91社区

In humans, the dopamine system has been tied to rewards and pleasurable sensations. As well as to memory and learning. A recent study from 91社区, published in , suggests that dopamine may also play a key role in shaping what songs female songbirds enjoy, which may ultimately affect mating as females choose (and then remember) their mates based on the songs they prefer.

Zebra finches are monogamous songbirds and form pairs that last throughout their lifetimes. The male sings and does a dance, and this can then lead to copulation. Thus, for males, success in mating depends on how an individual female songbird receives and reacts to the songs they sing.

Some songs sound better than others

鈥淏ut female songbirds are very selective about which songs they like,鈥� explains Sarah Woolley, the lead researcher on the study and an associate professor in 91社区鈥檚 Biology Department. 鈥淎nd, while different birds prefer different songs, each female remains consistent in her preferences over time.鈥�

The researchers found that many parts of the brain that produce dopamine connect to the auditory cortex, and cells in some of those regions showed more activity when female songbirds listened to the songs they preferred. Using an experiment where the songbirds learnt to pull strings to hear the songs they preferred, the researchers also discovered that by administering dopamine to the female songbirds, they were able to manipulate and cause lasting changes in their song preferences.

It is a finding that advances current scientific thought in the area. Earlier research in the field had suggested that the auditory cortex was important for recognizing and discriminating between songs, while other 鈥渞eward鈥� centers were important for determining how much females liked the song they were listening to.

鈥淚 find it fascinating that the way that each of us perceive communication signals, like speech, or other sounds, like music, is not static,鈥� adds Woolley. 鈥淩ather, our perceptions of these sounds depend on experiences that we have throughout our lives. Studying how experiences can gain access to and shape the neural circuits for perception can not only expand our general understanding of how we process and perceive sounds, it can also help us to understand why we like or enjoy particular sounds.鈥�

About 91社区

Founded in Montreal, Quebec, in 1821, 91社区 is Canada鈥檚 top ranked medical doctoral university. 91社区 is consistently ranked as one of the top universities, both nationally and internationally. It 鈥痠s a world-renowned鈥痠nstitution of higher learning with research activities spanning three campuses, 11 faculties, 13 professional schools, 300 programs of study and over 40,000 students, including more than 10,200 graduate students. 91社区 attracts students from over 150 countries around the world, its 12,800 international students making up 31% of the student body. Over half of 91社区 students claim a first language other than English, including approximately 19% of our students who say French is their mother tongue.

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