An accessory prefrontal cortex–thalamus circuit sculpts maternal behavior in virgin female mice

A

Schematic representation of the pup retrieval test.

B

Total pup retrieval time in biological mothers (n = 6), foster mothers (n = 7), and virgin females (n = 10) on 3 consecutive days. Data were analyzed using mixed‐model ANOVA with repeated measures and are displayed as mean ± s.e.m.; ****significantly different from foster mothers, P < 0.0001; ^####significantly different from mothers, P < 0.0001.

C, D

Fraction of pup‐directed (C) and non‐pup‐directed (D) behaviors of virgin females of the total session duration in each of the 3 pup exposure days (n = 7). Data were analyzed using two‐way ANOVA with repeated measures and are displayed as individual measurements with the line connecting the mean value; *P < 0.05.

E

Schematic representation of a coronal section showing regions of the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC).

F

Representative image of a coronal brain section immunostained for c‐Fos after pup retrieval on day 1 and 3. The mPFC region is indicated by dashed lines, which are also shown in the insets in higher magnification. The scale bar indicates 500 μm, 10× magnification.

G

Heat‐map of the Z‐score for the difference in the fraction of c‐Fos‐expressing cells, between day 1 and 3 of behavioral testing. Foster mothers (FM Pups; n = 5), virgins with pups (V Pups; n = 6), and virgins with object (V Obj; n = 7).

H

Representative coronal sections of the mPFC immunostained for c‐Fos with the anatomical borders of the ACC indicated by dashed lines, in the 3 groups described in (G) on day 1 and 3 of behavioral testing. Scale bar 100 μm, 20× magnification.

Figure 1. Dynamics of experience‐dependent parental behavior in virgin female mice and corresponding neuronal activity patterns.