Food is not only necessary for our survival but also elicits pleasure. However, when a novel food is followed sometime later by nausea or sickness animals form a long-lasting association to avoid that food. This phenomenon is called the ‘Garcia effect’. We hypothesized that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) could be used as the sickness-inducing stimulus to produce a Garcia-like effect in inbred and wild populations of Lymnaea stagnalis. We first demonstrated that the injection of 25 μg (6.25 µg/mL) of Escherichia coli-derived LPS serotype O127:B8 did not by itself alter snails’ feeding behavior. Then we showed that the presentation of a novel appetitive stimulus (i.e., carrot slurry) and LPS resulted in a taste-specific and long-lasting feeding suppression (i.e., the Garcia-like effect). We also found strain-specific variations in the duration of the long-term memory (LTM). That is, while the LTM for the Garcia-like effect in W-strain snails persisted for 24h, LTM persisted for 48h in freshly collected Margo snails and their F1 offspring. Finally, we demonstrated that the exposure to a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) before the LPS injection prevented both the LPS-induced sickness state and the Garcia-like effect from occurring. The results of this study may pave the way for new research that aims at (1) uncovering the conserved molecular mechanisms underlying the Garcia-like effect, (2) understanding how cognitive traits vary within and between species, and (3) creating a holistic picture of the complex dialogue between the immune and central nervous systems.

Novel taste, sickness, and memory: Lipopolysaccharide to induce a Garcia-like effect in inbred and wild strains of Lymnaea stagnalis / Rivi, V.; Batabyal, A.; Benatti, C.; Blom, J. M.; Tascedda, F.; Lukowiak, K.. - In: PHYSIOLOGY & BEHAVIOR. - ISSN 0031-9384. - 263:(2023), pp. 114137-N/A. [10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114137]

Novel taste, sickness, and memory: Lipopolysaccharide to induce a Garcia-like effect in inbred and wild strains of Lymnaea stagnalis

Rivi V.;Benatti C.;Blom J. M.;Tascedda F.;Lukowiak K.
2023

Abstract

Food is not only necessary for our survival but also elicits pleasure. However, when a novel food is followed sometime later by nausea or sickness animals form a long-lasting association to avoid that food. This phenomenon is called the ‘Garcia effect’. We hypothesized that lipopolysaccharide (LPS) could be used as the sickness-inducing stimulus to produce a Garcia-like effect in inbred and wild populations of Lymnaea stagnalis. We first demonstrated that the injection of 25 μg (6.25 µg/mL) of Escherichia coli-derived LPS serotype O127:B8 did not by itself alter snails’ feeding behavior. Then we showed that the presentation of a novel appetitive stimulus (i.e., carrot slurry) and LPS resulted in a taste-specific and long-lasting feeding suppression (i.e., the Garcia-like effect). We also found strain-specific variations in the duration of the long-term memory (LTM). That is, while the LTM for the Garcia-like effect in W-strain snails persisted for 24h, LTM persisted for 48h in freshly collected Margo snails and their F1 offspring. Finally, we demonstrated that the exposure to a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, aspirin (acetylsalicylic acid) before the LPS injection prevented both the LPS-induced sickness state and the Garcia-like effect from occurring. The results of this study may pave the way for new research that aims at (1) uncovering the conserved molecular mechanisms underlying the Garcia-like effect, (2) understanding how cognitive traits vary within and between species, and (3) creating a holistic picture of the complex dialogue between the immune and central nervous systems.
2023
263
114137
N/A
Novel taste, sickness, and memory: Lipopolysaccharide to induce a Garcia-like effect in inbred and wild strains of Lymnaea stagnalis / Rivi, V.; Batabyal, A.; Benatti, C.; Blom, J. M.; Tascedda, F.; Lukowiak, K.. - In: PHYSIOLOGY & BEHAVIOR. - ISSN 0031-9384. - 263:(2023), pp. 114137-N/A. [10.1016/j.physbeh.2023.114137]
Rivi, V.; Batabyal, A.; Benatti, C.; Blom, J. M.; Tascedda, F.; Lukowiak, K.
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Utilizza questo identificativo per citare o creare un link a questo documento: https://hdl.handle.net/11380/1304468
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