Biology subjects

Song, S. E.

Publications and source records attributed to Song, S. E..

2 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2026

Acute partner loss enhances social motivation and nucleus accumbens dopamine release in prairie voles

The loss of close social relationships leads to profound mental and physical health consequences across social species. We utilized the socially selective prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) to investigate how 5-day separation from a bonded mate or peer partner shapes social motivation and dopamine release kinetics in males and females. Prior to partner loss, baseline social motivation to access a partner or a novel object differed by sex and relationship type (mate vs. peer). Across all groups, however, separation induced heightened partner-seeking. Partner loss also enhanced dopamine signaling in the nucleus accumbens, increasing evoked dopamine release, the number of putative dopamine release sites, and tyrosine hydroxylase abundance, regardless of sex or relationship type. These findings suggest that mesolimbic reward circuitry adapts rapidly to the loss of a bonded partner, potentially signaling a critical social deficit across relationship types. Further, by leveraging high-resolution synthetic nanosensors, this study provides subcellular insights into presynaptic dopaminergic plasticity following partner loss, linking relationship loss to heightened social motivation and shifts in reward signaling.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2026

Disordered but Different: The Unique Characteristics of Intrinsically Disordered Regions in Human Transcription Factors

Intrinsically disordered regions (IDRs) of proteins play key roles in multivalent interactions and the formation of biomolecular condensates. IDRs are widespread across the human proteome but are significantly enriched in transcription factor (TF) activation domains. However, it remains unclear why TF activation domains are enriched for IDRs and whether these regions are fundamentally distinct from IDRs in other proteins. Here, we comprehensively identify and analyze human IDRs and discover widespread functional, phenotypic, and evolutionary differences between TF and non-TF IDRs. Notably, in contrast to the broader proteome, TFs have evolved to become more disordered over time. Correspondingly, highly disordered TFs are more likely to regulate developmental processes, govern larger regulatory networks, and be subject to stronger regulatory constraints. TF IDRs are also enriched for pathogenic mutations relative to non-TF IDRs, and disorder content significantly predicts the mode of disease inheritance. Our results provide novel insights into how the evolution of gene regulation has uniquely shaped the molecular function and disease burden of TF IDRs.

genomics↗