Lateral Hypothalamus Calcium/Calmodulin-Dependent Protein Kinase II α Neurons Encode Novelty-Seeking Signals to Promote Predatory Eating

Abstract

Predatory hunting is an innate appetite-driven and evolutionarily conserved behavior essential for animal survival, integrating sequential behaviors including searching, pursuit, attack, retrieval, and ultimately consumption. Nevertheless, neural circuits underlying hunting behavior with different features remain largely unexplored. Here, we deciphered a novel function of lateral hypothalamus (LH) calcium/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II α (CaMKIIα ⁺) neurons in hunting behavior and uncovered upstream/downstream circuit basis. LH CaMKIIα ⁺ neurons bidirectionally modulate novelty-seeking behavior, predatory attack, and eating in hunting behavior. LH CaMKIIα ⁺ neurons integrate hunting-related novelty-seeking information from the medial preoptic area (MPOA) and project to the ventral periaqueductal gray (vPAG) to promote predatory eating. Our results demonstrate that LH CaMKIIα ⁺ neurons are the key hub that integrate MPOA-conveyed novelty-seeking signals and encode predatory eating in hunting behavior, which enriched the neuronal substrate of hunting behavior.