SUN-679 - The Role of Tectal Corticotropin-Releasing Factor on Multisensory and Discrete Feeding Behavior

Decisions about when to feed vs. flee are critical for organismal survival. Integration of multiple sensory and somatic cues is necessary for organisms to navigate this behavioral tradeoff; however, the discrete neural and physiological underpinnings of that process are not well characterized. Here we use a novel approach to determine how a satiety and stress-responsive peptide, corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF), acts within the optic tectum (OT) to influence processing of multisensory and discrete sensory cues in Xenopus laevis feeding decisions. The anuran OT, homologous to the mammalian superior colliculus, integrates sensory information from the visual and lateral line system and plays a central role in approach vs. avoidance behaviors. In Xenopus, the OT has high CRF concentrations, predator exposure decreases feeding behavior, stressor exposure increases OT CRF, and elevated OT CRF decreases feeding behaviors. Blocking CRFR1 prevents CRF effects on these outcomes, but the mechanism is not yet clear. CRFR1 activation may alter processing of visual, lateral line, and/or multisensory cues. Here we determine if CRF in the OT reduces responses to multisensory prey (live worm and live cricket), discrete visual (iPad video of worms), and discrete lateral line (water vibrations) cues. We microinjected one of five doses of CRF bilaterally into the tecta of newly metamorphosed Xenopus laevis; control conditions received a saline control or no injection. We then exposed frogs to discrete sensory cues (iPad or water vibration) and then to live, multi-sensory prey (worms or crickets). We repeated the behavioral assays after 72 h to determine if behaviors recovered after a washout period. CRF injections did not alter the behavioral response to visual prey cues but did decrease certain feeding-related behaviors in response to a live multisensory prey item (worm). Overall, frogs robustly responded to the presented stimuli. Further analysis of lateral line (vibration) and cricket trials is ongoing. Thus far, these data provide a novel, supra-hypothalamic role of CRF on feeding behavior, and connect neuroendocrine function to the ecological context of feeding decisions. Funded by the NSF (Grant No. 1656734).

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