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Bigiani S, Pilenga C. Benefit of Cognitive Environmental Enrichments on Social Tolerance and Play Behavior in Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus). J APPL ANIM WELF SCI 2024; 27:355-372. [PMID: 37337461 DOI: 10.1080/10888705.2023.2227563] [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] [Indexed: 06/21/2023]
Abstract
Social tolerance is an essential feature of social life that can determine the good functioning of a group of animals. Play behaviors, like social play and playing with objects, are frequently associated with positive emotional and welfare states. As a result, zoos use various strategies to promote both social tolerance and play with objects. Providing animals with cognitive environmental enrichment can be an effective tool to achieve these goals. Here we tested whether cognitive environmental enrichment can promote social tolerance and play with objects in bottlenose dolphins (Tursiops truncatus). To this end, we provided a group of five dolphins with two types of cognitive enrichment: one for individual use and one for cooperative use, both based on the rope-pulling task paradigm. Then we evaluated whether social tolerance and play with objects had increased after we provided dolphins with the two enrichments. Our results go in this direction, showing that after we provided dolphins with the enrichments, their intolerance behaviors decreased, both during feeding sessions and play sessions, while their play with objects increased. As a result, the two enrichments we used could be useful for improving dolphins' housing conditions.
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2
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Kurachi T, Shinozuka K, Yoshihara C, Yano-Nashimoto S, Murayama AY, Hata J, Haga Y, Okano H, Kuroda KO. Distinct roles of amylin and oxytocin signaling in intrafamilial social behaviors at the medial preoptic area of common marmosets. Commun Biol 2023; 6:1231. [PMID: 38052969 PMCID: PMC10698028 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-023-05593-5] [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: 08/21/2023] [Accepted: 11/15/2023] [Indexed: 12/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Calcitonin receptor (Calcr) and its brain ligand amylin in the medial preoptic area (MPOA) are found to be critically involved in infant care and social contact behaviors in mice. In primates, however, the evidence is limited to an excitotoxic lesion study of the Calcr-expressing MPOA subregion (cMPOA) in a family-living primate species, the common marmoset. The present study utilized pharmacological manipulations of the cMPOA and shows that reversible inactivation of the cMPOA abolishes infant-care behaviors in sibling marmosets without affecting other social or non-social behaviors. Amylin-expressing neurons in the marmoset MPOA are distributed in the vicinity of oxytocin neurons in the anterior paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. While amylin infusion facilitates infant carrying selectively, an oxytocin's inverse agonist, atosiban, reduces physical contact with non-infant family members without grossly affecting infant care. These data suggest that the amylin and oxytocin signaling mediate intrafamilial social interactions in a complementary manner in marmosets.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takuma Kurachi
- Laboratory for Affiliative Social Behavior, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
- Department of Agriculture, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Kazutaka Shinozuka
- Laboratory for Affiliative Social Behavior, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
| | - Chihiro Yoshihara
- Laboratory for Affiliative Social Behavior, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Kanagawa, Japan
| | - Saori Yano-Nashimoto
- Laboratory for Affiliative Social Behavior, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
- Laboratory of Physiology, Department of Basic Veterinary Sciences, Graduate School of Veterinary Medicine, Hokkaido University, Hokkaido, Japan
| | - Ayako Y Murayama
- Laboratory for Affiliative Social Behavior, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
- Department of Physiology, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Junichi Hata
- Department of Physiology, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
- Laboratory for Marmoset Neural Architecture, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
- Graduate School of Human Health Sciences, Tokyo Metropolitan University, Arakawa, Tokyo, Japan
| | - Yawara Haga
- Laboratory for Marmoset Neural Architecture, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
| | - Hideyuki Okano
- Department of Physiology, Keio University School of Medicine, Tokyo, Japan
- Laboratory for Marmoset Neural Architecture, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan
| | - Kumi O Kuroda
- Laboratory for Affiliative Social Behavior, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan.
- School of Life Science and Technology, Tokyo Institute of Technology, Kanagawa, Japan.
- Laboratory for Circuit and Behavioral Physiology, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan.
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3
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Yi Y, Mardiastuti A, Choe JC. How to be a good partner and father? The role of adult males in pair bond maintenance and parental care in Javan gibbons. Proc Biol Sci 2023; 290:20230950. [PMID: 37369349 DOI: 10.1098/rspb.2023.0950] [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: 04/25/2023] [Accepted: 05/31/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
In pair-living species, female and male pairs may maintain stable social bonds by adjusting spatial and social associations. Nevertheless, each sex invests differently to maintain the pair bond, and the investment can depend on the presence of paternal care or 'male services.' While most species live in pairs, the sex responsible for pair bond maintenance in gibbons is still controversial. We investigated pair bond maintenance and parental care in three pairs of wild Javan gibbons in Gunung Halimun-Salak National Park, Indonesia, for over 21 months. We found that Javan gibbon fathers groomed their offspring more than adult females, especially as offspring got older. While both parents increased playing time with offspring when offspring became older and more independent, fathers played with offspring 20 times more than mothers on average. Grooming within Javan gibbon pairs was male-biased, suggesting that pair bond maintenance was heavily the job of males. However, offspring age as a proxy for paternal care did not affect the pair bond maintenance. Our study highlights that adult male Javan gibbons may have an important role in pair bond maintenance and the care of juveniles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yoonjung Yi
- Laboratory of Animal Behaviour and Conservation, College of Biology and the Environment, Nanjing Forestry University, Nanjing, 210037, People's Republic of China
| | - Ani Mardiastuti
- Department of Forest Resources Conservation and Ecotourism, IPB University, Bogor, 16680, Indonesia
| | - Jae C Choe
- Laboratory of Behavioral Ecology, Division of EcoScience, Ewha Womans University, Seoul, 03760, Republic of Korea
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4
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A calcitonin receptor-expressing subregion of the medial preoptic area is involved in alloparental tolerance in common marmosets. Commun Biol 2022; 5:1243. [PMID: 36411342 PMCID: PMC9678893 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-022-04166-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Like humans, common marmoset monkeys utilize family cooperation for infant care, but the neural mechanisms underlying primate parental behaviors remain largely unknown. We investigated infant care behaviors of captive marmosets in family settings and caregiver-infant dyadic situations. Marmoset caregivers exhibited individual variations in parenting styles, comprised of sensitivity and tolerance toward infants, consistently across infants, social contexts and multiple births. Seeking the neural basis of these parenting styles, we demonstrated that the calcitonin receptor-expressing neurons in the marmoset medial preoptic area (MPOA) were transcriptionally activated during infant care, as in laboratory mice. Further, site-specific neurotoxic lesions of this MPOA subregion, termed the cMPOA, significantly reduced alloparental tolerance and total infant carrying, while sparing general health and other social or nonsocial behaviors. These results suggest that the molecularly-defined neural site cMPOA is responsible for mammalian parenting, thus provide an invaluable model to study the neural basis of parenting styles in primates.
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5
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Ziegler TE, Tecot SR, Fernandez-Duque E, Savage A, Snowdon CT. Nonhuman Primate Paternal Care: Species and Individual Differences in Behavior and Mechanisms. ADVANCES IN NEUROBIOLOGY 2022; 27:213-238. [PMID: 36169817 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-030-97762-7_7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Direct care of offspring by the father (sire) is relatively rare in primates. Besides humans, there are a number of species where the male is essential for the survival of offspring: marmosets, tamarins, titis and owl monkeys, some lemurs, and siamangs. All these species show reduced sexual dimorphism, territoriality, and biparental care. However, timing and levels of direct care may vary among these species. Here, relying on both lab and field data, we address the variability found in father's involvement with his infants, the behavioral, neuroendocrine and sensory systems that are a cause and consequence of paternal care, and social bonds between the breeding pair. We integrate studies of laboratory animals (where detailed observations and experimentation are possible) with field studies (which illuminate the ecological and evolutionary functions of paternal care) and discuss the future directions for examining the proximate and ultimate mechanisms of paternal care in nonhuman primates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toni E Ziegler
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA.
| | - Stacey R Tecot
- School of Anthropology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA
| | - Eduardo Fernandez-Duque
- Department of Anthropology and School of the Environment, Yale University, New Haven, CT, USA
| | | | - Charles T Snowdon
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
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6
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Triki Z, Daughters K, De Dreu CKW. Oxytocin has 'tend-and-defend' functionality in group conflict across social vertebrates. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2022; 377:20210137. [PMID: 35369742 PMCID: PMC8977669 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2021.0137] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/14/2022] Open
Abstract
Across vertebrate species, intergroup conflict confronts individuals with a tension between group interests best served by participation in conflict and personal interest best served by not participating. Here, we identify the neurohormone oxytocin as pivotal to the neurobiological regulation of this tension in distinctly different group-living vertebrates, including fishes, birds, rodents, non-human primates and humans. In the context of intergroup conflict, a review of emerging work on pro-sociality suggests that oxytocin and its fish and birds homologues, isotocin and mesotocin, respectively, can elicit participation in group conflict and aggression. This is because it amplifies (i) concern for the interests of genetically related or culturally similar ‘in-group’ others and (ii) willingness to defend against outside intruders and enemy conspecifics. Across a range of social vertebrates, oxytocin can induce aggressive behaviour to ‘tend-and-defend’ the in-group during intergroup contests. This article is part of the theme issue ‘Intergroup conflict across taxa’.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zegni Triki
- Department of Zoology, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | | | - Carsten K W De Dreu
- Institute of Psychology, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.,Center for Research in Experimental Economics and Political Decision Making, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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7
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Guoynes CD, Marler CA. Intranasal oxytocin reduces pre-courtship aggression and increases paternal response in California mice (Peromyscus californicus). Physiol Behav 2022; 249:113773. [PMID: 35248556 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2022.113773] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Revised: 03/01/2022] [Accepted: 03/02/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Oxytocin (OXT) is a neuropeptide that can facilitate prosocial behavior and decrease social stress and anxiety but can also increase aggression in some contexts. We investigated whether acute pulses of intranasal (IN) OXT influenced social behavior during social challenges that are likely to occur throughout the lifespan of a wild mouse. To test this, we examined the acute effects of IN OXT in the male California mouse (Peromyscus californicus), a monogamous, biparental, and territorial rodent, using a within-subjects longitudinal design. Social challenges included a pre-courtship male-female encounter conducted during the (1) initial aggressive and not the following affiliative phase of courtship, (2) same-sex resident intruder test, and (3) parental care test. Consecutive tests and doses were separated by at least two weeks. Males were treated with intranasal infusions of 0.8 IU/kg OXT or saline controls 5-min before each behavioral test, receiving a total of three treatments of either IN OXT or saline control. We predicted that IN OXT would 1) decrease aggression and increase affiliation during the pre-courtship aggression phase, 2) increase aggression during resident intruder paradigms, and 3) increase paternal care and vocalizations during a paternal care test. As predicted, during pre-courtship aggression with a novel female, IN OXT males displayed less contact aggression than control males, although with no change in affiliative behavior. However, post-pairing, during the resident intruder test, IN OXT males did not differ from control males in contact aggression. During the paternal care test, IN OXT males were quicker to approach their pups than control males but did not differ in vocalizations produced, unlike our previous research demonstrating an effect on vocalizations in females. In summary, during pre-courtship aggression and the paternal care test, IN OXT reduced antisocial behavior; however, during the resident intruder test, IN OXT did not alter antisocial behavior. These data suggest that IN OXT promotes prosocial behavior specifically in social contexts that can lead to affiliation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Caleigh D Guoynes
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison - Madison, 1202 W Johnson Street, Madison, WI, 53703 USA.
| | - Catherine A Marler
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison - Madison, 1202 W Johnson Street, Madison, WI, 53703 USA
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8
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Oxytocin promotes social proximity and decreases vigilance in groups of African lions. iScience 2022; 25:104049. [PMID: 35496998 PMCID: PMC9042884 DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.104049] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2021] [Revised: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 03/08/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
Oxytocin modulates mammalian social behavior; however, behavioral responses to intranasal oxytocin can vary across species and contexts. The complexity of social interactions increases with group dynamics, and the impacts of oxytocin on both within- and between-group contexts are unknown. We tested the effects of intranasal administration of oxytocin on social and non-social behaviors within in-group and out-group contexts in African lions. We hypothesized that, post intranasal oxytocin administration, lions would be in closer proximity with fellow group members, whereas out-group stimuli could either produce a heightened vigilance response or an attenuated one. Compared to control trials, post oxytocin administration, lions increased their time spent in close proximity (reducing their distance to the nearest neighbor) and decreased vigilance toward out-group intruders (reducing their vocalizations following a roar-playback). These results not only have important implications for understanding the evolution of social circuitry but may also have practical applications for conservation efforts. We administered oxytocin to groups of African lions Relative to control conditions, oxytocin administration enhanced social proximity Oxytocin administration decreased vigilance (roars following roar playback)
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9
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Species differences in the effect of oxytocin on maternal behavior: A model incorporating the potential for allomaternal contributions. Front Neuroendocrinol 2022; 65:100996. [PMID: 35429546 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2022.100996] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/18/2022] [Revised: 03/25/2022] [Accepted: 04/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Oxytocin has historically been linked to processes involved with maternal behavior. However, the relative importance of oxytocin for maternal behavior widely varies among mammalian species, from indispensable to apparently nonessential. This review proposes a new model in which the relative importance of oxytocin for mothering across species is explained by an evolutionary pressure which we term "allomaternal potential", or the degree to which other conspecifics are capable and likely to assist with caregiving. It is notable that in animals where allomaternal potential is high (i.e., many quality helpers are available), oxytocin is decoupled from mothering. However, in animals where allomaternal potential is low (i.e., conspecifics refuse to, or do not provide, quality help), oxytocin is crucial for mothering. We posit that this relationship is a form of kin selection, whereby oxytocin is a signal that leads mothers to preferentially dispense resources to their own young when quality helpers are unlikely.
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10
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Grumi S, Saracino A, Volling BL, Provenzi L. A systematic review of human paternal oxytocin: Insights into the methodology and what we know so far. Dev Psychobiol 2021; 63:1330-1344. [PMID: 33694219 DOI: 10.1002/dev.22116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2020] [Revised: 02/04/2021] [Accepted: 02/20/2020] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
With the consolidation of fathers' engagement in caregiving, understanding the neuroendocrine and hormonal mechanisms underlying fatherhood becomes a relevant topic. Oxytocin (OT) has been linked with maternal bonding and caregiving, but less is known about the role of OT in human fatherhood and paternal caregiving. A systematic review of methods and findings of previous OT research in human fathers was carried. The literature search on PubMed and Scopus yielded 133 records. Twenty-four studies were included and analyzed. Significant variability emerged in OT methodology, including laboratory tasks, assessment methods, and outcome measures. Fathers' OT levels appear to increase after childbirth. OT was significantly correlated with less hostility and with the quality of paternal physical stimulation in play interactions, but not with paternal sensitivity. Fathers' and children's OT levels were significantly correlated in a limited subset of studies, intriguingly suggesting that cross-generational OT regulation may occur during the early years of life. This study highlights relevant issues and limitations of peripheral OT assessment in human subjects, especially in fathers. Although the study of paternal neuroendocrinology appears promising, coping with these issues requires dedicated efforts and methodological suggestions are provided to guide future advances in this field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Serena Grumi
- Child Neurology and Psychiatry Unit, IRCCS Mondino Foundation, Pavia, Italy
| | - Annalisa Saracino
- Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy
| | - Brenda L Volling
- Department of Psychology, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA
| | - Livio Provenzi
- Child Neurology and Psychiatry Unit, IRCCS Mondino Foundation, Pavia, Italy
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11
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Mitra AK. Oxytocin and vasopressin: the social networking buttons of the body. AIMS MOLECULAR SCIENCE 2021. [DOI: 10.3934/molsci.2021003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/23/2023] Open
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12
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Huang J, Cheng X, Zhang S, Chang L, Li X, Liang Z, Gong N. Having Infants in the Family Group Promotes Altruistic Behavior of Marmoset Monkeys. Curr Biol 2020; 30:4047-4055.e3. [PMID: 32822603 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2020.07.045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2020] [Revised: 05/05/2020] [Accepted: 07/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
The common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) has attracted much attention as a useful model for studying social behaviors [1-3]. They naturally live in a monogamous family group and exhibit cooperative breeding [4], in which parents and older siblings help to carry infants less than 2 months old [5-7]. Marmoset parents also transfer foods to their offspring, a process that may help them learn the food diet [8]. Furthermore, marmosets show spontaneous altruistic behaviors, such as providing food to non-reciprocating and genetically unrelated individuals [9]. These social habits indicate that marmosets may be a useful non-human primate model for studying parenting and altruistic behaviors, as well as underlying neural mechanisms. Using a novel rescue paradigm, we found that marmoset parents and older siblings showed strong motivation to rescue trapped young infants but not juvenile marmosets beyond 2 months of age, and infant calls alone could trigger these parents' rescue behaviors. The marmoset parents showed little rescue of each other, but young infants or infant calls could also induce such parents' mutual rescue. Moreover, all these infant- and mate-rescue behaviors depended on currently having young infants in the family group. Functional MRI studies on awake adult marmosets showed that calls from young infants, but not juvenile marmosets, elicited a large-scale activation of specific brain areas including auditory and insular cortices, and such activation was absent in marmosets not living with infants. Thus, such infant-induced modification of neural activity offers a window for examining the neural basis of altruistic behaviors in marmoset monkeys.
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Affiliation(s)
- Junfeng Huang
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Primate Neurobiology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Xiaochun Cheng
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Primate Neurobiology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Shikun Zhang
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Primate Neurobiology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Liangtang Chang
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Primate Neurobiology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Xuebo Li
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Primate Neurobiology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China
| | - Zhifeng Liang
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Primate Neurobiology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence Technology, Shanghai 201210, China.
| | - Neng Gong
- Institute of Neuroscience, Key Laboratory of Primate Neurobiology, CAS Center for Excellence in Brain Science and Intelligence Technology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai 200031, China; Shanghai Center for Brain Science and Brain-Inspired Intelligence Technology, Shanghai 201210, China.
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13
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DeAngelis R, Dodd L, Rhodes J. Nonapeptides mediate trade-offs in parental care strategy. Horm Behav 2020; 121:104717. [PMID: 32061617 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2020.104717] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2019] [Revised: 02/06/2020] [Accepted: 02/09/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
Parental care represents a suite of distinct behaviors performed by parents to maximize fitness. Dynamic shifts in parental care behaviors, such as between nest defense and direct provisioning of the offspring, are required in response to environmental variation. However, the neural mechanisms which mediate such behavioral shifts remain a mystery. The anemonefish, Amphiprion ocellaris, represents an experimentally valuable model in social neuroscience which is conducive to manipulating the environment while simultaneously measuring parental care. The goal of this study was to determine the extent to which arginine vasotocin (AVT) and isotocin (IT) signaling are necessary for males to shift between direct egg care and aggressive nest defense in the presence of intruders, Domino damselfish (Dascyllus trimaculatus). The IT receptor antagonist desGly-NH2-d(CH2)5[D-Tyr2,Thr4]OVT, significantly reduced direct egg care, while at the same time increased levels of aggressive nest defense relative to vehicle. Conversely, blockade of AVT using the antagonist d(CH2)5[Tyr(Me)2]AVP, reduced aggression and tended to increase egg care. Results demonstrate that male anemonefish alter their parental strategy in response to allospecific intruders, and that IT and AVT signaling oppositely regulate parental care displays of aggression versus egg care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ross DeAngelis
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States of America; Program for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States of America.
| | - Logan Dodd
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States of America
| | - Justin Rhodes
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States of America; Program for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, United States of America
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14
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Burkart JM, van Schaik CP. Marmoset prosociality is intentional. Anim Cogn 2020; 23:581-594. [PMID: 32107657 PMCID: PMC7181450 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-020-01363-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Revised: 02/09/2020] [Accepted: 02/17/2020] [Indexed: 01/15/2023]
Abstract
Marmoset monkeys show high levels of proactive prosociality, a trait shared with humans, presumably because both species rely on allomaternal care. However, it is not clear whether the proximate regulation of this convergent trait is also similar, in particular with regard to intentionality, which is a defining characteristic of prosocial behavior in the human literature. The aim of this paper was to investigate whether marmoset monkeys' prosociality fulfils the criteria of intentionality developed in primate communication research. The results show that marmoset prosocial behavior (i) has some degree of flexibility, since individuals can use multiple means to reach their goal and adjust them to specific conditions, (ii) depends on the presence of an audience, i.e. potential recipients (social use), and (iii) is goal-directed, because (a) it continues exactly until the putative goal is reached, and (b) individuals check back and look at/for their partner when their prosocial actions do not achieve the putative goal (i.e. if their actions don't lead to the expected outcome, this elicits distinct reactions in the actor). These results suggest that marmoset prosociality is under some degree of voluntary, intentional control. They are in line with other findings that marmosets perceive each other as intentional agents, and only learn socially from actions that are perceived as intentional. The most parsimonious conclusion is, therefore, that prosocial behavior is fundamentally under voluntary control in marmosets, just as it is in humans, even though our more sophisticated cognitive abilities allow for a far more complex integration of prosociality into a broader variety of contexts and of behavioral goals.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith M Burkart
- Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland.
| | - Carel P van Schaik
- Department of Anthropology, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057, Zürich, Switzerland
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15
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Taylor JH, Carp SB, French JA. Vasopressin, but not oxytocin, modulates responses to infant stimuli in marmosets providing care to dependent infants. Dev Psychobiol 2019; 62:932-940. [PMID: 31290143 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2019] [Revised: 05/29/2019] [Accepted: 06/13/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
In family-living species, the quality and patterning of caregiving is the product of an individual's role within the family (mother, father, sibling) and parental experience, both of which interact with underlying neurobiological substrates. Among these substrates are the nonapeptides vasopressin and oxytocin, which modulate maternal, paternal, and alloparental care. We used a nonhuman primate model of the "nuclear family," the marmoset (Callithrix jacchus), to investigate relationships between caregiving experience, role within the family, and activation of either the oxytocin or vasopressin systems in shaping responsiveness to offspring. During two phases of offspring development (early infancy, juvenile), mothers, fathers, and older siblings were treated with vasopressin, oxytocin, or saline via intranasal application, and tested for responses to infant distress stimuli in a within-subjects design. Interest in infant stimuli was highest among marmosets that were caring for infants compared to those caring for juveniles, and parentally experienced marmosets were quicker to respond to infant stimuli than first-time caregivers. Moreover, marmosets treated with vasopressin showed enhanced responsiveness to infant stimuli compared to control stimuli only when caring for infants. Thus, in all classes of marmoset caregivers, vasopressin enhances responsiveness to infant-associated stimuli in caregivers during periods in which infant care is most crucial.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack H Taylor
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska.,Callitrichid Research Center, Omaha, Nebraska
| | - Sarah B Carp
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska.,Callitrichid Research Center, Omaha, Nebraska
| | - Jeffrey A French
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska.,Callitrichid Research Center, Omaha, Nebraska.,Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska
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16
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Cavanaugh J, Mustoe A, Womack SL, French JA. Oxytocin modulates mate-guarding behavior in marmoset monkeys. Horm Behav 2018; 106:150-161. [PMID: 30342885 PMCID: PMC6298842 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2018.10.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2018] [Revised: 10/15/2018] [Accepted: 10/17/2018] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
In socially-monogamous species, intolerance of interactions between a pairmate and a sexual rival (i.e., mate-guarding) promotes the preservation of long-lasting partnerships. One promising neurobiological candidate for the regulation of mate-guarding behavior in monogamous primates is the oxytocin (OT) system, given its established role in both the development of monogamous bonds and the behavioral processes that facilitate the preservation of those bonds. In this study, male and female marmosets were exposed to a same-sex intruder in their home environment during conditions when their pairmate was present and absent, and across three treatment conditions (OT receptor agonist; saline control; OT receptor antagonist). Saline-treated marmosets spent significantly more time in proximity to the intruder, relative to the empty pairmate enclosure, when their pairmate was absent. However, when marmosets received OT they spent less time in proximity to the intruder, indicating that OT may reduce interest in a same-sex stranger in a territorial context. When their pairmate was present, saline-treated marmosets spent equal time in proximity to both intruder and pairmate; yet when they received OT they spent significantly more time in proximity to the intruder, indicating that OT may increase interest in a same-sex stranger in a mate-guarding context. While OT treatment did not directly influence the expression of aggression, OT system manipulations impacted the expression of selective social interest during an intruder challenge, suggesting that OT may enhance adaptive responses to social challenges. Moreover, these findings add to the converging evidence that the OT system regulates behavioral processes that underlie the preservation of established relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jon Cavanaugh
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States of America.
| | - Aaryn Mustoe
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States of America
| | - Stephanie L Womack
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States of America
| | - Jeffrey A French
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States of America; Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States of America
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17
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Mustoe A, Taylor JH, French JA. Oxytocin structure and function in New World monkeys: from pharmacology to behavior. Integr Zool 2018; 13:634-654. [PMID: 29436774 PMCID: PMC6089668 DOI: 10.1111/1749-4877.12318] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Oxytocin (OT) is a hypothalamic nonapeptide that mediates a host of physiological and behavioral processes including reproductive physiology and social attachments. While the OT sequence structure is highly conserved among mammals, New World monkeys (NWMs) represent an unusual "hot spot" in OT structure variability among mammals. At least 6 distinct OT ligand variants among NWMs exist, yet it is currently unclear whether these evolved structural changes result in meaningful functional consequences. NWMs offer a new area to explore how these modifications to OT and its canonical G-protein coupled OT receptor (OTR) may mediate specific cellular, physiological and behavioral outcomes. In this review, we highlight relationships between OT ligand and OTR structural variability, specifically examining coevolution between OT ligands, OTRs, and physiological and behavioral phenotypes across NWMs. We consider whether these evolved modifications to the OT structure alter pharmacological profiles at human and marmoset OTRs, including changes to receptor binding, intracellular signaling and receptor internalization. Finally, we evaluate whether exogenous manipulation using OT variants in marmoset monkeys differentially enhance or impair behavioral processes involved in social relationships between pairmates, opposite-sex strangers, and parents and their offspring. Overall, it appears that changes to OT ligands in NWMs result in important changes ranging from cellular signaling to broad measures of social behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaryn Mustoe
- Program in Neuroscience and Behavior, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
| | - Jack H Taylor
- Program in Neuroscience and Behavior, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
| | - Jeffrey A French
- Program in Neuroscience and Behavior, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska, USA
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18
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Cavanaugh J, Mustoe A, French JA. Oxytocin regulates reunion affiliation with a pairmate following social separation in marmosets. Am J Primatol 2018; 80:e22750. [PMID: 29527695 PMCID: PMC6133767 DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22750] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2017] [Revised: 02/20/2018] [Accepted: 02/22/2018] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
While separation from significant social partners produces a host of neurobiological and behavioral perturbations, including behavioral distress and increased glucocorticoid production, positive social interactions upon reunion are critical for the reestablishment of normative relationship dynamics and the attenuation of the biobehavioral stress response. The hormone oxytocin has critical and pervasive roles in reproductive and behavioral processes across the lifespan, and plays a particularly prominent role in social bonding. In this study, we examined the extent that oxytocin modulates interactions with a pairmate following separation challenges that varied in both social context (isolation; separation) and duration (long; short), in marmosets. We demonstrated that the impact of pharmacological manipulations of the oxytocin system on the expression of affiliation upon reunion depended on both the context and duration of the separation challenge. Specifically, marmosets treated with an oxytocin antagonist spent less time in proximity with their pairmate upon reunion following a long-separation challenge. During the short-separation challenge, marmosets engaged in more social gaze when separated with an opposite-sex stranger, but not when separated with their mate. Furthermore, marmosets that received the most social gaze from opposite-sex strangers spent the most time in proximity with their long-term mate upon reunion. We also showed that marmosets treated with an OT agonist received increased levels of gaze from opposite-sex strangers, but not from their mate. Overall, these results suggest that marmosets are sensitive to the nature of the social interactions during separation, and subsequently alter their expression of affiliation upon reunion with their long-term mate. These findings further implicate oxytocin as a bond-enhancing molecule that regulates the reestablishment of normative levels of affiliation with a mate following separation, and add to the emerging literature that suggests the OT system underlies critical behavioral processes that contribute to the preservation of long-lasting social bonds.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jon Cavanaugh
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska
| | - Aaryn Mustoe
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska
- Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska
| | - Jeffrey A. French
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, Nebraska
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Mokkonen M, Koskela E, Procyshyn T, Crespi B. Socio-reproductive Conflicts and the Father's Curse Dilemma. Am Nat 2018; 192:250-262. [PMID: 30016171 DOI: 10.1086/698216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/03/2022]
Abstract
Evolutionary conflicts between males and females can manifest over sexually antagonistic interactions at loci or over sexually antagonistic interests within a locus. The latter form of conflict, intralocus sexual conflict, arises from sexually antagonistic selection and constrains the fitness of individuals through a phenotypic compromise. These conflicts, and socio-reproductive interactions in general, are commonly mediated by hormones, and thus predictive insights can be gained from studying their mediating effects. Here, we integrate several lines of evidence to describe a novel, hormonally mediated reproductive dilemma that we call the father's curse, which results from an intralocus conflict between mating and parental efforts. Essentially, a genetic locus exerts pleiotropic and antagonistic effects on the mating effort of one individual and the parental effort of a related individual who is the primary provider of parental care. We outline the criteria for operation of the father's curse dilemma, provide evidence of the phenomenon, and discuss the predictions and outcomes arising from its dynamics. By integrating the effects of hormones into socio-reproductive conflicts and socio-reproductive effort, clearer links between genotypes, phenotypes, and fitness can be established.
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20
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Benítez ME, Sosnowski MJ, Tomeo OB, Brosnan SF. Urinary oxytocin in capuchin monkeys: Validation and the influence of social behavior. Am J Primatol 2018; 80:e22877. [DOI: 10.1002/ajp.22877] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/12/2017] [Revised: 05/08/2018] [Accepted: 05/08/2018] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Marcela E. Benítez
- Department of Psychology; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
- Language Research Center; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
- Center for Behavioral Neuroscience; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
| | - Meghan J. Sosnowski
- Department of Psychology; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
- Language Research Center; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
| | - Olivia B. Tomeo
- Department of Psychology; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
- Language Research Center; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
| | - Sarah F. Brosnan
- Department of Psychology; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
- Language Research Center; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
- Center for Behavioral Neuroscience; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
- Neuroscience Institute; Georgia State University; Atlanta Georgia
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21
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French JA, Cavanaugh J, Mustoe AC, Carp SB, Womack SL. Social Monogamy in Nonhuman Primates: Phylogeny, Phenotype, and Physiology. JOURNAL OF SEX RESEARCH 2018; 55:410-434. [PMID: 28704071 PMCID: PMC6004613 DOI: 10.1080/00224499.2017.1339774] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
Monogamy as a social system has been both a scientific puzzle and a sociocultural issue for decades. In this review, we examine social monogamy from a comparative perspective with a focus on primates, our closest genetic relatives. We break down monogamy into component elements, including pair-bonding and partner preference, mate guarding or jealousy, social attachment, and biparental care. Our survey of primates shows that not all features are present in species classified as socially monogamous, in the same way that human monogamous relationships may not include all elements-a perspective we refer to as "monogamy à la carte." Our review includes a survey of the neurobiological correlates of social monogamy in primates, exploring unique or common pathways for the elemental components of monogamy. This compilation reveals that the components of monogamy are modulated by a suite of androgenic steroids, glucocorticoid hormones, the nonapeptide hormones oxytocin and vasopressin, and other neurotransmitter systems (e.g., dopamine and opioids). We propose that efforts to understand the biological underpinnings of complex human and animal sociosexual relationships will be well served by exploring individual phenotypic traits, as opposed to pursuing these questions with the assumption that monogamy is a unitary trait or a species-specific characteristic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey A French
- a Department of Psychology and Department of Biology , University of Nebraska Omaha
| | - Jon Cavanaugh
- b Department of Psychology , University of Nebraska Omaha
| | - Aaryn C Mustoe
- b Department of Psychology , University of Nebraska Omaha
| | - Sarah B Carp
- b Department of Psychology , University of Nebraska Omaha
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22
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Taylor JH, Intorre AA, French JA. Vasopressin and Oxytocin Reduce Food Sharing Behavior in Male, but Not Female Marmosets in Family Groups. Front Endocrinol (Lausanne) 2017; 8:181. [PMID: 28798724 PMCID: PMC5529352 DOI: 10.3389/fendo.2017.00181] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2017] [Accepted: 07/10/2017] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Oxytocin (OT) is critical for lactation and maternal care, but OT and the related nonapeptide vasopressin are important for caregiving behaviors in fathers and alloparents as well. This experiment tested the effects of vasopressin and OT on food sharing in marmoset families. We treated caregivers (parents, siblings) with intranasal vasopressin, OT, or saline, and then paired them with the youngest marmoset in the family. Caregivers were given preferred food, and then observed for food sharing and aggressive behavior with young marmosets. OT reduced food sharing from male alloparents to youngest siblings, and fathers that received vasopressin refused to share food with their youngest offspring more often than when treated with OT. Vasopressin increased aggressive vocalizations directed toward potential food recipients in all classes of caregivers. These results indicate that vasopressin and OT do not always enhance prosocial behavior: modulation of food sharing depends on both sex and parental status.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack H. Taylor
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, United States
- Callitrichid Research Center, Omaha, NE, United States
| | - Allison A. Intorre
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, United States
- Callitrichid Research Center, Omaha, NE, United States
| | - Jeffrey A. French
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, United States
- Callitrichid Research Center, Omaha, NE, United States
- Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, United States
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23
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Ziegler TE, Crockford C. Neuroendocrine control in social relationships in non-human primates: Field based evidence. Horm Behav 2017; 91:107-121. [PMID: 28284710 PMCID: PMC6372243 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2016] [Revised: 03/06/2017] [Accepted: 03/07/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Primates maintain a variety of social relationships and these can have fitness consequences. Research has established that different types of social relationships are unpinned by different or interacting hormonal systems, for example, the neuropeptide oxytocin influences social bonding, the steroid hormone testosterone influences dominance relationships, and paternal care is characterized by high oxytocin and low testosterone. Although the oxytocinergic system influences social bonding, it can support different types of social bonds in different species, whether pair bonds, parent-offspring bonds or friendships. It seems that selection processes shape social and mating systems and their interactions with neuroendocrine pathways. Within species, there are individual differences in the development of the neuroendocrine system: the social environment individuals are exposed to during ontogeny alters their neuroendocrine and socio-cognitive development, and later, their social interactions as adults. Within individuals, neuroendocrine systems can also have short-term effects, impacting on social interactions, such as those during hunting, intergroup encounters or food sharing, or the likelihood of cooperating, winning or losing. To understand these highly dynamic processes, extending research beyond animals in laboratory settings to wild animals living within their natural social and ecological setting may bring insights that are otherwise unreachable. Field endocrinology with neuropeptides is still emerging. We review the current status of this research, informed by laboratory studies, and identify questions particularly suited to future field studies. We focus on primate social relationships, specifically social bonds (mother-offspring, father-offspring, cooperative breeders, pair bonds and adult platonic friendships), dominance, cooperation and in-group/out-group relationships, and examine evidence with respect to the 'tend and defend' hypothesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Toni E Ziegler
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI, USA.
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24
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Okabe S, Tsuneoka Y, Takahashi A, Ooyama R, Watarai A, Maeda S, Honda Y, Nagasawa M, Mogi K, Nishimori K, Kuroda M, Koide T, Kikusui T. Pup exposure facilitates retrieving behavior via the oxytocin neural system in female mice. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2017; 79:20-30. [PMID: 28246032 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2017.01.036] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2016] [Revised: 01/31/2017] [Accepted: 01/31/2017] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
Parental behavior in mammals is innate, but it is also facilitated by social experience, specifically social interactions between the parent and infant. Social interactions with infants also induce the alloparental behavior of virgin animals. Oxytocin (OT) plays an important role in mediating alloparental behavior. Although parental behavior is modulated by the medial preoptic area (MPOA) and adjacent regions, it is unclear how OT acts in these regions as a control mechanism of alloparental behavior promoted by adult-pup interaction. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of OT for facilitating effects of adult-pup interactions on alloparental behavior via neural activity of preoptic area (POA), including MPOA and adjacent area. For this purpose, we conducted behavioral tests and examined the neural activity of the OT system in POA. Virgin female mice that were repeatedly exposed to pups showed shorter retrieving latencies and higher number of c-Fos expressing neurons in POA, particular in lateral preoptic area (LPO) compared to control animals that were exposed to pups only one time. In addition, repeated pup exposure increased the proportion of OT neurons and OTR neurons expressing c-Fos in POA. The concentration of OT also significantly increased in the POA. Finally, infusion of an OT antagonist into the POA area blocked the facilitating effects of repeated pup exposure on retrieving behavior. These results demonstrated that the facilitating effects of repeated pup exposure on alloparental behavior occurred via an organizational role of the OT system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shota Okabe
- Companion Animal Research, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan
| | - Yousuke Tsuneoka
- Department of Anatomy, Toho University School of Medicine, Tokyo, 143-8540 Japan
| | - Aki Takahashi
- Mouse Genomics Resource Laboratory, National Institute of Genetics (NIG), Mishima, Japan; Department of Genetics, SOKENDAI, Mishima, Japan
| | - Rumi Ooyama
- Companion Animal Research, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan
| | - Akiyuki Watarai
- Companion Animal Research, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan
| | - Sayaka Maeda
- Companion Animal Research, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan
| | - Yuka Honda
- Companion Animal Research, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan
| | - Miho Nagasawa
- Companion Animal Research, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan
| | - Kazutaka Mogi
- Companion Animal Research, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan
| | - Katsuhiko Nishimori
- Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Graduate School of Agricultural Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, 981-8555, Japan
| | - Masaru Kuroda
- Department of Anatomy, Toho University School of Medicine, Tokyo, 143-8540 Japan
| | - Tsuyoshi Koide
- Mouse Genomics Resource Laboratory, National Institute of Genetics (NIG), Mishima, Japan; Department of Genetics, SOKENDAI, Mishima, Japan
| | - Takefumi Kikusui
- Companion Animal Research, School of Veterinary Medicine, Azabu University, Sagamihara 252-5201, Japan.
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25
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DeAngelis R, Gogola J, Dodd L, Rhodes JS. Opposite effects of nonapeptide antagonists on paternal behavior in the teleost fish Amphiprion ocellaris. Horm Behav 2017; 90:113-119. [PMID: 28288796 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2017.02.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/27/2016] [Revised: 02/15/2017] [Accepted: 02/23/2017] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
The nonapeptides isotocin (IT) and arginine vasotocin (AVT), along with their mammalian homologs oxytocin and arginine vasopressin, are well known regulators of social behaviors across vertebrate taxa. However, little is known about their involvement in paternal care. Here, we measured the effect of an IT and an AVT V1a receptor antagonist on paternal behaviors in the primarily paternal teleost Amphiprion ocellaris. We also measured the effect of the IT receptor antagonist on aggression in dyadic contests between two non-reproductive fish to assess specificity of the effect on paternal behaviors. Individual differences in levels of paternal behaviors (nips, fanning the eggs, and proportion of the time in the nest) were consistent across spawning cycles when no treatments were administered. The IT receptor antagonist severely reduced paternal behaviors but had no effect on aggression, whereas the AVT V1a receptor antagonist increased paternal behaviors. These results support the idea that IT signaling is crucial for the expression of paternal behavior in A. ocellaris. Based on a previous study showing that the AVT V1a antagonist decreases aggression in dyadic contests, we hypothesize that the antagonist enhances paternal behavior indirectly by reducing vigilance and aggression, thereby alleviating effort directed towards other competing behaviors and allowing for the increased expression of paternal behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ross DeAngelis
- Program for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, USA.
| | - Joseph Gogola
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Logan Dodd
- Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
| | - Justin S Rhodes
- Program for Ecology, Evolution and Conservation Biology, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, USA; Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology, University of Illinois at Urbana, Champaign, 405 N. Mathews Ave, Urbana, IL 61801, USA
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26
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Rilling JK, Mascaro JS. The neurobiology of fatherhood. Curr Opin Psychol 2017; 15:26-32. [PMID: 28813264 DOI: 10.1016/j.copsyc.2017.02.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2016] [Accepted: 02/10/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Only about 5% of mammalian species exhibit paternal caregiving in nature, and paternal behavior has evolved multiple times independently among mammals. The most parsimonious way to evolve paternal behavior may be to utilize pre-existing neural systems that are in place for maternal behavior. Despite evidence for similarity in the neurobiology of maternal and paternal behavior in rodents, paternal behavior also has its own dedicated neural circuitry in some species. Human fathers engage conserved subcortical systems that motivate caregiving in rodent parents and human mothers, as well as cortical systems involved with empathy that they share with human mothers. Finally, paternal behavior is modulated by similar hormones and neuropeptides in rodents, non-human primates, and humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- James K Rilling
- Department of Anthropology, Emory University, 207 Anthropology Building, 1557 Dickey Drive, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, 1639 Pierce Drive, Suite 4000, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA; Center for Behavioral Neuroscience, Emory University, PO Box 3966, Atlanta, Georgia 30302, USA; Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, USA.
| | - Jennifer S Mascaro
- Center for Translational Social Neuroscience, Emory University, USA; Department of Family and Preventive Medicine, Emory University School of Medicine, 1841 Clifton Road NE, Rm 507, Atlanta, GA 30329, USA
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27
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Finkenwirth C, Burkart JM. Long-term-stability of relationship structure in family groups of common marmosets, and its link to proactive prosociality. Physiol Behav 2017; 173:79-86. [PMID: 28115225 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2017.01.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2016] [Revised: 01/12/2017] [Accepted: 01/19/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Cooperatively breeding, group-living common marmosets show differentiated relationships, where more strongly bonded dyads within a group engage more in affiliative interactions than less strongly bonded ones. Intriguingly, recent results suggest that strong bonds do not only occur between breeding partners but between individuals from any sex or status, and that strong-bond partners exhibit correlated oxytocin fluctuations (dyadic oxytocin synchrony, OTS) over a period of six weeks. To date, it is unclear whether such relationships are stable over time and whether they are also reflected in higher partner-specific proactive prosociality. To assess the long-term stability of the relationship structure of common marmoset family groups, we investigated whether hormonal and behavioral markers of group structure (dyadic OTS, dyadic affiliation, and individual group integration) in common marmoset families remained stable over a period of six months. We collected baseline urinary OT and social behavior of 36 dyads from three family groups in a non-reproductive period (period A), and again six months later, around the birth of new infants (period B). Patterns of dyadic OTS, dyadic affiliation, and individual group integration were consistent between the two study periods. Oxytocin data from a fourth group (10 dyads), collected in two non-reproductive periods separated by a period of more than five years, could replicate this finding. Furthermore, OTS was also correlated with proactive prosociality that was assessed experimentally for 38 dyads during an earlier study. These results suggest that differentiated relationships are stable over time, even between group members other than the breeding pair, and that more strongly bonded partners also show higher levels of proactive prosociality. Future studies are necessary to identify whether these relationships have an adaptive function, perhaps with regard to positive consequences on cooperativeness.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christa Finkenwirth
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Judith M Burkart
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
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28
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Trumble BC, Jaeggi AV, Gurven M. Evolving the neuroendocrine physiology of human and primate cooperation and collective action. Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci 2016; 370:20150014. [PMID: 26503687 DOI: 10.1098/rstb.2015.0014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
While many hormones play vital roles in facilitating or reinforcing cooperative behaviour, the neurohormones underlying competitive and cooperative behaviours are largely conserved across all mammals. This raises the question of how endocrine mechanisms have been shaped by selection to produce different levels of cooperation in different species. Multiple components of endocrine physiology--from baseline hormone concentrations, to binding proteins, to the receptor sensitivity and specificity--can evolve independently and be impacted by current socio-ecological conditions or individual status, thus potentially generating a wide range of variation within and between species. Here, we highlight several neurohormones and variation in hormone receptor genes associated with cooperation, focusing on the role of oxytocin and testosterone in contexts ranging from parenting and pair-bonding to reciprocity and territorial defence. While the studies reviewed herein describe the current state of the literature with regard to hormonal modulators of cooperation and collective action, there is still a paucity of research on hormonal mechanisms that help facilitate large-scale collective action. We end by discussing several potential areas for future research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Benjamin C Trumble
- Department of Anthropology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Adrian V Jaeggi
- Department of Anthropology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
| | - Michael Gurven
- Department of Anthropology, University of California Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106, USA
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French JA, Taylor JH, Mustoe AC, Cavanaugh J. Neuropeptide diversity and the regulation of social behavior in New World primates. Front Neuroendocrinol 2016; 42:18-39. [PMID: 27020799 PMCID: PMC5030117 DOI: 10.1016/j.yfrne.2016.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2016] [Revised: 02/27/2016] [Accepted: 03/24/2016] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Oxytocin (OT) and vasopressin (AVP) are important hypothalamic neuropeptides that regulate peripheral physiology, and have emerged as important modulators of brain function, particularly in the social realm. OT structure and the genes that ultimately determine structure are highly conserved among diverse eutherian mammals, but recent discoveries have identified surprising variability in OT and peptide structure in New World monkeys (NWM), with five new OT variants identified to date. This review explores these new findings in light of comparative OT/AVP ligand evolution, documents coevolutionary changes in the oxytocin and vasopressin receptors (OTR and V1aR), and highlights the distribution of neuropeptidergic neurons and receptors in the primate brain. Finally, the behavioral consequences of OT and AVP in regulating NWM sociality are summarized, demonstrating important neuromodulatory effects of these compounds and OT ligand-specific influences in certain social domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeffrey A French
- Program in Neuroscience and Behavior, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE 68182, USA.
| | - Jack H Taylor
- Program in Neuroscience and Behavior, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE 68182, USA
| | - Aaryn C Mustoe
- Program in Neuroscience and Behavior, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE 68182, USA
| | - Jon Cavanaugh
- Program in Neuroscience and Behavior, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE 68182, USA
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Mustoe AC, Harnisch AM, Hochfelder B, Cavanaugh J, French JA. Inequity aversion strategies between marmosets are influenced by partner familiarity and sex but not oxytocin. Anim Behav 2016; 114:69-79. [PMID: 27019514 PMCID: PMC4802974 DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2016.01.025] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Cooperation among individuals depends, in large part, on a sense of fairness. Many cooperating non-human primates (NHPs) show inequity aversion, (i.e., negative responses to unequal outcomes), and these responses toward inequity likely evolved as a means to preserve the advantages of cooperative relationships. However, marmosets (Callithrix spp.) tend to show little or no inequity aversion, despite the high occurrence of prosociality and cooperative-breeding in callitrichid monkeys. Oxytocin [OXT] has been implicated in a wide variety of social processes, but little is known about whether OXT modulates inequity aversion toward others. We used a tray pulling task to evaluate whether marmosets would donate superior rewards to their long-term pairmate or an opposite-sex stranger following OXT, OXT antagonist, and saline treatments. We found that marmosets show inequity aversion, and this inequity aversion is socially- and sex-specific. Male marmosets show inequity aversion toward their pairmates but not strangers, and female marmosets do not show inequity aversion. OXT treatments did not significantly influence inequity aversion in marmosets. While OXT may modulate prosocial preferences, the motivations underlying cooperative relationships, such as inequity aversion, are multifaceted. More research is needed to evaluate the evolutionary origins, biological processes, and social contexts that influence complex phenotypes like inequity aversion. Inequity aversion can differ within species in important and distinct ways including between individuals who do and do not share a cooperative relationship. Overall, these findings support the view that inequity aversion is an important behavioural strategy for the maintenance of cooperative relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaryn C. Mustoe
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - April M. Harnisch
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
| | | | - Jon Cavanaugh
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Jeffrey A French
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Nebraska Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
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Cavanaugh J, Carp SB, Rock CM, French JA. Oxytocin modulates behavioral and physiological responses to a stressor in marmoset monkeys. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2016; 66:22-30. [PMID: 26771946 PMCID: PMC6007987 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2015.12.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2015] [Revised: 12/04/2015] [Accepted: 12/24/2015] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Social isolation is a major source of stress and can lead to activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. The presence of a close social partner can reduce the magnitude of the HPA-axis response during a stressor, a phenomenon known as social buffering. The oxytocin (OXT) system has been identified as one candidate for mediating social buffering due to its role in the facilitation of social bonding and the expression of prosocial behavior. The goal of the present study was to determine whether the OXT system contributes to social buffering of HPA-axis activity in response to stressor exposure in marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus). Male and female marmosets experienced a standardized psychogenic stressor with and without their long-term mate under OXT-treatments (Pro(8)-OXT, Leu(8)-OXT, OXT antagonist, and saline); we assessed HPA-axis activity by measuring urinary cortisol across the stressor. We found that blocking, but not augmenting, the OXT system altered patterns of cortisol and proximity behavior in response to a stressor. We demonstrated that (1) the presence of a mate during a stressor significantly attenuated HPA-axis activity in female, but not male, marmosets; (2) male, but not female, marmosets treated with an OXT antagonist had significantly higher HPA-axis activity across the stressor than when they were treated with saline, suggesting that the OXT system may reduce the stressor-induced rise in cortisol levels; (3) male and female marmosets treated with an OXT antagonist spent significantly less time in close proximity to their mate during the first 30 min of the stressor than when they were treated with saline, suggesting that the OXT system may be important for the expression of partner-seeking behavior during a stressor. Thus, the OXT system and social context differentially influenced how the HPA-axis responded to a stressor in male and female marmosets, and may modulate HPA-axis activity by promoting the expression of proximity behavior with a close social partner.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jon Cavanaugh
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States.
| | - Sarah B Carp
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States
| | - Chelsea M Rock
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States
| | - Jeffrey A French
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States; Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States
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Finkenwirth C, Martins E, Deschner T, Burkart JM. Oxytocin is associated with infant-care behavior and motivation in cooperatively breeding marmoset monkeys. Horm Behav 2016; 80:10-18. [PMID: 26836769 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2016.01.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2015] [Revised: 12/22/2015] [Accepted: 01/29/2016] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
The neurohormone oxytocin (OT) is positively involved in the regulation of parenting and social bonding in mammals, and may thus also be important for the mediation of alloparental care. In cooperatively breeding marmosets, infants are raised in teamwork by parents and adult and sub-adult non-reproductive helpers (usually older siblings). Despite high intrinsic motivation, which may be mediated by hormonal priming, not all individuals are always equally able to contribute to infant-care due to competition among care-takers. Among the various care-taking behaviors, proactive food sharing may reflect motivational levels best, since it can be performed ad libitum by several individuals even if competition among surplus care-takers constrains access to infants. Our aim was to study the link between urinary OT levels and care-taking behaviors in group-living marmosets, while taking affiliation with other adults and infant age into account. Over eight reproductive cycles, 26 individuals were monitored for urinary baseline OT, care-taking behaviors (baby-licking, -grooming, -carrying, and proactive food sharing), and adult-directed affiliation. Mean OT levels were generally highest in female breeders and OT increased significantly in all individuals after birth. During early infancy, high urinary OT levels were associated with increased infant-licking but low levels of adult-affiliation, and during late infancy, with increased proactive food sharing. Our results show that, in marmoset parents and alloparents, OT is positively involved in the regulation of care-taking, thereby reflecting the changing needs during infant development. This particularly included behaviors that are more likely to reflect intrinsic care motivation, suggesting a positive link between OT and motivational regulation of infant-care.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christa Finkenwirth
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Eloisa Martins
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Tobias Deschner
- Max-Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Deutscher Platz 6, 04103 Leipzig, Germany
| | - Judith M Burkart
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
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Storey AE, Ziegler TE. Primate paternal care: Interactions between biology and social experience. Horm Behav 2016; 77:260-71. [PMID: 26253726 PMCID: PMC4968077 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.07.024] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2015] [Revised: 07/30/2015] [Accepted: 07/31/2015] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
This article is part of a Special Issue "Parental Care".We review recent research on the roles of hormones and social experiences on the development of paternal care in humans and non-human primates. Generally, lower concentrations of testosterone and higher concentrations of oxytocin are associated with greater paternal responsiveness. Hormonal changes prior to the birth appear to be important in preparation for fatherhood and changes after the birth are related to how much time fathers spend with offspring and whether they provide effective care. Prolactin may facilitate approach and the initiation of infant care, and in some biparental non-human primates, it affects body mass regulation. Glucocorticoids may be involved in coordinating reproductive and parental behavior between mates. New research involving intranasal oxytocin and neuropeptide receptor polymorphisms may help us understand individual variation in paternal responsiveness. This area of research, integrating both biological factors and the role of early and adult experience, has the potential to suggest individually designed interventions that can strengthen relationships between fathers and their partners and offspring.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne E Storey
- Department of Psychology, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador A1B 3X9, Canada; Department of Biology, Memorial University of Newfoundland, St. John's, Newfoundland and Labrador A1B 3X9, Canada.
| | - Toni E Ziegler
- National Primate Research Center University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53715, USA
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34
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Finkenwirth C, van Schaik C, Ziegler TE, Burkart JM. Strongly bonded family members in common marmosets show synchronized fluctuations in oxytocin. Physiol Behav 2015; 151:246-51. [PMID: 26232089 PMCID: PMC5916785 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.07.034] [Citation(s) in RCA: 39] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/13/2015] [Revised: 07/23/2015] [Accepted: 07/27/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Oxytocin is a key regulator of social bonding and is positively linked to affiliation and prosocial behavior in several mammal species. In chimpanzees, this link is dyad-specific as affiliative interactions only elicit high oxytocin release if they involve strongly bonded individuals. These studies involved isolated dyads and sampling events. Little is known about the role of oxytocin in affiliation and social bonding, and about potential long-term patterns of bonding-related and dyad-specific oxytocin effects within highly affiliative and cooperative social groups. Our aim was to investigate whether bonding-related oxytocin signatures linked to dyadic affiliation are present in family groups of cooperatively breeding marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) that show high levels of cohesion and cooperation. In 30 dyads from four family groups and one pair, we measured urinary baseline oxytocin over six weeks and analyzed the link to bond strength (mean dyadic affiliation). Strongly bonded dyads showed synchronized longitudinal fluctuations of oxytocin, indicating that dyad-specific oxytocin effects can also be traced in the group context and in an interdependent species. We discuss these results in light of the potential function of differentiated relationships between marmoset dyads other than the breeding pair, and the role of oxytocin as a mediator for social bonding.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christa Finkenwirth
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland.
| | - Carel van Schaik
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Toni E Ziegler
- Wisconsin National Primate Research Center, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI 53715, USA
| | - Judith M Burkart
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zurich, Switzerland
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Cavanaugh J, Huffman MC, Harnisch AM, French JA. Marmosets treated with oxytocin are more socially attractive to their long-term mate. Front Behav Neurosci 2015; 9:251. [PMID: 26528149 PMCID: PMC4606015 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2015.00251] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/29/2015] [Accepted: 08/28/2015] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Adult male-female bonds are partly characterized by initiating and maintaining close proximity with a social partner, as well as engaging in high levels of affiliative and sociosexual behavior. Oxytocin (OXT), a neuromodulatory nonapeptide, plays a critical role in the facilitation of social bonding and prosocial behavior toward a social partner (Feldman, 2012). However, less attention has been given to whether augmentation of OXT levels in an individual alters others' perceptions and behavior toward an OXT-treated social partner. We examined social dynamics in well-established male-female pairs of marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) in which one member of the pair was administered an intranasal OXT agonist, an OXT antagonist (OXTA), or saline. OXT treatment did not alter the expression of affiliative toward an untreated partner. However, OXT did significantly influence the expression of proximity and grooming behavior with a treated partner, as a function of OXT treatment and sex. Female interest in initiating and maintaining proximity with a pair-mate was altered by OXT treatment. Untreated female marmosets departed from their saline-treated partner more frequently than they approached them, as indicated by a low proximity index score. However, when males received an intranasal OXT agonist they had a significantly increased proximity index score relative to saline, indicating that their untreated partner approached them more often than they departed from them). Saline-treated females initiated and received equivalent levels of grooming behavior. However, when female marmosets were treated with an OXT agonist their untreated partner groomed them proportionately more often, for a greater total duration, and for more time per bout, than they initiated grooming behavior. These results suggest that intranasal OXT altered male and female marmosets' stimulus properties in such a way as to increase the amount of grooming behavior that females received from their long-term mate, as well as increase female interest in initiating and maintaining proximity with their long-term mate. Furthermore, these results support the notion that central OXT activity plays an important neuromodulatory role in the maintenance of long-lasting male-female relationships.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jon Cavanaugh
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska OmahaOmaha, NE, USA
| | - Michelle C. Huffman
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska OmahaOmaha, NE, USA
| | - April M. Harnisch
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska OmahaOmaha, NE, USA
| | - Jeffrey A. French
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska OmahaOmaha, NE, USA
- Department of Biology, University of Nebraska OmahaOmaha, NE, USA
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36
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Taylor JH, French JA. Oxytocin and vasopressin enhance responsiveness to infant stimuli in adult marmosets. Horm Behav 2015; 75:154-9. [PMID: 26472596 PMCID: PMC4648635 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 36] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2015] [Revised: 10/07/2015] [Accepted: 10/09/2015] [Indexed: 01/18/2023]
Abstract
The neuropeptides oxytocin (OT) and arginine-vasopressin (AVP) have been implicated in modulating sex-specific responses to offspring in a variety of uniparental and biparental rodent species. Despite the large body of research in rodents, the effects of these hormones in biparental primates are less understood. Marmoset monkeys (Callithrix jacchus) belong to a clade of primates with a high incidence of biparental care and also synthesize a structurally distinct variant of OT (proline instead of leucine at the 8th amino acid position; Pro(8)-OT). We examined the roles of the OT and AVP systems in the control of responses to infant stimuli in marmoset monkeys. We administered neuropeptide receptor agonists and antagonists to male and female marmosets, and then exposed them to visual and auditory infant-related and control stimuli. Intranasal Pro(8)-OT decreased latencies to respond to infant stimuli in males, and intranasal AVP decreased latencies to respond to infant stimuli in females. Our study is the first to demonstrate that Pro(8)-OT and AVP alter responsiveness to infant stimuli in a biparental New World monkey. Across species, the effects of OT and AVP on parental behavior appear to vary by species-typical caregiving responsibilities in males and females.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jack H Taylor
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States; Callitrichid Research Center, United States.
| | - Jeffrey A French
- Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States; Callitrichid Research Center, United States; Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, United States
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37
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Olazábal DE. Comparative analysis of oxytocin receptor density in the nucleus accumbens: an adaptation for female and male alloparental care? ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2015; 108:213-20. [PMID: 25446893 DOI: 10.1016/j.jphysparis.2014.10.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/15/2014] [Revised: 07/22/2014] [Accepted: 10/06/2014] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
Parental behavior is commonly displayed by progenitors. However, other individuals, genetically related (e.g. siblings, aunts, uncles) or not with the newborns, also display parental behavior (commonly called alloparental, or adoptive behavior). I hypothesize that species that live in family or social groups where other non-reproductive members (males and females) take care of infants, have brain adaptations to promote or facilitate that behavioral response. The present work revises the evidence supporting the hypothesis that high density of oxytocin receptors (OXTR) in the nucleus accumbens (NA) is one of those adaptations. All species known to have high NA OXTR show not only female, but also male alloparental care. Therefore, I predict that high NA OXTR could be present in all species in which juvenile and adult male alloparental behavior have been observed. Strategies to test this and other alternative working hypothesis and its predictions are presented.
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Yu P, Zhang H, Li X, He F, Tai F. Early bi-parental separation or neonatal paternal deprivation in mandarin voles reduces adult offspring paternal behavior and alters serum corticosterone levels and neurochemistry. Horm Behav 2015; 73:8-14. [PMID: 26012712 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.05.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/07/2014] [Revised: 04/17/2015] [Accepted: 05/16/2015] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Although the effect of early social environments on maternal care in adulthood has been examined in detail, few studies have addressed the long-term effect on paternal care and its underlying neuroendocrine mechanisms. Here, using monogamous mandarin voles (Microtus mandarinus) that show high levels of paternal care, the effects of early bi-parental separation (EBPS) or neonatal paternal deprivation (NPD) on adult paternal behavior, serum corticosterone levels, and receptor mRNA expression in the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) and medial preoptic area (MPOA) were investigated. Compared to the parental care group (PC), we found that EBPS reduced crouching behavior and increased inactivity, self-grooming, and serum corticosterone levels in adult offspring; and NPD significantly reduced retrieval behavior and increased self-grooming behavior of offspring at adulthood. EBPS displayed more dopamine type I receptor (D1R) mRNA expression in the NAcc, but less oxytocin receptor (OTR) mRNA expression than PC in the MPOA. Both EBPS and NPD exhibited more mRNA expression of estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) than PC in the MPOA. In the EBPS group, increased serum corticosterone concentration was closely associated with reduced crouching behavior, and reduced expression of OTR was closely associated with altered crouching behavior and increased D1R expression. Our results provide substantial evidence that EBPS or NPD has long-term consequences and reduces paternal behavior in adult animals. Importantly the oxytocin system in the MPOA might interact with NAcc dopamine systems to regulate paternal behavior and EBPS may affect interactions between the MPOA and NAcc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Peng Yu
- Institute of Behavioral and Physical Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, Gansu, China; Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, Shaanxi, China
| | - Hui Zhang
- Institute of Behavioral and Physical Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, Gansu, China
| | - Xibo Li
- Institute of Behavioral and Physical Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Northwest Normal University, Lanzhou 730070, Gansu, China
| | - Fengqin He
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Biotechnology, Xi'an University of Arts and Science, Xi'an 710065, Shaanxi, China
| | - Fadao Tai
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an 710062, Shaanxi, China.
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39
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Mustoe AC, Cavanaugh J, Harnisch AM, Thompson BE, French JA. Do marmosets care to share? Oxytocin treatment reduces prosocial behavior toward strangers. Horm Behav 2015; 71:83-90. [PMID: 25934057 PMCID: PMC4439329 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2015.04.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/24/2014] [Revised: 04/19/2015] [Accepted: 04/20/2015] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Cooperatively-breeding and socially-monogamous primates, like marmosets and humans, exhibit high levels of social tolerance and prosociality toward others. Oxytocin (OXT) generally facilitates prosocial behavior, but there is growing recognition that OXT modulation of prosocial behavior is shaped by the context of social interactions and by other motivational states such as arousal or anxiety. To determine whether prosociality varies based on social context, we evaluated whether marmoset donors (Callithrix penicillata) preferentially rewarded pairmates versus opposite-sex strangers in a prosocial food-sharing task. To examine potential links among OXT, stress systems, and prosociality, we evaluated whether pretrial cortisol levels in marmosets altered the impact of OXT on prosocial responses. Marmosets exhibited spontaneous prosociality toward others, but they did so preferentially toward strangers compared to their pairmates. When donor marmosets were treated with marmoset-specific Pro(8)-OXT, they exhibited reduced prosociality toward strangers compared to marmosets treated with saline or consensus-mammalian Leu(8)-OXT. When pretrial cortisol levels were lower, marmosets exhibited higher prosociality toward strangers. These findings demonstrate that while marmosets show spontaneous prosocial responses toward others, they do so preferentially toward opposite-sex strangers. Cooperative breeding may be associated with the expression of prosociality, but the existence of a pair-bond between marmoset partners appears to be neither necessary nor sufficient for the expression of spontaneous prosocial responses. Furthermore, high prosociality toward strangers is significantly reduced in marmosets treated with Pro(8)-OXT, suggesting that OXT does not universally enhance prosociality, but, rather OXT modulation of prosocial behavior varies depending on social context.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaryn C Mustoe
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA.
| | - Jon Cavanaugh
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - April M Harnisch
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Breanna E Thompson
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
| | - Jeffrey A French
- Callitrichid Research Center, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA; Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA; Department of Biology, University of Nebraska at Omaha, Omaha, NE, USA
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Li Y, Lian Z, Wang B, Tai F, Wu R, Hao P, Qiao X. Natural variation in paternal behavior is associated with central estrogen receptor alpha and oxytocin levels. J Comp Physiol A Neuroethol Sens Neural Behav Physiol 2015; 201:285-93. [DOI: 10.1007/s00359-015-0979-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/01/2014] [Revised: 12/07/2014] [Accepted: 01/09/2015] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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41
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Saito A. The marmoset as a model for the study of primate parental behavior. Neurosci Res 2015; 93:99-109. [PMID: 25575642 DOI: 10.1016/j.neures.2014.12.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/05/2014] [Revised: 12/19/2014] [Accepted: 12/24/2014] [Indexed: 01/27/2023]
Abstract
Parental behavior is important for the development of mammalian offspring. Research on the mechanisms underlying parental behavior, however, has been largely restricted to rodent models. As a consequence, although research on parent-infant relationships has been conducted using macaque monkeys for more than half a century, little is known about the neural mechanisms and brain regions associated with such behaviors in primates. This article reviews parental behavior and its endocrinological mechanisms in marmosets and tamarins, both cooperative breeders in the callitrichid family, and compares these findings with studies of macaque monkeys. The paper examines the similarities and differences between marmosets and humans, and suggests the possibility that marmosets can be a model for future studies of the neural underpinnings and endocrinology underlying human parental behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Atsuko Saito
- Department of Cognitive and Behavioral Science, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan.
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42
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Wang B, Li Y, Wu R, Zhang S, Tai F. Behavioral responses to pups in males with different reproductive experiences are associated with changes in central OT, TH and OTR, D1R, D2R mRNA expression in mandarin voles. Horm Behav 2015; 67:73-82. [PMID: 25496756 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2014.11.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/11/2014] [Revised: 11/10/2014] [Accepted: 11/20/2014] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
Abstract
Male rodents behave differently toward pups because of different sexual and/or paternal experiences; however, the mechanisms underlying these responses are not well understood. Using socially monogamous mandarin voles (Microtus mandarinus) we investigated the behavioral responses of males with different reproductive experiences (virgin males, paired males and new fathers) to new born pups. Central levels of neuropeptide oxytocin (OT), tyrosine hydroxylase (TH), as well as oxytocin receptor (OTR), dopamine 1-type receptor (D1R) and dopamine 2-type receptor (D2R) mRNA expression in the nucleus accumbens and medial amygdala were also measured in these males. Our data showed that new fathers exhibited more approaching behavior and contained more OT-immunoreactive and TH-immunoreactive neurons. In addition to increased OTR mRNA expression in the nucleus accumbens and medial amygdala, new fathers had higher D1R and D2R mRNA expression in the nucleus accumbens, and less D1R and D2R mRNA expression in the medial amygdala than paired males. These results demonstrate that males with different reproductive experiences display different behavioral responses to pups and that these differences are associated with altered OT and dopamine, and their receptors in specific brain regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bo Wang
- College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi(')an 710062, Shaanxi China; College of Biological Technology, Xi'an University, Xi'an 710065, Shaanxi China
| | - Yani Li
- College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi(')an 710062, Shaanxi China; College of Energy and Environmental Engineering, Yan'an University, Yan'an 716000, Shaanxi China
| | - Ruiyong Wu
- College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi(')an 710062, Shaanxi China
| | - Shuwei Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi(')an 710062, Shaanxi China
| | - Fadao Tai
- College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi(')an 710062, Shaanxi China.
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43
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Cavanaugh J, Mustoe AC, Taylor JH, French JA. Oxytocin facilitates fidelity in well-established marmoset pairs by reducing sociosexual behavior toward opposite-sex strangers. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2014; 49:1-10. [PMID: 25038478 PMCID: PMC4165758 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2014.06.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/10/2014] [Revised: 06/04/2014] [Accepted: 06/06/2014] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
Behavioral strategies that facilitate the maintenance of social bonds are critical for the preservation of high-quality social relationships. Central oxytocin (OT) activity modulates the behavioral features of socially monogamous relationships in a number of mammalian species (including marmoset monkeys), and plays a vital role in the behavioral maintenance of long-term social relationships. Two distinct variants of OT have been identified in some New World primates (including marmosets; Lee et al., 2011). The marmoset variant of the oxytocin ligand (Pro(8)-OT) is structurally distinct from the consensus mammalian variant of the oxytocin ligand (Leu(8)-OT), due to a proline substitution at the 8th amino-acid position. The goal of the present study was to determine if treating marmosets with Pro(8)-OT, relative to treatments with Leu(8)-OT, control saline, or an OT antagonist, had modulatory effects on the behavioral maintenance of long-term social relationships in marmosets. Treatment with the Pro(8) variant, but not the Leu(8) variant, of OT facilitated fidelity with a long-term partner by reducing time spent in close proximity with an opposite-sex stranger. However, this facilitative effect of Pro(8)-OT on proximity behavior manifested itself differently in male and female marmosets, such that females preferred to interact socially with their partner rather than a stranger when treated with Pro(8)-OT, while males spent less time in close proximity with both their partner and a stranger when treated with Pro(8)-OT. Furthermore, treatment with Pro(8)-OT, but not Leu(8)-OT, significantly delayed the expression of sexual solicitation behavior toward an opposite-sex stranger in both male and female marmosets, but had no effect on sociosexual behavior directed toward a long-term partner. These results suggest that the OT system is highly involved in reducing fidelity-threatening behaviors in well-established marmoset pairs, and that the effects were only produced by species-specific OT ligands.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jon Cavanaugh
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska - Omaha, USA.
| | - Aaryn C Mustoe
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska - Omaha, USA
| | - Jack H Taylor
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska - Omaha, USA
| | - Jeffrey A French
- Callitrichid Research Center, Department of Psychology, University of Nebraska - Omaha, USA; Department of Biology, University of Nebraska - Omaha, USA
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44
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Parr LA. Intranasal oxytocin enhances socially-reinforced learning in rhesus monkeys. Front Behav Neurosci 2014. [DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
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45
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Burkart JM, Finkenwirth C. Marmosets as model species in neuroscience and evolutionary anthropology. Neurosci Res 2014; 93:8-19. [PMID: 25242577 DOI: 10.1016/j.neures.2014.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2014] [Revised: 08/27/2014] [Accepted: 08/27/2014] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Marmosets are increasingly used as model species by both neuroscientists and evolutionary anthropologists, but with a different rationale for doing so. Whereas neuroscientists stress that marmosets share many cognitive traits with humans due to common descent, anthropologists stress those traits shared with marmosets - and callitrichid monkeys in general - due to convergent evolution, as a consequence of the cooperative breeding system that characterizes both humans and callitrichids. Similarities in socio-cognitive abilities due to convergence, rather than homology, raise the question whether these similarities also extend to the proximate regulatory mechanisms, which is particularly relevant for neuroscientific investigations. In this review, we first provide an overview of the convergent adaptations to cooperative breeding at the psychological and cognitive level in primates, which bear important implications for our understanding of human cognitive evolution. In the second part, we zoom in on two of these convergent adaptations, proactive prosociality and social learning, and compare their proximate regulation in marmosets and humans with regard to oxytocin and cognitive top down regulation. Our analysis suggests considerable similarity in these regulatory mechanisms presumably because the convergent traits emerged due to small motivational changes that define how pre-existing cognitive mechanisms are quantitatively combined. This finding reconciles the prima facie contradictory rationale for using marmosets as high priority model species in neuroscience and anthropology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Judith M Burkart
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich - Irchel, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland.
| | - Christa Finkenwirth
- Anthropological Institute and Museum, University of Zurich - Irchel, Winterthurerstrasse 190, 8057 Zürich, Switzerland
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46
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Gettler LT. Applying socioendocrinology to evolutionary models: Fatherhood and physiology. Evol Anthropol 2014; 23:146-60. [DOI: 10.1002/evan.21412] [Citation(s) in RCA: 78] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/10/2023]
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47
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Veening JG, de Jong TR, Waldinger MD, Korte SM, Olivier B. The role of oxytocin in male and female reproductive behavior. Eur J Pharmacol 2014; 753:209-28. [PMID: 25088178 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2014.07.045] [Citation(s) in RCA: 100] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/17/2014] [Revised: 05/30/2014] [Accepted: 07/24/2014] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Oxytocin (OT) is a nonapeptide with an impressive variety of physiological functions. Among them, the 'prosocial' effects have been discussed in several recent reviews, but the direct effects on male and female sexual behavior did receive much less attention so far. As our contribution to honor the lifelong interest of Berend Olivier in the control mechanisms of sexual behavior, we decided to explore the role of OT in the present review. In the successive sections, some physiological mechanisms and the 'pair-bonding' effects of OT will be discussed, followed by sections about desire, female appetitive and copulatory behavior, including lordosis and orgasm. At the male side, the effects on erection and ejaculation are reviewed, followed by a section about 'premature ejaculation' and a possible role of OT in its treatment. In addition to OT, serotonin receives some attention as one of the main mechanisms controlling the effects of OT. In the succeeding sections, the importance of OT for 'the fruits of labor' is discussed, as it plays an important role in both maternal and paternal behavior. Finally, we pay attention to an intriguing brain area, the ventrolateral part of the ventromedial hypothalamic nucleus (VMHvl), apparently functioning in both sexual and aggressive behavior, which are at first view completely opposite behavioral systems.
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Affiliation(s)
- J G Veening
- Department of Psychopharmacology, Division of Pharmacology, University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands; Department of Anatomy, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
| | - T R de Jong
- Department of Behavioral and Molecular Neurobiology, University of Regensburg, 93053 Regensburg, Germany
| | - M D Waldinger
- Department of Psychopharmacology, Division of Pharmacology, University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - S M Korte
- Department of Psychopharmacology, Division of Pharmacology, University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
| | - B Olivier
- Department of Psychopharmacology, Division of Pharmacology, University of Utrecht, Utrecht, The Netherlands
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48
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Lieberwirth C, Wang Z. Social bonding: regulation by neuropeptides. Front Neurosci 2014; 8:171. [PMID: 25009457 PMCID: PMC4067905 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2014.00171] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/24/2014] [Accepted: 06/05/2014] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Affiliative social relationships (e.g., among spouses, family members, and friends) play an essential role in human society. These relationships affect psychological, physiological, and behavioral functions. As positive and enduring bonds are critical for the overall well-being of humans, it is not surprising that considerable effort has been made to study the neurobiological mechanisms that underlie social bonding behaviors. The present review details the involvement of the nonapeptides, oxytocin (OT), and arginine vasopressin (AVP), in the regulation of social bonding in mammals including humans. In particular, we will discuss the role of OT and AVP in the formation of social bonds between partners of a mating pair as well as between parents and their offspring. Furthermore, the role of OT and AVP in the formation of interpersonal bonding involving trust is also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Zuoxin Wang
- Department of Psychology and Program in Neuroscience, Florida State UniversityTallahassee, FL, USA
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49
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Knobloch HS, Grinevich V. Evolution of oxytocin pathways in the brain of vertebrates. Front Behav Neurosci 2014; 8:31. [PMID: 24592219 PMCID: PMC3924577 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2014.00031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 161] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/09/2013] [Accepted: 01/21/2014] [Indexed: 01/08/2023] Open
Abstract
The central oxytocin system transformed tremendously during the evolution, thereby adapting to the expanding properties of species. In more basal vertebrates (paraphyletic taxon Anamnia, which includes agnathans, fish and amphibians), magnocellular neurosecretory neurons producing homologs of oxytocin reside in the wall of the third ventricle of the hypothalamus composing a single hypothalamic structure, the preoptic nucleus. This nucleus further diverged in advanced vertebrates (monophyletic taxon Amniota, which includes reptiles, birds, and mammals) into the paraventricular and supraoptic nuclei with accessory nuclei (AN) between them. The individual magnocellular neurons underwent a process of transformation from primitive uni- or bipolar neurons into highly differentiated neurons. Due to these microanatomical and cytological changes, the ancient release modes of oxytocin into the cerebrospinal fluid were largely replaced by vascular release. However, the most fascinating feature of the progressive transformations of the oxytocin system has been the expansion of oxytocin axonal projections to forebrain regions. In the present review we provide a background on these evolutionary advancements. Furthermore, we draw attention to the non-synaptic axonal release in small and defined brain regions with the aim to clearly distinguish this way of oxytocin action from the classical synaptic transmission on one side and from dendritic release followed by a global diffusion on the other side. Finally, we will summarize the effects of oxytocin and its homologs on pro-social reproductive behaviors in representatives of the phylogenetic tree and will propose anatomically plausible pathways of oxytocin release contributing to these behaviors in basal vertebrates and amniots.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Valery Grinevich
- Schaller Research Group on Neuropeptides, German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ), Max Planck Institute for Medical Research, University of HeidelbergHeidelberg, Germany
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50
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MacDonald K, MacDonald TM, Brüne M, Lamb K, Wilson MP, Golshan S, Feifel D. Oxytocin and psychotherapy: a pilot study of its physiological, behavioral and subjective effects in males with depression. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2013; 38:2831-43. [PMID: 23810433 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2013.05.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 104] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/18/2012] [Revised: 05/26/2013] [Accepted: 05/27/2013] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
Abstract
Individual psychotherapy is an important treatment for a number of psychiatric conditions and involves a unique form of human attachment. This raises the question of whether oxytocin (OT), the paradigmatic "attachment hormone", may have benefits in this context. In this randomized, double-blind, crossover trial, we gave male psychiatric outpatients with major depressive disorder 40 IU intranasal OT or placebo before a videotaped session with a therapist and measured a number of subjective, physiological, and behavioral parameters. We report three main findings. Surprisingly - in contrast to prior reports of OT's anxiolytic properties - we found OT caused an increase in anxiety over the course of the therapy session. Secondly, though it had no main effect on cortisol, eye contact, or overall behavior, we did find that OT caused a decrease in nonverbal behaviors that cut off social contact, after controlling for level of depressive symptoms. Lastly, we replicated prior findings that OT improves social cognition (performance on the reading the mind in the eyes test (RMET)), albeit in a depressed patient group. These results inform future studies of oxytocin and psychotherapy and suggest that in certain clinical populations and contexts, OT has heterogeneous subjective effects which may include acute anxiogenesis. Moreover, the similarity of some of these acute effects to those of single-dose serotonergic antidepressants raises interesting questions about the potential antidepressant benefits of chronic OT administration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kai MacDonald
- University of California, San Diego Medical Center, Department of Psychiatry, United States.
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