A team of scientists led by researchers from the University of Leicester have found that genes responsible for learning, memory, aggression, and other complex behaviors are believed to have originated approximately 650 million years ago.
The findings, led by Dr. Roberto Feuda from the Neurogenetic group in the Department of Genetics and Genome Biology, along with colleagues from the University of Leicester and the University of Fribourg (Switzerland), have recently been published in Nature Communications.
According to Dr. Feuda, “For a long time, we have been aware that monoamines such as serotonin, dopamine, and adrenaline play a role as neuromodulators in the nervous system, contributing to complex behaviors and functions like learning, memory, sleep, and feeding.”
However, the origin of the genes necessary for the production, detection, and degradation of these monoamines has remained uncertain. Using computational methods, we have reconstructed the evolutionary history of these genes and determined that the majority of the genes involved in monoamine production, modulation, and reception originated within the bilaterian stem group.
“This discovery has significant implications for understanding the evolutionary origins of complex behaviors, similar to those influenced by monoamines, that are observed in both humans and other animals,” states Dr. Feuda.
The authors propose that this new method of modulating neuronal circuits may have played a role in the Cambrian Explosion, also known as the Big Bang, which led to the greatest diversification of life among most major animal groups still in existence today. This flexibility of neural circuits facilitated interaction with the environment.
Dr. Feuda further adds, “This finding will offer new and important research opportunities to clarify the origins of complex behaviors and explore if the same neurons modulate reward, addiction, aggression, feeding, and sleep.”