Oxytocin neurons signal state-dependent transitions from rest to thermogenesis and behavioral arousal

Abstract Core body temperature (Tb) is defended within narrow limits through thermoregulatory behaviors like huddling, nesting, and physical activity as well as autonomic responses like brown fat thermogenesis. While Tb displays regulated fluctuations across different behavioral states and rest/arousal cycles, the neural control of these transitions is poorly understood. Here, we investigate the relationship between oxytocin neurons of the paraventricular hypothalamus (PVN OT ) and behavioral and autonomic thermoeffector pathways across physiological states in mice. First, we show that PVN OT