Father Absence in the Monogamous California Mouse Impairs Social Behavior and Modifies Dopamine and Glutamate Synapses in the Medial Prefrontal Cortex

The role of the father in psycho-affective development is indispensa-ble. Yet, the neurobehavioral effects of paternal deprivation (PD) are poorly understood. Here, we examined the behavioral consequences of PD in the California mouse, a species displaying monogamous bonding and biparental care, and assessed its impact on dopamine (DA), serotonin (5-HT), and glutamate (GLU) transmission in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). In adult males, deficits in social interaction were observed, when a father-deprived (PD) mouse was matched with a PD partner. In adult females, deficits were observed when matching a PD animal with a non-PD control, and when match-ing 2 PD animals. PD also increased aggression in females. Behavior-al abnormalities in PD females were associated with a sensitized response to the locomotor-activating effect of amphetamine. Follow-ing immunocytochemical demonstration of DA, 5-HT, and GLU inner-vations in the mPFC, we employed in vivo electrophysiology and microiontophoresis, and found that PD attenuated the basal activity of low-spiking pyramidal neurons in females. PD decreased pyrami-dal responses to DA in females, while enhancing responses to NMDA in both sexes. We thus demonstrate that, during critical neu-rodevelopmental periods, PD leads to sex-dependent abnormalities in social and reward-related behaviors that are associated with dis-turbances in cortical DA and GLU neurotransmission