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Sadino JM, Donaldson ZR. Prairie voles as a model for adaptive reward remodeling following loss of a bonded partner. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2024; 1535:20-30. [PMID: 38594916 DOI: 10.1111/nyas.15134] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 04/11/2024]
Abstract
Loss of a loved one is a painful event that substantially elevates the risk for physical and mental illness and impaired daily function. Socially monogamous prairie voles are laboratory-amenable rodents that form life-long pair bonds and exhibit distress upon partner separation, mirroring phenotypes seen in humans. These attributes make voles an excellent model for studying the biology of loss. In this review, we highlight parallels between humans and prairie voles, focusing on reward system engagement during pair bonding and loss. As yearning is a unique feature that differentiates loss from other negative mental states, we posit a model in which the homeostatic reward mechanisms that help to maintain bonds are disrupted upon loss, resulting in yearning and other negative impacts. Finally, we synthesize studies in humans and voles that delineate the remodeling of reward systems during loss adaptation. The stalling of these processes likely contributes to prolonged grief disorder, a diagnosis recently added to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual for Psychiatry.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie M Sadino
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, USA
| | - Zoe R Donaldson
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, USA
- Department of Psychology & Neuroscience, University of Colorado Boulder, Boulder, Colorado, USA
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2
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Mirchandani-Duque M, Choucri M, Hernández-Mondragón JC, Crespo-Ramírez M, Pérez-Olives C, Ferraro L, Franco R, Pérez de la Mora M, Fuxe K, Borroto-Escuela DO. Membrane Heteroreceptor Complexes as Second-Order Protein Modulators: A Novel Integrative Mechanism through Allosteric Receptor-Receptor Interactions. MEMBRANES 2024; 14:96. [PMID: 38786931 PMCID: PMC11122807 DOI: 10.3390/membranes14050096] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2024] [Revised: 04/13/2024] [Accepted: 04/19/2024] [Indexed: 05/25/2024]
Abstract
Bioluminescence and fluorescence resonance energy transfer (BRET and FRET) together with the proximity ligation method revealed the existence of G-protein-coupled receptors, Ionotropic and Receptor tyrosine kinase heterocomplexes, e.g., A2AR-D2R, GABAA-D5R, and FGFR1-5-HT1AR heterocomplexes. Molecular integration takes place through allosteric receptor-receptor interactions in heteroreceptor complexes of synaptic and extra-synaptic regions. It involves the modulation of receptor protomer recognition, signaling and trafficking, as well as the modulation of behavioral responses. Allosteric receptor-receptor interactions in hetero-complexes give rise to concepts like meta-modulation and protein modulation. The introduction of receptor-receptor interactions was the origin of the concept of meta-modulation provided by Katz and Edwards in 1999, which stood for the fine-tuning or modulation of nerve cell transmission. In 2000-2010, Ribeiro and Sebastiao, based on a series of papers, provided strong support for their view that adenosine can meta-modulate (fine-tune) synaptic transmission through adenosine receptors. However, another term should also be considered: protein modulation, which is the key feature of allosteric receptor-receptor interactions leading to learning and consolidation by novel adapter proteins to memory. Finally, it must be underlined that allosteric receptor-receptor interactions and their involvement both in brain disease and its treatment are of high interest. Their pathophysiological relevance has been obtained, especially for major depressive disorder, cocaine use disorder, and Parkinson's disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marina Mirchandani-Duque
- Receptomics and Brain Disorders Lab, Department of Human Physiology Physical Education and Sport, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaga, 29010 Málaga, Spain;
| | - Malak Choucri
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Biomedicum (B0852), Solnavägen 9, 17165 Solna, Sweden;
| | - Juan C. Hernández-Mondragón
- Instituto de Fisiología Celular, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (J.C.H.-M.); (M.C.-R.); (M.P.d.l.M.)
| | - Minerva Crespo-Ramírez
- Instituto de Fisiología Celular, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (J.C.H.-M.); (M.C.-R.); (M.P.d.l.M.)
| | - Catalina Pérez-Olives
- Molecular Neurobiology Laboratory, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biomedicine, Universitat de Barcelona, 08007 Barcelona, Spain;
| | - Luca Ferraro
- Department of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Section of Medicinal and Health Products University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (L.F.); (R.F.)
| | - Rafael Franco
- Department of Life Sciences and Biotechnology, Section of Medicinal and Health Products University of Ferrara, 44121 Ferrara, Italy; (L.F.); (R.F.)
| | - Miguel Pérez de la Mora
- Instituto de Fisiología Celular, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City 04510, Mexico; (J.C.H.-M.); (M.C.-R.); (M.P.d.l.M.)
| | - Kjell Fuxe
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Biomedicum (B0852), Solnavägen 9, 17165 Solna, Sweden;
| | - Dasiel O. Borroto-Escuela
- Receptomics and Brain Disorders Lab, Department of Human Physiology Physical Education and Sport, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaga, 29010 Málaga, Spain;
- Department of Neuroscience, Karolinska Institutet, Biomedicum (B0852), Solnavägen 9, 17165 Solna, Sweden;
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Uvnäs-Moberg K, Gross MM, Calleja-Agius J, Turner JD. The Yin and Yang of the oxytocin and stress systems: opposites, yet interdependent and intertwined determinants of lifelong health trajectories. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2024; 15:1272270. [PMID: 38689729 PMCID: PMC11058227 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2024.1272270] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2023] [Accepted: 04/01/2024] [Indexed: 05/02/2024] Open
Abstract
During parturition and the immediate post-partum period there are two opposite, yet interdependent and intertwined systems that are highly active and play a role in determining lifelong health and behaviour in both the mother and her infant: the stress and the anti-stress (oxytocin) system. Before attempting to understand how the environment around birth determines long-term health trajectories, it is essential to understand how these two systems operate and how they interact. Here, we discuss together the hormonal and neuronal arms of both the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis and the oxytocinergic systems and how they interact. Although the HPA axis and glucocorticoid stress axis are well studied, the role of oxytocin as an extremely powerful anti-stress hormone deserves more attention. It is clear that these anti-stress effects depend on oxytocinergic nerves emanating from the supraoptic nucleus (SON) and paraventricular nucleus (PVN), and project to multiple sites at which the stress system is regulated. These, include projections to corticotropin releasing hormone (CRH) neurons within the PVN, to the anterior pituitary, to areas involved in sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous control, to NA neurons in the locus coeruleus (LC), and to CRH neurons in the amygdala. In the context of the interaction between the HPA axis and the oxytocin system birth is a particularly interesting period as, for both the mother and the infant, both systems are very strongly activated within the same narrow time window. Data suggest that the HPA axis and the oxytocin system appear to interact in this early-life period, with effects lasting many years. If mother-child skin-to-skin contact occurs almost immediately postpartum, the effects of the anti-stress (oxytocin) system become more prominent, moderating lifelong health trajectories. There is clear evidence that HPA axis activity during this time is dependent on the balance between the HPA axis and the oxytocin system, the latter being reinforced by specific somatosensory inputs, and this has long-term consequences for stress reactivity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kerstin Uvnäs-Moberg
- Department of Animal Environment and Health, Section of Anthrozoology and Applied Ethology, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Skara, Sweden
| | - Mechthild M. Gross
- Midwifery Research and Education Unit, Hannover Medical School, Hannover, Germany
| | - Jean Calleja-Agius
- Department of Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine and Surgery, University of Malta, Msida, Malta
| | - Jonathan D. Turner
- Immune Endocrine Epigenetics Research Group, Department of Infection and Immunity, Luxembourg Institute of Health, Esch sur Alzette, Luxembourg
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Salles J, Eddiry S, Amri S, Galindo M, Lacassagne E, George S, Mialhe X, Lhuillier É, Franchitto N, Jeanneteau F, Gennero I, Salles JP, Tauber M. Differential DNA methylation in iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons: a step forward on the role of SNORD116 microdeletion in the pathophysiology of addictive behavior in Prader-Willi syndrome. Mol Psychiatry 2024:10.1038/s41380-024-02542-4. [PMID: 38561465 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-024-02542-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2023] [Revised: 03/14/2024] [Accepted: 03/19/2024] [Indexed: 04/04/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION A microdeletion including the SNORD116 gene (SNORD116 MD) has been shown to drive the Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) features. PWS is a neurodevelopmental disorder clinically characterized by endocrine impairment, intellectual disability and psychiatric symptoms such as a lack of emotional regulation, impulsivity, and intense temper tantrums with outbursts. In addition, this syndrome is associated with a nutritional trajectory characterized by addiction-like behavior around food in adulthood. PWS is related to the genetic loss of expression of a minimal region that plays a potential role in epigenetic regulation. Nevertheless, the role of the SNORD116 MD in DNA methylation, as well as the impact of the oxytocin (OXT) on it, have never been investigated in human neurons. METHODS We studied the methylation marks in induced pluripotent stem-derived dopaminergic neurons carrying a SNORD116 MD in comparison with those from an age-matched adult healthy control. We also performed identical neuron differentiation in the presence of OXT. We performed a genome-wide DNA methylation analysis from the iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons by reduced-representation bisulfite sequencing. In addition, we performed RNA sequencing analysis in these iPSC-derived dopaminergic neurons differentiated with or without OXT. RESULTS The analysis revealed that 153,826 cytosines were differentially methylated between SNORD116 MD neurons and control neurons. Among the differentially methylated genes, we determined a list of genes also differentially expressed. Enrichment analysis of this list encompassed the dopaminergic system with COMT and SLC6A3. COMT displayed hypermethylation and under-expression in SNORD116 MD, and SLC6A3 displayed hypomethylation and over-expression in SNORD116 MD. RT-qPCR confirmed significant over-expression of SLC6A3 in SNORD116 MD neurons. Moreover, the expression of this gene was significantly decreased in the case of OXT adjunction during the differentiation. CONCLUSION SNORD116 MD dopaminergic neurons displayed differential methylation and expression in the COMT and SLC6A3 genes, which are related to dopaminergic clearance.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juliette Salles
- Service de psychiatrie d'urgences, de crise et de liaison; Institut des Handicaps Neurologiques, Psychiatriques et Sensoriels, CHU de Toulouse; Infinity Center, Inserm CNRS UMR1291, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France.
| | - Sanaa Eddiry
- Endocrine, Bone Diseases and Genetics Unit, Reference Centre for Rare Diseases of Calcium and Phosphate Metabolism, ERN BOND, OSCAR Network, Paediatric Research Unit, Children's Hospital, University Hospital; Infinity Center, Inserm CNRS UMR1291, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Saber Amri
- Infinity Center, Inserm CNRS UMR1291, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Mélissa Galindo
- Infinity Center, Inserm CNRS UMR1291, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Emmanuelle Lacassagne
- Infinity Center, Inserm CNRS UMR1291, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Simon George
- MGX-Montpellier GenomiX, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, Inserm, Montpellier, France
| | - Xavier Mialhe
- MGX-Montpellier GenomiX, Univ. Montpellier, CNRS, Inserm, Montpellier, France
| | - Émeline Lhuillier
- I2MC - Institut des Maladies Métaboliques et Cardiovasculaires, Inserm, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier; GeT-Santé, Plateforme Génome et Transcriptome, GenoToul, Toulouse, France
| | - Nicolas Franchitto
- Service d'Addictologie Clinique, Urgences Réanimation Médecine, CHU de Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - Freddy Jeanneteau
- Institut de Genomique Fonctionnelle, University of Montpellier, Inserm, CNRS, Montpellier, 34090, France
| | - Isabelle Gennero
- Infinity Center, Inserm CNRS UMR1291, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier; Laboratoire de Biochimie - Biologie moléculaire IFB Center CHU Toulouse, Toulouse, France
| | - Jean-Pierre Salles
- Endocrine, Bone Diseases and Genetics Unit, Reference Centre for Rare Diseases of Calcium and Phosphate Metabolism, ERN BOND, OSCAR Network, Paediatric Research Unit, Children's Hospital, University Hospital; Infinity Center, Inserm CNRS UMR1291, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
| | - Maithé Tauber
- Centre de Référence National du Syndrome de Prader-Willi et Syndromes avec Troubles du Comportement Alimentaire, Unité d'Endocrinologie, Hôpital des Enfants, Institut des Handicaps Neurologiques, Psychiatriques et Sensoriels, CHU de Toulouse; Infinity Center, Inserm CNRS UMR1291, University of Toulouse 3 Paul Sabatier, Toulouse, France
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Bortolini T, Laport MC, Latgé-Tovar S, Fischer R, Zahn R, de Oliveira-Souza R, Moll J. The extended neural architecture of human attachment: An fMRI coordinate-based meta-analysis of affiliative studies. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2024; 159:105584. [PMID: 38367888 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2024.105584] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/25/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 02/12/2024] [Indexed: 02/19/2024]
Abstract
Functional imaging studies and clinical evidence indicate that cortical areas relevant to social cognition are closely integrated with evolutionarily conserved basal forebrain structures and neighboring regions, enabling human attachment and affiliative emotions. The neural circuitry of human affiliation is continually being unraveled as functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) becomes increasingly prevalent, with studies examining human brain responses to various attachment figures. However, previous fMRI meta-analyses on affiliative stimuli have encountered challenges, such as low statistical power and the absence of robustness measures. To address these issues, we conducted an exhaustive coordinate-based meta-analysis of 79 fMRI studies, focusing on personalized affiliative stimuli, including one's infants, family, romantic partners, and friends. We employed complementary coordinate-based analyses (Activation Likelihood Estimation and Signed Differential Mapping) and conducted a robustness analysis of the results. Findings revealed cluster convergence in cortical and subcortical structures related to reward and motivation, salience detection, social bonding, and cognition. Our study thoroughly explores the neural correlates underpinning affiliative responses, effectively overcoming the limitations noted in previous meta-analyses. It provides an extensive view of the neural substrates associated with affiliative stimuli, illuminating the intricate interaction between cortical and subcortical regions. Our findings significantly contribute to understanding the neurobiology of human affiliation, expanding the known human attachment circuitry beyond the traditional basal forebrain regions observed in other mammals to include uniquely human isocortical structures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tiago Bortolini
- Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics Unit, The D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; IDOR - Pioneer Science Initiative, São Paulo, Brazil.
| | - Maria Clara Laport
- Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics Unit, The D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Sofia Latgé-Tovar
- Institute of Psychiatry, Center for Alzheimer's Disease, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), Rio de Janeiro, RJ, Brazil
| | - Ronald Fischer
- Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics Unit, The D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; IDOR - Pioneer Science Initiative, São Paulo, Brazil; School of Psychology, PO Box 600, Victoria University of Wellington, Wellington 6021, New Zealand
| | - Roland Zahn
- Centre for Affective Disorders, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King's College London, London SE5 8AF, UK
| | - Ricardo de Oliveira-Souza
- Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics Unit, The D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; The Federal University of the State of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Jorge Moll
- Cognitive Neuroscience and Neuroinformatics Unit, The D'Or Institute for Research and Education (IDOR), Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; IDOR - Pioneer Science Initiative, São Paulo, Brazil
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Chen C, Okawa S, Okubo R, Nakagawa S, Tabuchi T. Risk factors for persistent versus episodic mother-to-infant bonding difficulties in postpartum women in a nationwide Japanese longitudinal study. J Affect Disord 2024; 349:370-376. [PMID: 38199402 DOI: 10.1016/j.jad.2024.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/17/2023] [Revised: 11/21/2023] [Accepted: 01/03/2024] [Indexed: 01/12/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The quality of mother-to-infant bonding (MIB) is a crucial determinant of nurturing behaviors and infant development, with bonding difficulties (MIBD) posing a substantial threat. While it is essential to identify MIBD risk factors, previous studies have generally examined MIBD at one time point, leaving the contributors to persistent MIBD uncertain. This study aims to discern longitudinal risk factors for persistent versus episodic MIBD. METHODS We evaluated 1833 postpartum Japanese women who delivered in the past twelve months, utilizing the Mother-to-Infant Bonding Scale (MIBS) and other sociodemographic, health, pregnancy, childbirth, and child-rearing related data (T1). Follow-up data were obtained six months later (T2). MIBD was defined as a MIBS score of five or more, with "persistent" and "episodic" MIBD classified based on its occurrence at both or either one of the time points, respectively. Logistic generalized estimating equations and inverse probability weighting were used to identify risk factors and address selective attribution bias. RESULTS Of the subjects, 15.8 % reported episodic and 11.3 % reported persistent MIBD. Shared risk factors for both conditions included postpartum depression and low levels of family support (OR = 1.501-6.343). However, pre-pregnancy underweight status (OR = 1.698) was a unique risk factor for episodic MIBD, while first-time motherhood, no or discontinuation of breastfeeding, and later postpartum months (OR = 1.540-3.179) were distinctive risk factors for persistent MIBD. CONCLUSION We identified both shared and unique risk factors for episodic and persistent MIBD. Particular attention should be afforded to persistent MIBD and early and proactive interventions to mitigate identified risk factors are recommended.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chong Chen
- Division of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Neuroscience, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine, Ube, Japan.
| | - Sumiyo Okawa
- Institute for Global Health Policy Research, Bureau of International Health Cooperation, National Center for Global Health and Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Ryo Okubo
- Department of Psychiatry, National Hospital Organization Obihiro Hospital, Obihiro, Japan
| | - Shin Nakagawa
- Division of Neuropsychiatry, Department of Neuroscience, Yamaguchi University Graduate School of Medicine, Ube, Japan
| | - Takahiro Tabuchi
- Cancer Control Center, Osaka International Cancer Institute, Osaka, Japan
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Liu Q, Zhu S, Zhou X, Liu F, Becker B, Kendrick KM, Zhao W. Mothers and fathers show different neural synchrony with their children during shared experiences. Neuroimage 2024; 288:120529. [PMID: 38301879 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroimage.2024.120529] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/03/2023] [Revised: 01/09/2024] [Accepted: 01/29/2024] [Indexed: 02/03/2024] Open
Abstract
Parent-child shared experiences has an important influence on social development in children although contributions of mothers and fathers may differ. Neural synchronicity occurs between mothers and fathers and their children during social interactions but it is unclear whether they differ in this respect. We used data from simultaneous fNIRS hyperscanning in mothers (n = 33) and fathers (n = 29) and their children (3-4 years) to determine different patterns and strengths of neural synchronization in the frontal cortex during co-viewing of videos or free-play. Mothers showed greater synchrony with child than fathers during passive viewing of videos and the synchronization was positively associated with video complexity and negatively associated with parental stress. During play interactions, mothers showed more controlling behaviors over their child and greater evidence for joint gaze and joint imitation play with child whereas fathers spent more time gazing at other things. In addition, different aspects of child communication promoted neural synchrony between mothers and fathers and child during active play interactions. Overall, our findings indicate greater neural and behavioral synchrony between mothers than fathers and young children during passive or active shared experiences, although for both it was weakened by parental distress and child difficulty.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qi Liu
- The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, PR China
| | - Siyu Zhu
- School of Sport Training, Chengdu Sport University, Chengdu, 610041, PR China
| | - Xinqi Zhou
- Institute of Brain and Psychological Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, 610066, PR China
| | - Fang Liu
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, PR China
| | - Benjamin Becker
- The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, PR China; The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, PR China; The State Key Laboratory of Brain and Cognitive Sciences, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, 999077, PR China
| | - Keith M Kendrick
- The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, PR China.
| | - Weihua Zhao
- The Center of Psychosomatic Medicine, Sichuan Provincial Center for Mental Health, Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, PR China; The Clinical Hospital of Chengdu Brain Science Institute, MOE Key Laboratory for NeuroInformation, School of Life Science and Technology, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, Chengdu, 611731, PR China; Institute of Electronic and Information Engineering of UESTC in Guangdong, Dongguan, 523808, PR China.
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Gustison ML, Muñoz-Castañeda R, Osten P, Phelps SM. Sexual coordination in a whole-brain map of prairie vole pair bonding. eLife 2024; 12:RP87029. [PMID: 38381037 PMCID: PMC10942618 DOI: 10.7554/elife.87029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/22/2024] Open
Abstract
Sexual bonds are central to the social lives of many species, including humans, and monogamous prairie voles have become the predominant model for investigating such attachments. We developed an automated whole-brain mapping pipeline to identify brain circuits underlying pair-bonding behavior. We identified bonding-related c-Fos induction in 68 brain regions clustered in seven major brain-wide neuronal circuits. These circuits include known regulators of bonding, such as the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, paraventricular hypothalamus, ventral pallidum, and prefrontal cortex. They also include brain regions previously unknown to shape bonding, such as ventromedial hypothalamus, medial preoptic area, and the medial amygdala, but that play essential roles in bonding-relevant processes, such as sexual behavior, social reward, and territorial aggression. Contrary to some hypotheses, we found that circuits active during mating and bonding were largely sexually monomorphic. Moreover, c-Fos induction across regions was strikingly consistent between members of a pair, with activity best predicted by rates of ejaculation. A novel cluster of regions centered in the amygdala remained coordinated after bonds had formed, suggesting novel substrates for bond maintenance. Our tools and results provide an unprecedented resource for elucidating the networks that translate sexual experience into an enduring bond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morgan L Gustison
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at AustinAustinUnited States
- Department of Psychology, Western UniversityLondonCanada
| | - Rodrigo Muñoz-Castañeda
- Cold Spring Harbor LaboratoryCold Spring HarborUnited States
- Appel Alzheimer's Disease Research Institute, Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, Weill Cornell MedicineNew YorkUnited States
| | - Pavel Osten
- Cold Spring Harbor LaboratoryCold Spring HarborUnited States
| | - Steven M Phelps
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at AustinAustinUnited States
- Institute for Neuroscience, The University of Texas at AustinAustinUnited States
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Xie Y, Feeney BC. A narrative review of research linking non-sexual social touch to sleep quality. J Sleep Res 2024:e14174. [PMID: 38382911 DOI: 10.1111/jsr.14174] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2023] [Revised: 01/30/2024] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 02/23/2024]
Abstract
This narrative review describes the current state of the literature that has examined associations between non-sexual social touch (i.e., affectionate touch, touch therapies, touch with animals and inanimate objects that mimic social touch) and sleep quality. It also highlights areas for future research to clarify the links and to identify underlying mechanisms. Most existing studies have focussed on and shown positive effects of touch therapies (e.g., massage, therapeutic touch) on sleep quality in clinical populations. Although there are fewer studies examining how other forms of social touch are linked with sleep quality, the existing research provides preliminary evidence supporting affectionate touch (e.g., hugging, skin-to-skin contact) and tactile contact with animals (e.g., dogs) and objects that mimic social touch (e.g., robots, weighted blankets) as predictors of better sleep quality, while touch deprivation and touch aversion are associated with worse sleep quality. Informed by the existing literature, we additionally reviewed potential relational-cognitive (e.g., felt-security) and neurobiological (e.g., oxytocin) mechanisms likely to underlie associations between social touch and sleep quality. Overall, current research supports associations between non-sexual social touch and sleep quality. However, future research is needed to establish these links for specific forms of social touch (and in various populations), to test explanatory mechanisms, and to identify boundary conditions. Understanding associations between non-sexual social touch and sleep quality can inform the development of touch-based interventions to improve sleep quality and health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuxi Xie
- Department of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Brooke C Feeney
- Department of Psychology, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
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10
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Denney KA, Wu MV, Sun SED, Moon S, Tollkuhn J. Comparative analysis of gonadal hormone receptor expression in the postnatal house mouse, meadow vole, and prairie vole brain. Horm Behav 2024; 158:105463. [PMID: 37995608 PMCID: PMC11145901 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2023.105463] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2023] [Revised: 11/12/2023] [Accepted: 11/17/2023] [Indexed: 11/25/2023]
Abstract
The socially monogamous prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) and promiscuous meadow vole (Microtus pennsylvanicus) are closely related, but only prairie voles display long-lasting pair bonds, biparental care, and selective aggression towards unfamiliar individuals after pair bonding. These social behaviors in mammals are largely mediated by steroid hormone signaling in the social behavior network (SBN) of the brain. Hormone receptors are reproducible markers of sex differences that can provide more information than anatomy alone and can even be at odds with anatomical dimorphisms. We reasoned that behaviors associated with social monogamy in prairie voles may emerge in part from unique expression patterns of steroid hormone receptors in this species, and that these expression patterns would be more similar across males and females in prairie than in meadow voles or the laboratory mouse. To obtain insight into steroid hormone signaling in the developing prairie vole brain, we assessed expression of estrogen receptor alpha (Esr1), estrogen receptor beta (Esr2), and androgen receptor (Ar) within the SBN, using in situ hybridization at postnatal day 14 in mice, meadow, and prairie voles. We found species-specific patterns of hormone receptor expression in the hippocampus and ventromedial hypothalamus, as well as species differences in the sex bias of these markers in the principal nucleus of the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis. These findings suggest the observed differences in gonadal hormone receptor expression may underlie species differences in the display of social behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine A Denney
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA; Program in Neuroscience, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, NY 11790, USA
| | - Melody V Wu
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA
| | - Simón E D Sun
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA
| | - Soyoun Moon
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA
| | - Jessica Tollkuhn
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, 1 Bungtown Road, Cold Spring Harbor, NY 11724, USA.
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11
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Haaf R, Brandi ML, Albantakis L, Lahnakoski JM, Henco L, Schilbach L. Peripheral oxytocin levels are linked to hypothalamic gray matter volume in autistic adults: a cross-sectional secondary data analysis. Sci Rep 2024; 14:1380. [PMID: 38228703 PMCID: PMC10791615 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-50770-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2023] [Accepted: 12/25/2023] [Indexed: 01/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Oxytocin (OXT) is known to modulate social behavior and cognition and has been discussed as pathophysiological and therapeutic factor for autism spectrum disorder (ASD). An accumulating body of evidence indicates the hypothalamus to be of particular importance with regard to the underlying neurobiology. Here we used a region of interest voxel-based morphometry (VBM) approach to investigate hypothalamic gray matter volume (GMV) in autistic (n = 29, age 36.03 ± 11.0) and non-autistic adults (n = 27, age 30.96 ± 11.2). Peripheral plasma OXT levels and the autism spectrum quotient (AQ) were used for correlation analyses. Results showed no differences in hypothalamic GMV in autistic compared to non-autistic adults but suggested a differential association between hypothalamic GMV and OXT levels, such that a positive association was found for the ASD group. In addition, hypothalamic GMV showed a positive association with autistic traits in the ASD group. Bearing in mind the limitations such as a relatively small sample size, a wide age range and a high rate of psychopharmacological treatment in the ASD sample, these results provide new preliminary evidence for a potentially important role of the HTH in ASD and its relationship to the OXT system, but also point towards the importance of interindividual differences.
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Affiliation(s)
- Raoul Haaf
- Independent Max Planck Research Group for Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany.
- Graduate School, Technical University of Munich, Munich, Germany.
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Charité - Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate member of Freie Universität Berlin and Humboldt- Universität zu Berlin, Berlin, Germany.
| | - Marie-Luise Brandi
- Independent Max Planck Research Group for Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
| | - Laura Albantakis
- Independent Max Planck Research Group for Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Outpatient and Day Clinic for Disorders of Social Interaction, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- International Max Planck Research School for Translational Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
| | - Juha M Lahnakoski
- Independent Max Planck Research Group for Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Institute of Neurosciences and Medicine, Brain and Behaviour (INM-7), Research Center Jülich, Jülich, Germany
- Institute of Systems Neuroscience, Medical Faculty, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, Düsseldorf, Germany
| | - Lara Henco
- Independent Max Planck Research Group for Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Munich, Germany
| | - Leonhard Schilbach
- Independent Max Planck Research Group for Social Neuroscience, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Outpatient and Day Clinic for Disorders of Social Interaction, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- International Max Planck Research School for Translational Psychiatry, Munich, Germany
- Graduate School of Systemic Neurosciences, Munich, Germany
- Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Munich, Germany
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12
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Leithead AB, Godino A, Barbier M, Harony-Nicolas H. Social Interaction Elicits Activity in Glutamatergic Neurons in the Posterior Intralaminar Complex of the Thalamus. Biol Psychiatry 2024; 95:112-122. [PMID: 37245781 PMCID: PMC10676449 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2023.05.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 05/17/2023] [Accepted: 05/19/2023] [Indexed: 05/30/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The posterior intralaminar complex of the thalamus (PIL) is a multimodal nucleus that has been implicated in maternal behaviors and conspecific social behaviors in male and female rodents. Glutamatergic neurons are a major component of the PIL; however, their specific activity and role during social interactions has not yet been assessed. METHODS We used immunohistochemistry for the immediate early gene c-fos as a proxy for neuronal activity in the PIL of mice exposed to a novel social stimulus, a novel object stimulus, or no stimulus. We then used fiber photometry to record neural activity of glutamatergic neurons in the PIL in real time during social and nonsocial interactions. Finally, we used inhibitory DREADDs (designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs) in glutamatergic PIL neurons and tested social preference and social habituation-dishabituation. RESULTS We observed significantly more c-fos-positive cells in the PIL of mice exposed to a social stimulus versus an object stimulus or no stimulus. Neural activity of PIL glutamatergic neurons was increased when male and female mice were engaged in social interaction with a same-sex juvenile or opposite-sex adult, but not a toy mouse. Neural activity was positively correlated with social investigation bout length and negatively correlated with chronological order of bouts. Social preference was unaffected by inhibition; however, inhibiting activity of glutamatergic neurons in the PIL delayed the time that it took for female mice to form social habituation. CONCLUSIONS Together, these findings suggest that glutamatergic PIL neurons respond to social stimuli in both male and female mice and may regulate perceptual encoding of social information to facilitate recognition of social stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Beth Leithead
- Department of Psychiatry, the Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Friedman Brain Institute, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Arthur Godino
- Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Friedman Brain Institute, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Marie Barbier
- Department of Psychiatry, the Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Friedman Brain Institute, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York
| | - Hala Harony-Nicolas
- Department of Psychiatry, the Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Seaver Autism Center for Research and Treatment, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Department of Neuroscience, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Friedman Brain Institute, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York; Mindich Child Health and Development Institute, The Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, New York.
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13
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Marazziti D. A long and winding road: My personal journey to oxytocin with no return. COMPREHENSIVE PSYCHONEUROENDOCRINOLOGY 2023; 16:100198. [PMID: 38108036 PMCID: PMC10724735 DOI: 10.1016/j.cpnec.2023.100198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2023] [Accepted: 07/31/2023] [Indexed: 12/19/2023] Open
Abstract
The present paper is the personal narration of the author reviewing her scientific pathways that led her toward the study of oxytocin. My work began with a pioneering study showing a decreased number of the serotonin transporter proteins in romantic lovers. This unexpected finding promoted my interest in the neurobiology of human emotions and feelings, and significantly shifted my research focus from diseases to physiological states that underlie "love." During this time increasing experimental data broadened the spectrum of activities of oxytocin from female functions, such as parturition and lactation, to modulation of the stress and immune system. The literature also began to reveal an important role for oxytocin in a sense of safety and wellbeing, processes that are critical to both love and survival. I suggest here that future studies should disentangle different emerging questions regarding the exact role of oxytocin within human nature, as well as its possible therapeutic applications in different physiological conditions and pathological states. Understanding these, in turn, holds the potential to improve the lives of both individuals and societies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donatella Marazziti
- Dipartimento di Medicina Clinica e Sperimentale, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Via Roma 67, 56100, Pisa, Italy
- Saint Camillus International University of Health and Medical Sciences – UniCamillus, Rome, Italy
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14
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Gustison ML, Muñoz-Castañeda R, Osten P, Phelps SM. Sexual coordination in a whole-brain map of prairie vole pair bonding. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.07.26.550685. [PMID: 37546974 PMCID: PMC10402037 DOI: 10.1101/2023.07.26.550685] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/08/2023]
Abstract
Sexual bonds are central to the social lives of many species, including humans, and monogamous prairie voles have become the predominant model for investigating such attachments. We developed an automated whole-brain mapping pipeline to identify brain circuits underlying pair-bonding behavior. We identified bonding-related c-Fos induction in 68 brain regions clustered in seven major brain-wide neuronal circuits. These circuits include known regulators of bonding, such as the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis, paraventricular hypothalamus, ventral pallidum, and prefrontal cortex. They also include brain regions previously unknown to shape bonding, such as ventromedial hypothalamus, medial preoptic area and the medial amygdala, but that play essential roles in bonding-relevant processes, such as sexual behavior, social reward and territorial aggression. Contrary to some hypotheses, we found that circuits active during mating and bonding were largely sexually monomorphic. Moreover, c-Fos induction across regions was strikingly consistent between members of a pair, with activity best predicted by rates of ejaculation. A novel cluster of regions centered in the amygdala remained coordinated after bonds had formed, suggesting novel substrates for bond maintenance. Our tools and results provide an unprecedented resource for elucidating the networks that translate sexual experience into an enduring bond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Morgan L. Gustison
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin; Austin, TX, USA
- Department of Psychology, Western University, ON, Canada
| | - Rodrigo Muñoz-Castañeda
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
- Appel Alzheimer's Disease Research Institute, Feil Family Brain and Mind Research Institute, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY
| | - Pavel Osten
- Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Cold Spring Harbor, NY, USA
| | - Steven M. Phelps
- Department of Integrative Biology, The University of Texas at Austin; Austin, TX, USA
- Institute for Neuroscience, The University of Texas at Austin; Austin, TX, USA
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15
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Berendzen KM. Understanding social attachment as a window into the neural basis of prosocial behavior. Front Neurol 2023; 14:1247480. [PMID: 37869145 PMCID: PMC10585278 DOI: 10.3389/fneur.2023.1247480] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 10/24/2023] Open
Abstract
The representation and demonstration of human values are intimately tied to our status as a social species. Humans are relatively unique in our ability to form enduring social attachments, characterized by the development of a selective bond that persists over time. Such relationships include the bonds between parents and offspring, pair bonds between partners and other affiliative contacts, in addition to group relationships to which we may form direct and symbolic affiliations. Many of the cognitive and behavioral processes thought to be linked to our capacity for social attachment-including consolation, empathy, and social motivation, and the implicated neural circuits mediating these constructs, are shared with those thought to be important for the representation of prosocial values. This perspective piece will examine the hypothesis that our ability to form such long-term bonds may play an essential role in the construction of human values and ethical systems, and that components of prosocial behaviors are shared across species. Humans are one of a few species that form such long-term and exclusive attachments and our understanding of the neurobiology underlying attachment behavior has been advanced by studying behavior in non-human animals. The overlap in behavioral and affective constructs underlying attachment behavior and value representation is discussed, followed by evidence from other species that demonstrate attachment behavior that supports the overlapping neurobiological basis for social bonds and prosocial behavior. The understanding of attachment biology has broad implications for human health as well as for understanding the basis for and variations in prosocial behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristen M. Berendzen
- Department of Psychiatry and Biological Sciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
- Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, United States
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16
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Berendzen KM, Bales KL, Manoli DS. Attachment across the lifespan: Examining the intersection of pair bonding neurobiology and healthy aging. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 153:105339. [PMID: 37536581 PMCID: PMC11073483 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105339] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2023] [Revised: 07/17/2023] [Accepted: 07/30/2023] [Indexed: 08/05/2023]
Abstract
Increasing evidence suggests that intact social bonds are protective against age-related morbidity, while bond disruption and social isolation increase the risk for multiple age-related diseases. Social attachments, the enduring, selective bonds formed between individuals, are thus essential to human health. Socially monogamous species like the prairie vole (M. ochrogaster) form long-term pair bonds, allowing us to investigate the mechanisms underlying attachment and the poorly understood connection between social bonds and health. In this review, we explore several potential areas of focus emerging from data in humans and other species associating attachment and healthy aging, and evidence from prairie voles that may clarify this link. We examine gaps in our understanding of social cognition and pair bond behavior. Finally, we discuss physiologic pathways related to pair bonding that promote resilience to the processes of aging and age-related disease. Advances in the development of molecular genetic tools in monogamous species will allow us to bridge the mechanistic gaps presented and identify conserved research and therapeutic targets relevant to human health and aging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kristen M. Berendzen
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
- Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
| | - Karen L. Bales
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis; Davis, CA 95616, USA
- Department of Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, University of California, Davis; Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Devanand S. Manoli
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
- Center for Integrative Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
- Weill Institute for Neurosciences, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
- Kavli Institute for Fundamental Neuroscience, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
- Neurosciences Graduate Program, University of California, San Francisco; San Francisco, CA 95158, USA
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17
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Bargiota SI, Papakonstantinou AV, Christodoulou NG. Oxytocin as a treatment for high-risk psychosis or early stages of psychosis: a mini review. Front Psychiatry 2023; 14:1232776. [PMID: 37663608 PMCID: PMC10470639 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1232776] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2023] [Accepted: 07/25/2023] [Indexed: 09/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Individuals at clinical high risk for psychosis (CHR-P) present as help-seeking individuals with social deficits as well as cognitive and functional impairment and have a 23-36% risk of transition to first-episode psychosis. The therapeutic role of intranasal oxytocin (ΟΤ) in psychiatric disorders has been widely studied during the last decades, concerning its effects on social behavior in humans. A literature search was conducted via Pubmed and Scopus, using the search terms "oxytocin" and "psychosis." Six studies were included in the current review. There were differences in terms of demographics, intervention type, and outcome measures. ΟΤ may affect the social cognition skills of people at prodromal and early stages of psychosis, but its effect on clinical symptoms is ambiguous. Because of the high level of heterogeneity of existing studies, more original studies are needed to examine and clarify whether OT improves high-risk and early psychosis populations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stavroula I. Bargiota
- Department of Psychiatry, Faculty of Medicine, University of Thessaly, Larissa, Greece
| | - Anna V. Papakonstantinou
- Faculty of Health Sciences, School of Medicine, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
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18
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A B L, A G, M B, H HN. Social Interaction Elicits Activity in Glutamatergic Neurons in the Posterior Intralaminar Complex of the Thalamus. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.04.24.538114. [PMID: 37163009 PMCID: PMC10168253 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.24.538114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Background The posterior intralaminar (PIL) complex of the thalamus is a multimodal nucleus that has been implicated in maternal behaviors and conspecific social behaviors in male and female rodents. Glutamatergic neurons are a major component of the PIL; however, their specific activity and role during social interactions has not yet been assessed. Methods We used immunohistochemistry for the immediate early gene c-fos as a proxy for neuronal activity in the PIL of mice exposed to a novel social stimulus, a novel object stimulus, or no stimulus. We then used fiber photometry to record neural activity of glutamatergic neurons in the PIL in real-time during social and non-social interactions. Finally, we used inhibitory DREADDs in glutamatergic PIL neurons and tested social preference and social habituation-dishabituation. Results We observed significantly more c-fos -positive cells in the PIL of mice exposed to social versus object or no stimuli. Neural activity of PIL glutamatergic neurons was increased when male and female mice were engaged in social interaction with a same-sex juvenile or opposite-sex adult, but not a toy mouse. Neural activity positively correlated with social investigation bout length and negatively correlated with chronological order of bouts. Social preference was unaffected by inhibition; however, inhibiting activity of glutamatergic neurons in the PIL delayed the time it took female mice to form social habituation. Conclusions Together these findings suggest that glutamatergic PIL neurons respond to social stimuli in both male and female mice and may regulate perceptual encoding of social information to facilitate recognition of social stimuli.
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19
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Grebe NM, Sheikh A, Ohannessian L, Drea CM. Effects of oxytocin receptor blockade on dyadic social behavior in monogamous and non-monogamous Eulemur. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2023; 150:106044. [PMID: 36753883 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2023.106044] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2022] [Revised: 01/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/26/2023] [Indexed: 01/30/2023]
Abstract
A prominent body of research spanning disciplines has been focused on the potential underlying role for oxytocin in the social signatures of monogamous mating bonds. Behavioral differences between monogamous and non-monogamous vole species, putatively mediated by oxytocinergic function, constitute a key source of support for this mechanism, but it is unclear to what extent this hormone-behavior linkage extends to the primate order. In a preregistered experiment, we test if oxytocin receptor blockade affects affiliative behavior in mixed-sex pairs of Eulemur, a genus of strepsirrhine primate containing both monogamous and non-monogamous species. Inconsistent with past studies in monogamous voles or monkeys, we do not find confirmatory evidence in Eulemur that monogamous pairs affiliate more than non-monogamous pairs, nor that oxytocin receptor blockade of one pair member selectively corresponds to reduced affiliative or scent-marking behavior in monogamous species. We do, however, find exploratory evidence of a pattern not previously investigated: simultaneously blocking oxytocin receptors in both members of a monogamous pair predicts lower rates of affiliative behavior relative to controls. Our study demonstrates the value of non-traditional animal models in challenging generalizations based on model organisms, and of methodological reform in providing a potential path forward for behavioral oxytocin research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicholas M Grebe
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA; Department of Anthropology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA.
| | - Alizeh Sheikh
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
| | | | - Christine M Drea
- Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA
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20
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Sadino JM, Bradeen XG, Kelly CJ, Brusman LE, Walker DM, Donaldson ZR. Prolonged partner separation erodes nucleus accumbens transcriptional signatures of pair bonding in male prairie voles. eLife 2023; 12:e80517. [PMID: 36852906 PMCID: PMC10112888 DOI: 10.7554/elife.80517] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/24/2022] [Accepted: 02/27/2023] [Indexed: 03/01/2023] Open
Abstract
The loss of a spouse is often cited as the most traumatic event in a person's life. However, for most people, the severity of grief and its maladaptive effects subside over time via an understudied adaptive process. Like humans, socially monogamous prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster) form opposite-sex pair bonds, and upon partner separation, show stress phenotypes that diminish over time. We test the hypothesis that extended partner separation diminishes pair bond-associated behaviors and causes pair bond transcriptional signatures to erode. Opposite-sex or same-sex paired males were cohoused for 2 weeks and then either remained paired or were separated for 48 hours or 4 weeks before collecting fresh nucleus accumbens tissue for RNAseq. In a separate cohort, we assessed partner-directed affiliation at these time points. We found that these behaviors persist despite prolonged separation in both same-sex and opposite-sex paired voles. Opposite-sex pair bonding led to changes in accumbal transcription that were stably maintained while animals remained paired but eroded following prolonged partner separation. Eroded genes are associated with gliogenesis and myelination, suggesting a previously undescribed role for glia in pair bonding and loss. Further, we pioneered neuron-specific translating ribosomal affinity purification in voles. Neuronally enriched transcriptional changes revealed dopaminergic-, mitochondrial-, and steroid hormone signaling-associated gene clusters sensitive to acute pair bond disruption and loss adaptation. Our results suggest that partner separation erodes transcriptomic signatures of pair bonding despite core behavioral features of the bond remaining intact, revealing potential molecular processes priming a vole to be able to form a new bond.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julie M Sadino
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
| | - Xander G Bradeen
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
- Department of Adult Hematology, University of Colorado- Anschutz Medical CampusAuroraUnited States
| | - Conor J Kelly
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
- BioFrontiers Institute, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
| | - Liza E Brusman
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
| | - Deena M Walker
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health and Science University, School of MedicinePortlandUnited States
| | - Zoe R Donaldson
- Department of Molecular, Cellular, and Developmental Biology, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of Colorado BoulderBoulderUnited States
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21
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Rigney N, de Vries GJ, Petrulis A. Modulation of social behavior by distinct vasopressin sources. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2023; 14:1127792. [PMID: 36860367 PMCID: PMC9968743 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2023.1127792] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The neuropeptide arginine-vasopressin (AVP) is well known for its peripheral effects on blood pressure and antidiuresis. However, AVP also modulates various social and anxiety-related behaviors by its actions in the brain, often sex-specifically, with effects typically being stronger in males than in females. AVP in the nervous system originates from several distinct sources which are, in turn, regulated by different inputs and regulatory factors. Based on both direct and indirect evidence, we can begin to define the specific role of AVP cell populations in social behavior, such as, social recognition, affiliation, pair bonding, parental behavior, mate competition, aggression, and social stress. Sex differences in function may be apparent in both sexually-dimorphic structures as well as ones without prominent structural differences within the hypothalamus. The understanding of how AVP systems are organized and function may ultimately lead to better therapeutic interventions for psychiatric disorders characterized by social deficits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nicole Rigney
- Neuroscience Institute, Georgia State University, Atlanta, GA, United States
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22
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Freund-Mercier MJ. [How oxytocin became overtime the attachment-mediating hormone]. Biol Aujourdhui 2023; 216:113-123. [PMID: 36744977 DOI: 10.1051/jbio/2022014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
Oxytocin is a pleiotropic molecule which, in addition to its facilitating action during parturition and milk ejection, is involved in social and prosocial behaviors such as attachment. This article presents, after a brief historical review, the action of oxytocin during the milk ejection reflex. Oxytocin is indeed essential for this vital function in mammals. It is both a neurohormone released into the bloodstream by the axon terminals of the posterior pituitary and a neuromodulator released in the hypothalamus by the soma and dendrites of oxytocinergic magnocellular neurons. In addition, oxytocin is also released by the axon terminals of parvocellular neurons and axon collaterals of magnocellular neurons in the brain. Both maternal attachment in rats and ewes and attachment between sexual partners in the prairie vole, one of the few monogamous rodent species, are mediated by central oxytocin. However, neither administering oxytocin into the brain nor increasing expression of the oxytocin receptor in the nucleus accumbens using a gene transfer technique converts polygamous voles to monogamous ones. Unfortunately, translation of animal data to human remains problematic due to still unsolved difficulties in modifying the level of oxytocin in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie-José Freund-Mercier
- Institut des Neurosciences cellulaires et intégratives, UPR CNRS 3212, Université de Strasbourg, 4, rue Blaise Pascal, 67081 Strasbourg, France
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23
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Baudon A, Clauss Creusot E, Charlet A. [Emergent role of astrocytes in oxytocin-mediated modulatory control of neuronal circuits and brain functions]. Biol Aujourdhui 2023; 216:155-165. [PMID: 36744981 DOI: 10.1051/jbio/2022022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/22/2022] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The neuropeptide oxytocin has been in the focus of scientists for decades due to its profound and pleiotropic effects on physiology, activity of neuronal circuits and behaviors. Until recently, it was believed that oxytocinergic action exclusively occurs through direct activation of neuronal oxytocin receptors. However, several studies demonstrated the existence and functional relevance of astroglial oxytocin receptors in various brain regions in the mouse and rat brain. Astrocytic signaling and activity are critical for many important physiological processes including metabolism, neurotransmitter clearance from the synaptic cleft and integrated brain functions. While it can be speculated that oxytocinergic action on astrocytes predominantly facilitates neuromodulation via the release of gliotransmitters, the precise role of astrocytic oxytocin receptors remains elusive. In this review, we discuss the latest studies on the interaction between the oxytocinergic system and astrocytes, and give details of underlying intracellular cascades.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angel Baudon
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique et Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, 8 allée du Général Rouvillois, 67000 Strasbourg, France
| | - Etienne Clauss Creusot
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique et Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, 8 allée du Général Rouvillois, 67000 Strasbourg, France
| | - Alexandre Charlet
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique et Université de Strasbourg, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, 8 allée du Général Rouvillois, 67000 Strasbourg, France
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24
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Bienboire-Frosini C, Marcet-Rius M, Orihuela A, Domínguez-Oliva A, Mora-Medina P, Olmos-Hernández A, Casas-Alvarado A, Mota-Rojas D. Mother-Young Bonding: Neurobiological Aspects and Maternal Biochemical Signaling in Altricial Domesticated Mammals. Animals (Basel) 2023; 13:ani13030532. [PMID: 36766424 PMCID: PMC9913798 DOI: 10.3390/ani13030532] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/15/2022] [Revised: 01/27/2023] [Accepted: 01/30/2023] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Mother-young bonding is a type of early learning where the female and their newborn recognize each other through a series of neurobiological mechanisms and neurotransmitters that establish a behavioral preference for filial individuals. This process is essential to promote their welfare by providing maternal care, particularly in altricial species, animals that require extended parental care due to their limited neurodevelopment at birth. Olfactory, auditory, tactile, and visual stimuli trigger the neural integration of multimodal sensory and conditioned affective associations in mammals. This review aims to discuss the neurobiological aspects of bonding processes in altricial mammals, with a focus on the brain structures and neurotransmitters involved and how these influence the signaling during the first days of the life of newborns.
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Affiliation(s)
- Cécile Bienboire-Frosini
- Department of Molecular Biology and Chemical Communication, Research Institute in Semiochemistry and Applied Ethology (IRSEA), 84400 Apt, France
| | - Míriam Marcet-Rius
- Animal Behaviour and Welfare Department, Research Institute in Semiochemistry and Applied Ethology (IRSEA), 84400 Apt, France
| | - Agustín Orihuela
- Facultad de Ciencias Agropecuarias, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de Morelos, Cuernavaca 62209, Mexico
| | - Adriana Domínguez-Oliva
- Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Xochimilco Campus, Mexico City 04960, Mexico
| | - Patricia Mora-Medina
- Facultad de Estudios Superiores Cuautitlán, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de Mexico (UNAM), Cuautitlán Izcalli 54740, Mexico
| | - Adriana Olmos-Hernández
- Division of Biotechnology—Bioterio and Experimental Surgery, Instituto Nacional de Rehabilitación-Luis Guillermo Ibarra Ibarra (INR-LGII), Tlalpan, Mexico City 14389, Mexico
| | - Alejandro Casas-Alvarado
- Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Xochimilco Campus, Mexico City 04960, Mexico
| | - Daniel Mota-Rojas
- Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana, Xochimilco Campus, Mexico City 04960, Mexico
- Correspondence:
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25
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Bonifacino N. Psychoanalysis of young children with autism spectrum disorders. An adaptation of technique in the approach to three cases. THE INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF PSYCHOANALYSIS 2023; 104:23-45. [PMID: 36799643 DOI: 10.1080/00207578.2022.2149403] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/18/2023]
Abstract
At present, the therapeutic approach for young children with autism spectrum disorder is a major challenge for child psychoanalysis. These patients place us in a special clinical and metapsychological terrain with its own characteristics and call our technique into question. What tools do we have for working in situations where speech has not yet acquired a communicative value? How can we intervene when an experiential subject has still not been constituted? How can psychoanalysis benefit these patients? The purpose of this paper is to show an adaptation of technique in the treatment of three children who came to my practice between the ages of two and three with a diagnosis of autism spectrum disorder. In this context, there were certain elements that in the affective proximity of the transference bond which encouraged the child's openness to representational world and a progressive psychic structuring and subjectivation. These elements were the analyst's active search for an encounter with the child, the non-verbal exchanges between analyst and patient, and the characteristics of the interpretations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Nahir Bonifacino
- Child and Adolescent Psychoanalyst, Member of the Uruguayan Psychoanalytical Society
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26
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Caria A. A Hypothalamic Perspective of Human Socioemotional Behavior. Neuroscientist 2023:10738584221149647. [PMID: 36703298 DOI: 10.1177/10738584221149647] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Historical evidence from stimulation and lesion studies in animals and humans demonstrated a close association between the hypothalamus and typical and atypical socioemotional behavior. A central hypothalamic contribution to regulation of socioemotional responses was also provided indirectly by studies on oxytocin and arginine vasopressin. However, a limited number of studies have so far directly investigated the contribution of the hypothalamus in human socioemotional behavior. To reconsider the functional role of the evolutionarily conserved hypothalamic region in regulating human social behavior, here I provide a synthesis of neuroimaging investigations showing that the hypothalamus is involved in multiple and diverse facets of human socioemotional behavior through widespread functional interactions with other cortical and subcortical regions. These neuroimaging findings are then integrated with recent optogenetics studies in animals demonstrating that the hypothalamus plays a more active role in eliciting socioemotional responses and is not simply a downstream effector of higher-level brain systems. Building on the aforementioned evidence, the hypothalamus is argued to substantially contribute to a continuum of human socioemotional behaviors promoting survival and preservation of the species that extends from exploratory and approaching responses facilitating social bonding to aggressive and avoidance responses aimed to protect and defend formed relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Andrea Caria
- Department of Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, University of Trento, Rovereto, Italy
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27
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Russo C, Senese VP. Functional near-infrared spectroscopy is a useful tool for multi-perspective psychobiological study of neurophysiological correlates of parenting behaviour. Eur J Neurosci 2023; 57:258-284. [PMID: 36485015 DOI: 10.1111/ejn.15890] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2022] [Revised: 12/02/2022] [Accepted: 12/08/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
The quality of the relationship between caregiver and child has long-term effects on the cognitive and socio-emotional development of children. A process involved in human parenting is the bio-behavioural synchrony that occurs between the partners in the relationship during interaction. Through interaction, bio-behavioural synchronicity allows the adaptation of the physiological systems of the parent to those of the child and promotes the positive development and modelling of the child's social brain. The role of bio-behavioural synchrony in building social bonds could be investigated using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS). In this paper we have (a) highlighted the importance of the quality of the caregiver-child relationship for the child's cognitive and socio-emotional development, as well as the relevance of infantile stimuli in the activation of parenting behaviour; (b) discussed the tools used in the study of the neurophysiological substrates of the parental response; (c) proposed fNIRS as a particularly suitable tool for the study of parental responses; and (d) underlined the need for a multi-systemic psychobiological approach to understand the mechanisms that regulate caregiver-child interactions and their bio-behavioural synchrony. We propose to adopt a multi-system psychobiological approach to the study of parental behaviour and social interaction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carmela Russo
- Psychometric Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Caserta, Italy
| | - Vincenzo Paolo Senese
- Psychometric Laboratory, Department of Psychology, University of Campania "Luigi Vanvitelli", Caserta, Italy
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28
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Xiong Y, Hong H, Liu C, Zhang YQ. Social isolation and the brain: effects and mechanisms. Mol Psychiatry 2023; 28:191-201. [PMID: 36434053 PMCID: PMC9702717 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-022-01835-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 20.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/17/2022] [Revised: 10/05/2022] [Accepted: 10/10/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
An obvious consequence of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic is the worldwide reduction in social interaction, which is associated with many adverse effects on health in humans from babies to adults. Although social development under normal or isolated environments has been studied since the 1940s, the mechanism underlying social isolation (SI)-induced brain dysfunction remains poorly understood, possibly due to the complexity of SI in humans and translational gaps in findings from animal models. Herein, we present a systematic review that focused on brain changes at the molecular, cellular, structural and functional levels induced by SI at different ages and in different animal models. SI studies in humans and animal models revealed common socioemotional and cognitive deficits caused by SI in early life and an increased occurrence of depression and anxiety induced by SI during later stages of life. Altered neurotransmission and neural circuitry as well as abnormal development and function of glial cells in specific brain regions may contribute to the abnormal emotions and behaviors induced by SI. We highlight distinct alterations in oligodendrocyte progenitor cell differentiation and oligodendrocyte maturation caused by SI in early life and later stages of life, respectively, which may affect neural circuit formation and function and result in diverse brain dysfunctions. To further bridge animal and human SI studies, we propose alternative animal models with brain structures and complex social behaviors similar to those of humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ying Xiong
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Molecular and Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China
| | - Huilin Hong
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Molecular and Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China
| | - Cirong Liu
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309Institute of Neuroscience, Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai, 200031 China ,grid.511008.dShanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence Technology, Shanghai, 201210 China
| | - Yong Q. Zhang
- grid.9227.e0000000119573309State Key Laboratory of Molecular and Developmental Biology, Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China ,grid.410726.60000 0004 1797 8419University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100101 China
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29
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Yashima J, Uekita T, Sakamoto T. The prelimbic cortex but not the anterior cingulate cortex plays an important role in social recognition and social investigation in mice. PLoS One 2023; 18:e0284666. [PMID: 37083625 PMCID: PMC10121050 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0284666] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2022] [Accepted: 04/05/2023] [Indexed: 04/22/2023] Open
Abstract
The prefrontal cortex (PFC) has been implicated in social cognitive functions and emotional behaviors in rodents. Each subregion (prelimbic cortex, PL; infralimbic cortex; and anterior cingulate cortex, ACC) of the PFC appears to play a different role in social and emotional behaviors. However, previous investigations have produced inconsistent data, and few previous studies directly compared the roles of the PFC subregions using the same experimental paradigm. Accordingly, in the present study, we examined the role of the PL and the ACC in short-term social recognition, social investigation, and anxiety-related behaviors in C57BL/6J mice. We subjected mice with a lesioned PL or ACC, as well as those in a sham control group, to tests of social recognition and social novelty where juvenile and adult male mice were used as social stimuli. In the social recognition test, the PL-lesioned mice exhibited habituation but not dishabituation regardless of whether they encountered juvenile or adult mice. In a subsequent social novelty test, they spent less time engaged in social investigation compared with the control mice when adult mice were used as social stimuli. These results suggest that PL lesions impaired both social recognition and social investigation. In contrast, ACC-lesioned mice did not exhibit impaired short-term social recognition or social investigation regardless of the social stimulus. Furthermore, PL lesions and ACC lesions did not affect anxiety-related behavior in the open field test or light-dark transition test. Our findings demonstrate that the PL but not the ACC plays an important role in social recognition and social investigation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Joi Yashima
- Department of Psychology, Graduate School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Kyoto Tachibana University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Tomoko Uekita
- Department of Psychology, Graduate School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Kyoto Tachibana University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Toshiro Sakamoto
- Department of Psychology, Graduate School of Health Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Kyoto Tachibana University, Kyoto, Japan
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30
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Robledo JP, Cross I, Boada-Bayona L, Demogeot N. Back to basics: A re-evaluation of the relevance of imprinting in the genesis of Bowlby's attachment theory. Front Psychol 2022; 13:1033746. [PMID: 36605276 PMCID: PMC9808421 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1033746] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/31/2022] [Accepted: 11/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022] Open
Abstract
Attachment theory is one of the key theoretical constructs that underpin explorations of human bonding, taking its current form in John Bowlby's amalgamation of ideas from psychoanalysis, developmental psychology and ethology. Such a period of interdisciplinary exchange, and Bowlby's interest in Lorenz' concept of imprinting in particular, have been subject to rather historical and biographical studies, leaving a fine-grained theoretical scrutiny of the exact relationship between imprinting and attachment still pending. This paper attempts to remedy such an omission by exploring the relationships between these two constructs. It critically reviews the theories of imprinting in general, of human imprinting in particular, and of attachment; analysis of the links between these processes bring to the foreground the distinction between supra-individual vs. individual aspects of bonding, the relevance of 'proto-attachment' phases before 'proper' Bowlbyan attachment is attained, and the role of communicative signals during such early phases. The paper outlines potential benefits of considering such elements in the study of early social cognition, particularly in respect of the study of the gaze and the infant-directed communicative register.
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Affiliation(s)
- Juan-Pablo Robledo
- Millennium Institute for Care Research (MICARE), Santiago, Chile,Laboratoire INTERPSY, Département de Psychologie, Université de Lorraine, Nancy, France,*Correspondence: Juan-Pablo Robledo,
| | - Ian Cross
- Centre for Music and Science, Faculty of Music, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Luisa Boada-Bayona
- Centre for Multidisciplinary and Intercultural Inquiry (CMII), Department of Health Humanities, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Nadine Demogeot
- Laboratoire INTERPSY, Département de Psychologie, Université de Lorraine, Nancy, France
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31
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Akinbo OI, McNeal N, Hylin M, Hite N, Dagner A, Grippo AJ. The Influence of Environmental Enrichment on Affective and Neural Consequences of Social Isolation Across Development. AFFECTIVE SCIENCE 2022; 3:713-733. [PMID: 36519141 PMCID: PMC9743881 DOI: 10.1007/s42761-022-00131-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/17/2021] [Accepted: 06/10/2022] [Indexed: 05/15/2023]
Abstract
Social stress is associated with depression and anxiety, physiological disruptions, and altered brain morphology in central stress circuitry across development. Environmental enrichment strategies may improve responses to social stress. Socially monogamous prairie voles exhibit analogous social and emotion-related behaviors to humans, with potential translational insight into interactions of social stress, age, and environmental enrichment. This study explored the effects of social isolation and environmental enrichment on behaviors related to depression and anxiety, physiological indicators of stress, and dendritic structural changes in amygdala and hippocampal subregions in young adult and aging prairie voles. Forty-nine male prairie voles were assigned to one of six groups divided by age (young adult vs. aging), social structure (paired vs. isolated), and housing environment (enriched vs. non-enriched). Following 4 weeks of these conditions, behaviors related to depression and anxiety were investigated in the forced swim test and elevated plus maze, body and adrenal weights were evaluated, and dendritic morphology analyses were conducted in hippocampus and amygdala subregions. Environmental enrichment decreased immobility duration in the forced swim test, increased open arm exploration in the elevated plus maze, and reduced adrenal/body weight ratio in aging and young adult prairie voles. Age and social isolation influenced dendritic morphology in the basolateral amygdala. Age, but not social isolation, influenced dendritic morphology in the hippocampal dentate gyrus. Environmental enrichment did not influence dendritic morphology in either brain region. These data may inform interventions to reduce the effects of social stressors and age-related central changes associated with affective behavioral consequences in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oreoluwa I. Akinbo
- Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115 USA
| | - Neal McNeal
- Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115 USA
| | - Michael Hylin
- Department of Psychology, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL 62901 USA
| | - Natalee Hite
- Department of Physiology, Southern Illinois University, Carbondale, IL, 62901, USA
| | - Ashley Dagner
- Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115 USA
| | - Angela J. Grippo
- Department of Psychology, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, IL 60115 USA
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32
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Miss F, Adriaense J, Burkart J. Towards integrating joint action research: Developmental and evolutionary perspectives on co-representation. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 143:104924. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104924] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2022] [Revised: 10/11/2022] [Accepted: 10/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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Comparing gratitude and pride: evidence from brain and behavior. COGNITIVE, AFFECTIVE & BEHAVIORAL NEUROSCIENCE 2022; 22:1199-1214. [PMID: 35437682 DOI: 10.3758/s13415-022-01006-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 03/30/2022] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Gratitude and pride are both positive emotions. Yet gratitude motivates people to help others and build up relationships, whereas pride motivates people to pursue achievements and build on self-esteem. Although these social outcomes are crucial for humans to be evolutionarily adaptive, no study so far has systematically compared gratitude and pride to understand why and how they can motivate humans differently. In this review, we compared gratitude and pride from their etymologies, cognitive prerequisites, motivational functions, and brain regions involved. By integrating the evidence from brain and behavior, we suggest that gratitude and pride share a common reward basis, yet gratitude is more related to theory of mind, while pride is more related to self-referential processing. Moreover, we proposed a cognitive neuroscientific model to explain the dynamics in gratitude and pride under a reinforcement learning framework.
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34
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Mota-Rojas D, Bienboire-Frosini C, Marcet-Rius M, Domínguez-Oliva A, Mora-Medina P, Lezama-García K, Orihuela A. Mother-young bond in non-human mammals: Neonatal communication pathways and neurobiological basis. Front Psychol 2022; 13:1064444. [DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1064444] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/08/2022] [Accepted: 11/14/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Mother-young bonding is a process by which the young establish social preferences for their mother. It fosters reproductive success and the survival of offspring by providing food, heat, and maternal care. This process promotes the establishment of the mother-young bond through the interaction of olfactory, auditory, tactile, visual, and thermal stimuli. The neural integration of multimodal sensory stimuli and attachment is coordinated into motor responses. The sensory and neurobiological mechanisms involved in filial recognition in precocial and altricial mammals are summarized and analyzed in this review.
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35
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Sailer LL, Park AH, Galvez A, Ophir AG. Lateral septum DREADD activation alters male prairie vole prosocial and antisocial behaviors, not partner preferences. Commun Biol 2022; 5:1299. [PMID: 36435943 PMCID: PMC9701193 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-04274-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/29/2022] [Accepted: 11/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Although much has been written on the topic of social behavior, many terms referring to different aspects of social behavior have become inappropriately conflated and the specific mechanisms governing them remains unclear. It is therefore critical that we disentangle the prosocial and antisocial elements associated with different forms of social behavior to fully understand the social brain. The lateral septum (LS) mediates social behaviors, emotional processes, and stress responses necessary for individuals to navigate day-to-day social interactions. The LS is particularly important in general and selective prosocial behavior (monogamy) but its role in how these two behavioral domains intersect is unclear. Here, we investigate the effects of chemogenetic-mediated LS activation on social responses in male prairie voles when they are 1) sex-naïve and generally affiliative and 2) after they become pair-bonded and display selective aggression. Amplifying neural activity in the LS augments same-sex social approach behaviors. Despite partner preference formation remaining unaltered, LS activation in pair-bonded males leads to reduced selective aggression while increasing social affiliative behaviors. These results suggest that LS activation alters behavior within certain social contexts, by increasing sex-naïve affiliative behaviors and reducing pair bonding-induced selective aggression with same-sex conspecifics, but not altering bonding with opposite-sex individuals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lindsay L. Sailer
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XDepartment of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA
| | - Ashley H. Park
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XDepartment of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA
| | - Abigail Galvez
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XDepartment of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA
| | - Alexander G. Ophir
- grid.5386.8000000041936877XDepartment of Psychology, Cornell University, Ithaca, NY 14853 USA
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36
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Effects of paternal deprivation in social rodents. RUSSIAN JOURNAL OF THERIOLOGY 2022. [DOI: 10.15298/rusjtheriol.21.2.03] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
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37
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Maternal stress and vulnerability to depression: coping and maternal care strategies and its consequences on adolescent offspring. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:463. [PMID: 36333302 PMCID: PMC9636172 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-022-02220-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/11/2022] [Revised: 09/30/2022] [Accepted: 10/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Depressive mothers often find mother-child interaction to be challenging. Maternal stress may further impair mother-child attachment, which may increase the risk of negative developmental consequences. We used rats with different vulnerability to depressive-like behavior (Wistar and Kyoto) to investigate the impact of stress (maternal separation-MS) on maternal behavior and adolescent offspring cognition. MS in Kyoto dams increased pup-contact, resulting in higher oxytocin levels and lower anxiety-like behavior after weaning, while worsening their adolescent offspring cognitive behavior. Whereas MS in Wistar dams elicited higher quality of pup-directed behavior, increasing brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in the offspring, which seems to have prevented a negative impact on cognition. Hypothalamic oxytocin seems to affect the salience of the social environment cues (negatively for Kyoto) leading to different coping strategies. Our findings highlight the importance of contextual and individual factors in the understanding of the oxytocin role in modulating maternal behavior and stress regulatory processes.
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38
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Mota-Rojas D, Bragaglio A, Braghieri A, Napolitano F, Domínguez-Oliva A, Mora-Medina P, Álvarez-Macías A, De Rosa G, Pacelli C, José N, Barile VL. Dairy Buffalo Behavior: Calving, Imprinting and Allosuckling. Animals (Basel) 2022; 12:2899. [PMID: 36359022 PMCID: PMC9658508 DOI: 10.3390/ani12212899] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2022] [Revised: 10/19/2022] [Accepted: 10/19/2022] [Indexed: 09/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Maternal behavior, in water buffalo and other ruminants, is a set of patterns of a determined species, including calving, imprinting, and suckling. This behavior is mainly triggered by hormone concentration changes and their interactions with their respective receptors in the brain, particularly oxytocin. These chemical signals also influence mother-young bonding, a critical process for neonatal survival that develops during the first postpartum hours. Currently, dairy buffalo behavior during parturition has rarely been studied. For this reason, this review aims to analyze the existing scientific evidence regarding maternal behavior in water buffalo during calving. It will address the mechanisms of imprinting, maternal care, and allosuckling strategies that may influence the survival and health of calves.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Mota-Rojas
- Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico
| | - Andrea Bragaglio
- Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi Dell’Economia Agraria (CREA), Research Centre for Engineering and Food Processing, Via Milano 43, 24047 Treviglio, Italy
| | - Ada Braghieri
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, 85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Fabio Napolitano
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, 85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Adriana Domínguez-Oliva
- Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico
| | - Patricia Mora-Medina
- Department of Livestock Sciences, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM), FESC, Mexico City 04510, Mexico
| | - Adolfo Álvarez-Macías
- Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico
| | - Giuseppe De Rosa
- Department of Agricultural Sciences, University of Naples Federico II, 80055 Portici, Italy
| | - Corrado Pacelli
- Scuola di Scienze Agrarie, Forestali, Alimentari ed Ambientali, Università degli Studi della Basilicata, 85100 Potenza, Italy
| | - Nancy José
- Neurophysiology, Behavior and Animal Welfare Assessment, DPAA, Universidad Autónoma Metropolitana (UAM), Mexico City 04960, Mexico
| | - Vittoria Lucia Barile
- Research Centre for Animal Production and Aquaculture, Consiglio per la Ricerca in Agricoltura e l’Analisi dell’Economia Agraria (CREA) (CREA), Via Salaria 31, 00015 Monterotondo, Italy
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Zablocki-Thomas PB, Rogers FD, Bales KL. Neuroimaging of human and non-human animal emotion and affect in the context of social relationships. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:994504. [PMID: 36338883 PMCID: PMC9633678 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.994504] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Long-term relationships are essential for the psychological wellbeing of humans and many animals. Positive emotions and affective experiences (e.g., romantic or platonic love) seem to be closely related to the creation and maintenance of social bonds. When relationships are threatened or terminated, other emotions generally considered to be negative can arise (e.g., jealousy or loneliness). Because humans and animals share (to varying degrees) common evolutionary histories, researchers have attempted to explain the evolution of affect and emotion through the comparative approach. Now brain imaging techniques allow the comparison of the neurobiological substrates of affective states and emotion in human and animal brains using a common methodology. Here, we review brain imaging studies that feature emotions characterized by the context of social bonding. We compare imaging findings associated with affective and emotional states elicited by similar social situations between humans and animal models. We also highlight the role of key neurohormones (i.e., oxytocin, vasopressin, and dopamine) that jointly support the occurrence of socially contextualized emotions and affect across species. In doing so, we seek to explore and clarify if and how humans and animals might similarly experience social emotion and affect in the context of social relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pauline B. Zablocki-Thomas
- California National Primate Research Center, Davis, CA, United States
- *Correspondence: Pauline B. Zablocki-Thomas,
| | - Forrest D. Rogers
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Psychology Graduate Group, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
| | - Karen L. Bales
- California National Primate Research Center, Davis, CA, United States
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
- Department of Neurobiology, Physiology, and Behavior, University of California, Davis, Davis, CA, United States
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Rethinking the Architecture of Attachment: New Insights into the Role for Oxytocin Signaling. AFFECTIVE SCIENCE 2022; 3:734-748. [PMID: 36519145 PMCID: PMC9743890 DOI: 10.1007/s42761-022-00142-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2022] [Accepted: 07/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Social attachments, the enduring bonds between individuals and groups, are essential to health and well-being. The appropriate formation and maintenance of social relationships depend upon a number of affective processes, including stress regulation, motivation, reward, as well as reciprocal interactions necessary for evaluating the affective state of others. A genetic, molecular, and neural circuit level understanding of social attachments therefore provides a powerful substrate for probing the affective processes associated with social behaviors. Socially monogamous species form long-term pair bonds, allowing us to investigate the mechanisms underlying attachment. Now, molecular genetic tools permit manipulations in monogamous species. Studies using these tools reveal new insights into the genetic and neuroendocrine factors that design and control the neural architecture underlying attachment behavior. We focus this discussion on the prairie vole and oxytocinergic signaling in this and related species as a model of attachment behavior that has been studied in the context of genetic and pharmacological manipulations. We consider developmental processes that impact the demonstration of bonding behavior across genetic backgrounds, the modularity of mechanisms underlying bonding behaviors, and the distributed circuitry supporting these behaviors. Incorporating such theoretical considerations when interpreting reverse genetic studies in the context of the rich ethological and pharmacological data collected in monogamous species provides an important framework for studies of attachment behavior in both animal models and studies of human relationships.
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An integrative perspective on the role of touch in the development of intersubjectivity. Brain Cogn 2022; 163:105915. [PMID: 36162247 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2022.105915] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/31/2022] [Revised: 09/14/2022] [Accepted: 09/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
Touch concerns a fundamental component of sociality. In this review, we examine the hypothesis that somatomotor development constitutes a crucial psychophysiological element in the ontogeny of intersubjectivity. An interdisciplinary perspective is provided on how the communication channel of touch contributes to the sense of self and extends to the social self. During gestation, the transformation of random movements into organized sequences of actions with sensory consequences parallels the development of the brain's functional architecture. Brain subsystems shaped by the coordinated activity of somatomotor circuits to support these first body-environment interactions are the first brain functional arrangements to develop. We propose that tactile self-referring behaviour during gestation constitutes a prototypic mode of interpersonal exchange that supports the subsequent development of intersubjective exchange. The reviewed research suggests that touch constitutes a pivotal bodily experience that in early stages builds and later filters self-other interactions. This view is corroborated by the fact that aberrant social-affective touch experiences appear fundamentally associated with attachment anomalies, interpersonal trauma, and personality disorders. Given the centrality of touch for the development of intersubjectivity and for psychopathological conditions in the social domain, dedicated research is urged to elucidate the role of touch in the evolution of subjective self-other coding.
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Fan P, Zhang Z, Liu Y, Xiong Y. Parent-Performed Infant Massage for Improving Parental Mental State Within 18 Months Postpartum: A Systematic Review. J Psychosoc Nurs Ment Health Serv 2022; 61:52-59. [PMID: 36099486 DOI: 10.3928/02793695-20220906-04] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
The aim of the current review was to assess whether parent-performed infant massage (PPIM) could effectively improve the mental state of parents during the postpartum period. Several international electronic databases were thoroughly searched for relevant articles. Included studies observed the influence of PPIM on the mental state of parents of healthy full-term infants within 18 months postpartum or medically stable preterm infants during hospitalization after birth. Nine studies were included, which observed one or more aspects of parental mental state, including depression, anxiety, parental stress, or general mood state. Characteristics of participants, massage protocols, and outcome measures were heterogenous; hence, results regarding the influence of PPIM on parental mental state were inconsistent. Upon further investigation, 10-minute, home-based PPIM for at least 4 weeks is advisable for maternal depression within 5 months postpartum. Moreover, PPIM in a neonatal intensive care unit is advisable for improving the general mood of mothers of preterm infants. Additional methodologically rigorous studies are needed to provide stronger evidence. [Journal of Psychosocial Nursing and Mental Health Services, 61(4), 52-59.].
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Khan I, Cañamero L. The Long-Term Efficacy of “Social Buffering” in Artificial Social Agents: Contextual Affective Perception Matters. Front Robot AI 2022; 9:699573. [PMID: 36185976 PMCID: PMC9520257 DOI: 10.3389/frobt.2022.699573] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/23/2021] [Accepted: 04/29/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
In dynamic (social) environments, an affective state of “stress” can be adaptive and promote agent wellbeing, but maladaptive if not appropriately regulated. The presence of (and interactions with) affect-based social support has been hypothesised to provide mechanisms to regulate stress (the “social buffering” hypothesis), though the precise, underlying mechanisms are still unclear. However, the hormone oxytocin has been implicated in mediating these effects in at least two ways: by improving social appraisals and reducing the short-term release of stress hormones (i.e., cortisol), and adapting an agent’s long-term stress tolerance. These effects likely facilitate an agent’s long-term adaptive ability by grounding their physiological and behavioural adaptation in the (affective) social environment, though these effects also appear to be context-dependent. In this paper, we investigate whether two of the hypothesised hormonal mechanisms that underpin the “social buffering” phenomenon affect the long-term wellbeing of (artificial) social agents who share affective social bonds, across numerous social and physical environmental contexts. Building on previous findings, we hypothesise that “social buffering” effects can improve the long-term wellbeing of agents who share affective social bonds in dynamic environments, through regular prosocial interactions with social bond partners. We model some of the effects associated with oxytocin and cortisol that underpin these hypothesised mechanisms in our biologically-inspired, socially-adaptive agent model, and conduct our investigation in a small society of artificial agents whose goal is to survive in challenging environments. Our results find that, while stress can be adaptive and regulated through affective social support, long-term behavioural and physiological adaptation is determined by the contextual perception of affective social bonds, which is influenced by early-stage interactions between affective social bond partners as well as the degree of the physical and social challenges. We also show how these low-level effects associated with oxytocin and cortisol can be used as “biomarkers” of social support and environmental stress. For socially-situated artificial agents, we suggest that these “social buffering” mechanisms can adapt the (adaptive) stress mechanisms, but that the long-term efficacy of this adaptation is related to the temporal dynamics of social interactions and the contextual perception of the affective social and physical environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Imran Khan
- Embodied Emotion, Cognition, and (Inter-)Action Lab, School of Physics, Engineering, and Computer Science, University of Hertfordshire, College Lane, Hatfield, United Kingdom
- *Correspondence: Imran Khan,
| | - Lola Cañamero
- Embodied Emotion, Cognition, and (Inter-)Action Lab, School of Physics, Engineering, and Computer Science, University of Hertfordshire, College Lane, Hatfield, United Kingdom
- ETIS Lab, CY Cergy Paris University—ENSEA—CNRS UMR8051, Cergy, France
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Jiang Y, Sheng F, Belkaya N, Platt ML. Oxytocin and testosterone administration amplify viewing preferences for sexual images in male rhesus macaques. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210133. [PMID: 35858095 PMCID: PMC9272140 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0133] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Social stimuli, like faces, and sexual stimuli, like genitalia, spontaneously attract visual attention in both human and non-human primates. Social orienting behaviour is thought to be modulated by neuropeptides as well as sex hormones. Using a free viewing task in which paired images of monkey faces and anogenital regions were presented simultaneously, we found that male rhesus macaques overwhelmingly preferred to view images of anogenital regions over faces. They were more likely to make an initial gaze shift towards, and spent more time viewing, anogenital regions compared with faces, and this preference was accompanied by relatively constricted pupils. On face images, monkeys mostly fixated on the forehead and eyes. These viewing preferences were found for images of both males and females. Both oxytocin (OT), a neuropeptide linked to social bonding and affiliation, and testosterone (TE), a sex hormone implicated in mating and aggression, amplified the pre-existing orienting bias for female genitalia over female faces; neither treatment altered the viewing preference for male anogenital regions over male faces. Testosterone but not OT increased the probability of monkeys making the first gaze shift towards female anogenital rather than face pictures, with the strongest effects on anogenital images of young and unfamiliar females. Finally, both OT and TE promoted viewing of the forehead region of both female and male faces, which display sexual skins, but decreased the relative salience of the eyes of older males. Together, these results invite the hypothesis that both OT and TE regulate reproductive behaviours by acting as a gain control on the visual orienting network to increase attention to mating-relevant signals in the environment. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Interplays between oxytocin and other neuromodulators in shaping complex social behaviours’.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaoguang Jiang
- Department of Neuroscience, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
| | - Feng Sheng
- Wharton Neuroscience Initiative, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
- School of Management and MOE Frontier Science Center for Brain Science & Brain–Machine Integration, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, 310058, China
| | - Naz Belkaya
- Champalimaud Center for the Unknown, Lisbon, 1400-038, Portugal
| | - Michael L. Platt
- Department of Neuroscience, Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
- Department of Psychology, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
- Marketing Department, the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
- Wharton Neuroscience Initiative, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 19104, USA
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Flavell SW, Gogolla N, Lovett-Barron M, Zelikowsky M. The emergence and influence of internal states. Neuron 2022; 110:2545-2570. [PMID: 35643077 PMCID: PMC9391310 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuron.2022.04.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2021] [Revised: 02/11/2022] [Accepted: 04/27/2022] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Animal behavior is shaped by a variety of "internal states"-partially hidden variables that profoundly shape perception, cognition, and action. The neural basis of internal states, such as fear, arousal, hunger, motivation, aggression, and many others, is a prominent focus of research efforts across animal phyla. Internal states can be inferred from changes in behavior, physiology, and neural dynamics and are characterized by properties such as pleiotropy, persistence, scalability, generalizability, and valence. To date, it remains unclear how internal states and their properties are generated by nervous systems. Here, we review recent progress, which has been driven by advances in behavioral quantification, cellular manipulations, and neural population recordings. We synthesize research implicating defined subsets of state-inducing cell types, widespread changes in neural activity, and neuromodulation in the formation and updating of internal states. In addition to highlighting the significance of these findings, our review advocates for new approaches to clarify the underpinnings of internal brain states across the animal kingdom.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven W Flavell
- Picower Institute for Learning and Memory, Department of Brain and Cognitive Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA.
| | - Nadine Gogolla
- Emotion Research Department, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, 80804 Munich, Germany; Circuits for Emotion Research Group, Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology, 82152 Martinsried, Germany.
| | - Matthew Lovett-Barron
- Division of Biological Sciences-Neurobiology Section, University of California, San Diego, La Jolla, CA 92093, USA.
| | - Moriel Zelikowsky
- Department of Neurobiology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112, USA.
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Shou Q, Yamada J, Nishina K, Matsunaga M, Matsuda T, Takagishi H. Association between salivary oxytocin levels and the amygdala and hippocampal volumes. Brain Struct Funct 2022; 227:2503-2511. [PMID: 35943580 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-022-02543-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2022] [Accepted: 07/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Salivary oxytocin levels have been widely measured and studied in relation to social behavior because of procedural simplicity and noninvasiveness. Although the relationship between oxytocin levels in the blood and the hippocampus and amygdala is now becoming clear with reliable blood oxytocin studies, few studies have examined the relationship between salivary oxytocin and the brain function and structure. This study aimed to investigate whether the salivary oxytocin level is associated with the volume of the amygdala and hippocampus in 178 adults (92 women and 86 men) in their third to seventh decade of life. We performed volumetric analysis of the amygdala and hippocampus using FreeSurfer and measured salivary oxytocin levels using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The results showed contradictory effects of the salivary oxytocin level on the amygdala volume by sex and no significant effect on the hippocampal volume. Specifically, men showed a positive correlation between the salivary oxytocin level and amygdala volume, whereas women showed a negative correlation between the salivary oxytocin level and amygdala volume. The present study's finding of sex differences in the association between salivary oxytocin and brain structure supports previous findings that there are sex differences in the oxytocin system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qiulu Shou
- Graduate School of Brain Sciences, Tamagawa University, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Junko Yamada
- Brain Science Institute, Tamagawa University, Tokyo, Japan
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Sakamoto T, Yashima J. Prefrontal cortex is necessary for long-term social recognition memory in mice. Behav Brain Res 2022; 435:114051. [PMID: 35952777 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2022.114051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/02/2022] [Revised: 07/17/2022] [Accepted: 08/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/02/2022]
Abstract
The prefrontal cortex (PFC) plays critical roles in social cognition and emotional regulation in humans and rodents; however, its involvement in social recognition memory in mice remains unclear. Here, we examined the roles of the PFC in short-term and long-term social recognition memory, social motivation, and anxiety-related behavior in C57BL/6J male mice. Sham control and PFC-lesioned mice underwent four different behavioral tests. In the social recognition test, composed of three daily trials over 3 consecutive days, the control mice spent less time investigating the juvenile stimulus mouse both within each day and across days. By contrast, while social investigation behavior in PFC-lesioned mice decreased across the three trials within each day, it did not decrease over the 3-day testing period. These results indicate that the PFC has an important role in long-term, but not short-term, social recognition memory. The control and PFC-lesioned mice exhibited similar social motivation in the three-chamber test - both groups preferred the juvenile mouse to the empty cylinder and did not prefer the adult mouse. In addition, the PFC lesion had no impact on anxiety-related behavior or general activity in the light-dark transition test or the open field test. Our findings demonstrate that the PFC is essential for long-term social recognition memory and that it plays a critical role in higher-order social cognition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toshiro Sakamoto
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Science, Kyoto Tachibana University, Yamashina, Kyoto 607-8175, Japan.
| | - Joi Yashima
- Department of Psychology, Faculty of Health Science, Kyoto Tachibana University, Yamashina, Kyoto 607-8175, Japan
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Oxytocin-based therapies for treatment of Prader-Willi and Schaaf-Yang syndromes: evidence, disappointments, and future research strategies. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:318. [PMID: 35941105 PMCID: PMC9360032 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-022-02054-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/14/2022] [Revised: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 07/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/09/2022] Open
Abstract
The prosocial neuropeptide oxytocin is being developed as a potential treatment for various neuropsychiatric disorders including autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Early studies using intranasal oxytocin in patients with ASD yielded encouraging results and for some time, scientists and affected families placed high hopes on the use of intranasal oxytocin for behavioral therapy in ASD. However, a recent Phase III trial obtained negative results using intranasal oxytocin for the treatment of behavioral symptoms in children with ASD. Given the frequently observed autism-like behavioral phenotypes in Prader-Willi and Schaaf-Yang syndromes, it is unclear whether oxytocin treatment represents a viable option to treat behavioral symptoms in these diseases. Here we review the latest findings on intranasal OT treatment, Prader-Willi and Schaaf-Yang syndromes, and propose novel research strategies for tailored oxytocin-based therapies for affected individuals. Finally, we propose the critical period theory, which could explain why oxytocin-based treatment seems to be most efficient in infants, but not adolescents.
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Marazziti D, Diep PT, Carter S, Carbone MG. Oxytocin: An Old Hormone, A Novel Psychotropic Drug And Possible Use In Treating Psychiatric Disorders. Curr Med Chem 2022; 29:5615-5687. [PMID: 35894453 DOI: 10.2174/0929867329666220727120646] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2021] [Revised: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Oxytocin is a nonapeptide synthesized in the paraventricular and supraoptic nuclei of the hypothalamus. Historically, this molecule has been involved as a key factor in the formation of infant attachment, maternal behavior and pair bonding and, more generally, in linking social signals with cognition, behaviors and reward. In the last decades, the whole oxytocin system has gained a growing interest as it was proposed to be implicated in etiopathogenesis of several neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric disorders. METHODS With the main goal of an in-depth understanding of the oxytocin role in the regulation of different functions and complex behaviors as well as its intriguing implications in different neuropsychiatric disorders, we performed a critical review of the current state of art. We carried out this work through PubMed database up to June 2021 with the search terms: 1) "oxytocin and neuropsychiatric disorders"; 2) "oxytocin and neurodevelopmental disorders"; 3) "oxytocin and anorexia"; 4) "oxytocin and eating disorders"; 5) "oxytocin and obsessive-compulsive disorder"; 6) "oxytocin and schizophrenia"; 7) "oxytocin and depression"; 8) "oxytocin and bipolar disorder"; 9) "oxytocin and psychosis"; 10) "oxytocin and anxiety"; 11) "oxytocin and personality disorder"; 12) "oxytocin and PTSD". RESULTS Biological, genetic, and epigenetic studies highlighted quality and quantity modifications in the expression of oxytocin peptide or in oxytocin receptor isoforms. These alterations would seem to be correlated with a higher risk of presenting several neuropsychiatric disorders belonging to different psychopathological spectra. Collaterally, the exogenous oxytocin administration has shown to ameliorate many neuropsychiatric clinical conditions. CONCLUSION Finally, we briefly analyzed the potential pharmacological use of oxytocin in patient with severe symptomatic SARS-CoV-2 infection due to its anti-inflammatory, anti-oxidative and immunoregulatory properties.
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Affiliation(s)
- Donatella Marazziti
- Department of Clinical and Experimental Medicine, Section of Psychiatry, University of Pisa, Italy.,Saint Camillus International University of Health and Medical Sciences, Rome, Italy
| | - Phuoc-Tan Diep
- Department of Histopathology, Royal Lancaster Infirmary, University Hospitals of Morecambe Bay NHS Foundation Trust, Lancaster, United Kingdom
| | - Sue Carter
- Director Kinsey Institute, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA
| | - Manuel G Carbone
- Department of Medicine and Surgery, Division of Psychiatry, University of Insubria, 21100 Varese, Italy
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Baudon A, Clauss Creusot E, Althammer F, Schaaf CP, Charlet A. Emerging role of astrocytes in oxytocin-mediated control of neural circuits and brain functions. Prog Neurobiol 2022; 217:102328. [PMID: 35870680 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2022.102328] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/07/2022] [Revised: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 07/18/2022] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
The neuropeptide oxytocin has been in the focus of scientists for decades due to its profound and pleiotropic effects on physiology, activity of neuronal circuits and behaviors, among which sociality. Until recently, it was believed that oxytocinergic action exclusively occurs through direct activation of neuronal oxytocin receptors. However, several studies demonstrated the existence and functional relevance of astroglial oxytocin receptors in various brain regions in the mouse and rat brain. Astrocytic signaling and activity is critical for many important physiological processes including metabolism, neurotransmitter clearance from the synaptic cleft and integrated brain functions. While it can be speculated that oxytocinergic action on astrocytes predominantly facilitates neuromodulation via the release of specific gliotransmitters, the precise role of astrocytic oxytocin receptors remains elusive. In this review, we discuss the latest studies on the interaction between the oxytocinergic system and astrocytes, including detailed information about intracellular cascades, and speculate about future research directions on astrocytic oxytocin signaling.
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Affiliation(s)
- Angel Baudon
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and University of Strasbourg, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neuroscience, Strasbourg 67000 France
| | - Etienne Clauss Creusot
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and University of Strasbourg, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neuroscience, Strasbourg 67000 France
| | | | | | - Alexandre Charlet
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique and University of Strasbourg, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neuroscience, Strasbourg 67000 France.
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