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Neuronal culprits of sickness behaviours

Specialized neurons that are activated after infection have been identified in the brain. These neurons orchestrate an array of sickness behaviours that help the body to cope with disease and to fight infection.
  1. Amirah-Iman Hicks

    1. Amirah-Iman Hicks is in the Department of Physiology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada.

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  2. Masha Prager-Khoutorsky

    1. Masha Prager-Khoutorsky is in the Department of Physiology, McGill University, Montreal, Quebec H3G 1Y6, Canada.

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How do we know when we are sick? We might have chills, fever and pain, feel tired, lose our appetites or avoid people and activities we normally enjoy1. These physiological responses are called sickness behaviours, and — although unpleasant — they are crucial for reorganizing the body’s functions, to help it cope with disease and to prioritize resources to fight infection2. Sickness behaviours are driven by the brain, but how does the brain know that there is an infection? Writing in Nature, Ilanges et al.3 describe a specialized population of neurons in the brain that orchestrates sickness behaviours in mice.

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Nature 609, 679-680 (2022)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-022-02321-7

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Competing Interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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