassi, G., Maggi, S., Balzani, E., Cosentini, I., Garcia-Garcia, C., & Tucci, V. (2016). Working-for-Food Behaviors: A Preclinical Study in Prader-Willi Mutant Mice. Genetics, 204(3), 1129-1138. https://doi.org/10.1534/genetics.116.192286

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Sep 26, 2016
• Online Publication Date: Sep 26, 2016
• Publication Date: 2016-11
• Deposit Date: Nov 5, 2019
• Journal: Genetics
• Print ISSN: 0016-6731
• Electronic ISSN: 1943-2631
• Publisher: Genetics Society of America
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 204
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 1129-1138
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1534/genetics.116.192286
• Public URL: https://nottingham-repository.worktribe.com/output/3058428
• Publisher URL: https://www.genetics.org/content/204/3/1129