LinkedOXTRVariants Are Associated with Social Behavior Differences in Bonobos (Pan paniscus)

Abstract

AbstractSingle-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in forkhead box protein P2 (FOXP2) and oxytocin receptor (OXTR) genes have been associated with linguistic and social development in humans, as well as to symptom severity in autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Studying biobehavioral mechanisms in the species most closely related to humans can provide insights into the origins of human communication, and the impact of genetic variation on complex behavioral phenotypes. Here, we aimed to determine if bonobos (Pan paniscus) exhibit individual variation inFOXP2andOXTRloci that have been associated with human social development and behavior. Although the ASD-related variants were reported in 13-41% of the human population, we did not find variation at these loci in our sample of 13 bonobos. However, we did identify a novel variant in bonoboFOXP2, as well as four novel variants in bonoboOXTRthat were 17-184 base pairs from the human ASD variants. We also found the same linked, homozygous allelic combination across the 4 novelOXTRSNPs (homozygous TGTC) in 6 of the 13 bonobos, indicating that this combination may be under positive selection. When comparing the combinedOXTRgenotypes, we found significant group differences in social behavior; bonobos with zero copies of the TGTC combination were less social than bonobos with one copy of the TGTC combination. Taken together, our findings suggest that theseOXTRvariants may influence individual-level social behavior in bonobos and support the notion that linked genetic variants are promising risk factors for social communication deficits in humans.