Anatomy and neurochemistry of the pair bond

Studies in monogamous rodents have begun to elucidate the neural circuitry underlying the formation and maintenance of selective pair bonds between mates. This research suggests that at least three distinct, yet interconnected, neural pathways interact in the establishment of the pair bond. These in...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of comparative neurology (1911) 2005-12, Vol.493 (1), p.51-57
Main Authors: Young, Larry J., Murphy Young, Anne Z., Hammock, Elizabeth A.D.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Arginine Vasopressin - physiology
Arvicolinae
Brain - anatomy & histology
Brain - physiology
dopamine
Female
Humans
Male
Neural Pathways
nucleus accumbens
oxytocin
Oxytocin - physiology
Pair Bond
Receptors, Neuropeptide - metabolism
Reward
Sexual Behavior, Animal - physiology
Somatosensory Cortex - physiology
vasopressin
ventral pallidum
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Summary:Studies in monogamous rodents have begun to elucidate the neural circuitry underlying the formation and maintenance of selective pair bonds between mates. This research suggests that at least three distinct, yet interconnected, neural pathways interact in the establishment of the pair bond. These include circuits involved in conveying somatosensory information from the genitalia to the brain during sexual activity, the mesolimbic dopamine circuits of reward and reinforcement, and neuropeptidergic circuits involved specifically in the processing of socially salient cues. Here we present an integrated description of the interaction of these circuits in a model of pair bond formation in rodents with a discussion of the implications of these findings for evolution, individual variation, and human bonding. J. Comp. Neurol. 493:51–57, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
ISSN:0021-9967
1096-9861
DOI:10.1002/cne.20771