Play fighting and the development of the social brain: The rat’s tale

The benefits gained by young animals engaging in play fighting have been a subject of conjecture for over a hundred years. Progress in understanding the behavioral development of play fighting and the underlying neurobiology of laboratory rats has produced a coherent model that sheds light on this m...

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Published in:Neuroscience and biobehavioral reviews 2023-02, Vol.145, p.105037-105037, Article 105037
Main Authors: Pellis, Sergio M., Pellis, Vivien C., Ham, Jackson R., Stark, Rachel A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Brain
Dendritic arbor
Mammals
Medial prefrontal cortex
Neurons
Orbital frontal cortex
Play and Playthings
Prefrontal Cortex - physiology
Rats
Rough-and-tumble play
Social Behavior
Social coordination
Socio-cognitive skills
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Summary:The benefits gained by young animals engaging in play fighting have been a subject of conjecture for over a hundred years. Progress in understanding the behavioral development of play fighting and the underlying neurobiology of laboratory rats has produced a coherent model that sheds light on this matter. Depriving rats of typical peer-peer play experience during the juvenile period leads to adults with socio-cognitive deficiencies and these are correlated with physiological and anatomical changes to the neurons of the prefrontal cortex, especially the medial prefrontal cortex. Detailed analysis of juvenile peer play has shown that using the abilities needed to ensure that play fighting is reciprocal is critical for attaining these benefits. Therefore, unlike that which was posited by many earlier hypotheses, play fighting does not train specific motor actions, but rather, improves a skill set that can be applied in many different social and non-social contexts. There are still gaps in the rat model that need to be understood, but the model is well-enough developed to provide a framework for broader comparative studies of mammals from diverse lineages that engage in play fighting. •Play fighting is a rewarding social activity.•Play fighting challenges the use of the social brain.•Laboratory rats have provided a model for studying play fighting.•Rats have revealed that play fighting as juveniles trains the social brain.
ISSN:0149-7634
1873-7528
DOI:10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105037