ShRNA plasmids targeting different regions of the prairie vole Avpr1a gene, but not a scrambled control, knocked-down expression of a V1aR-GFP fusion protein as assessed by GFP visualization in HEK 293T cells (A), quantitative RT PCR (B), and western blot (C; V1aR-GFP, 74kDa, GAPDH, 37kDa) Unilateral injection of shRNA(sh4141)-pvAvpr1a into the mediodorsal thalamus resulted in 41% average knockdown as compared to contralateral expression (D, scale bar 1mm). Viral injection sites were verified with GFP visualization (E, scale bar 50μm).