Oxytocin via oxytocin receptor excites neurons in the endopiriform nucleus of juvenile mice

The neuropeptide oxytocin (OXT) modulates social behaviors across species and may play a developmental role for these behaviors and their mediating neural pathways. Despite having high, stable levels of OXT receptor (OXTR) ligand binding from birth, endopiriform nucleus (EPN) remains understudied. EPN integrates olfactory and gustatory input and has reciprocal connections with several limbic areas. Because the role of OXTR signaling in EPN is unknown, we sought to provide anatomical and electrophysiological information about OXTR signaling in mouse EPN neurons. Using in situ hybridization, we found that most EPN neurons co-express Oxtr mRNA and the marker for VGLUT1, a marker for glutamatergic cells. Based on high levels of OXTR ligand binding in EPN, we hypothesized that oxytocin application would modulate activity in these cells as measured by whole-cell patch-clamp electrophysiology. Bath application of OXT and an OXTR specific ligand (TGOT) increased the excitability of EPN neurons in wild-type, but not in OXTR-knockout (KO) tissue. These results show an effect of OXT on a mainly VGLUT1+ cell population within EPN. Given the robust, relatively stable OXTR expression in EPN throughout life, OXTR in this multi-sensory and limbic integration area may be important for modulating activity in response to an array of social or other salient stimuli throughout the lifespan and warrants further study.