The DOI matches its Crossref record; 77 of the 77 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
The neurobiology of pair bonding.
Abstract
A neurobiological model for pair-bond formation has emerged from studies in monogamous rodents. The neuropeptides oxytocin and vasopressin contribute to the processing of social cues necessary for individual recognition. Mesolimbic dopamine is involved in reinforcement and reward learning. Concurrent activation of neuropeptide and dopamine receptors in the reward centers of the brain during mating results in a conditioned partner preference, observed as a pair bond. Differential regulation of neuropeptide receptor expression may explain species differences in the ability to form pair bonds. These and other studies discussed here have intriguing implications for the neurobiology of social attachment in our own species.
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In the citing paper
“Meta-analyses and systematic reviews indicate that a range of common therapies can indeed be effective in relieving couple distress in many situations [26, 27].”
From Could intranasal oxytocin be used to enhance relationships? Research imperatives, clinical policy, and ethical considerations (2013) · cites this paper as [26]
In the citing paper
“The hypothalamic peptide oxytocin (OXT) has been identified as a key modulator of pair-bonding in men, but its effects in women are still elusive.”
From Hormonal contraceptives suppress oxytocin-induced brain reward responses to the partner’s face (2016) · cites this paper as Young and Wang, 2004
In the citing paper
“A study injecting 3H-leucine into the SON found multiple extrahypothalamic projections, including olfactory bulb, amygdala, cingulum, and locus coeruleus [140].”
From Oxytocin and the Neural Mechanisms Regulating Social Cognition and Affiliative Behavior (2009) · cites this paper as [140]
In the citing paper
“which suggests that species-specific differences in neural distributions of OXTR can reflect the social organisation of the species (20,21).”
From Comparative Perspectives on Oxytocin and Vasopressin Receptor Research in Rodents and Primates: Translational Implications (2016) · cites this paper as [20]
In the citing paper
“OXTR signaling in the NAcc is required for mating-induced partner preference formation, a laboratory proxy of pair bonding (6).”
From Variation in the Oxytocin Receptor Gene Predicts Brain Region–Specific Expression and Social Attachment (2016) · cites this paper as [6]
In the citing paper
“OXTR affects a range of social behaviors in animals including maternal nurturing and bonding (1, 2), social reward and gregariousness (3, 4), social recognition (5), and pair bonding in monogamous species (6–8).”
From Variation in the Oxytocin Receptor Gene Predicts Brain Region–Specific Expression and Social Attachment (2016) · cites this paper as [6]
In the citing paper
“In a socially monogamous rodent, the prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster), OXTR is enriched in important MLR regions such as the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) and prefrontal cortex (PFC) that constitute part of a neural network for pair bonding (6, 8, 34).”
From Variation in the Oxytocin Receptor Gene Predicts Brain Region–Specific Expression and Social Attachment (2016) · cites this paper as [6]
In the citing paper
“OXTR density is much higher in the NAcc of prairie voles than promiscuous vole species”
From Variation in the Oxytocin Receptor Gene Predicts Brain Region–Specific Expression and Social Attachment (2016) · cites this paper as [6]
In the citing paper
“It is thought that the interface between oxytocin and the dopaminergic reward system may contribute to the success of mother-infant and pair-bonding processes [18,[75][76][77].”
From Food sharing is linked to urinary oxytocin levels and bonding in related and unrelated wild chimpanzees (2014) · cites this paper as [76]
In the citing paper
“Our first studies of the role of the AVPR1a gene in social cognition exemplified by a simple laboratory paradigm converges with a wide range of both animal and human experimentation showing that arginine vasopressin (AVP) and the closely related oxytocin (OT) are key neuropeptides that facilitate social communication, affiliative behaviors and social cognition across mammals [6], [7] .”
From The oxytocin receptor (OXTR) contributes to prosocial fund allocations in the dictator game and the social value orientations task (2009) · cites this paper as [7]
In the citing paper
“By contrast, other related vole species such as the meadow vole (M. pennsylvanicus) and the montane vole (M. montanus) are relatively asocial and do not readily form social bonds, providing a useful point of comparison for identifying neurobiological and genetic systems leading to diversity in social behaviors [2].”
From The prairie vole: An emerging model organism for understanding the social brain (2010) · cites this paper as [2]
In the citing paper
“By contrast, other related vole species such as the meadow vole (M. pennsylvanicus) and the montane vole (M. montanus) are relatively asocial and do not readily form social bonds, providing a useful point of comparison for identifying neurobiological and genetic systems leading to diversity in social behaviors [2].”
From The prairie vole: An emerging model organism for understanding the social brain (2010) · cites this paper as [2]
In the citing paper
“For example, socially monogamous male prairie voles have high densities of AVPR1A binding in the ventral pallidum, a major output of the NAcc, while non-mongamous vole species do not [2].”
From The prairie vole: An emerging model organism for understanding the social brain (2010) · cites this paper as [2]
In the citing paper
“One of these socially monogamous mammals that has provided remarkable insights into the neural and neurogenetic mechanisms of social attachments is the prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster)”
From Oxytocin and Social Relationships: From Attachment to Bond Disruption (2017) · cites this paper as Young and Wang 2004
In the citing paper
“V1aR signaling in the ventral pallidum and LS promote partner preferences (149), while pair bond-induced aggression is mediated by V1aR in the lateral hypothalamus (43,150).”
From Oxytocin, Vasopressin, and Social Behavior: From Neural Circuits to Clinical Opportunities (2022) · cites this paper as [149]
In the citing paper
“Because animal research has documented that OT is primarily a social bonding hormone that activates socio-emotional neural pathways in the brain 22,23 , we would also expect the effect of OT in humans to be limited to social situations where initiating or establishing partnership is important to realize synergy.”
From A registered replication study on oxytocin and trust (2020) · cites this paper as [23]
In the citing paper
“this finding fits with the crucial function of OT as a female hormone in labor, bonding and parenting both in human- [54], [4] and non-human mammals [55]”
From A direct examination of the effect of intranasal administration of oxytocin on approach-avoidance motor responses to emotional stimuli (2013) · cites this paper as [55]
Citations
Cites
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The Neuroscience of Natural Rewards: Relevance to Addictive Drugs
Kelley, A. E., & Berridge, K. C. (2002) · Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.22-09-03306.2002 · Cited by 1,505
The neural correlates of maternal and romantic love
Bartels, A., & Zeki, S. (2004) · NeuroImage · doi:10.1016/j.neuroimage.2003.11.003 · Cited by 1,497 · cited 1×
“Similar patterns of activity occur when mothers view images of their own children, suggesting some overlap between the neural mechanisms of maternal attachment and those of romantic lov”
Kleiman, D. G. (1977) · The Quarterly Review of Biology · doi:10.1086/409721 · Cited by 1,436
Specificity in the projection patterns of accumbal core and shell in the rat
Heimer, L., Zahm, D. S., Churchill, L., Kalivas, P. W., & Wohltmann, C. (1991) · Neuroscience · doi:10.1016/0306-4522(91)90202-y · Cited by 1,219
The neurobiology of attachment
Insel, T. R., & Young, L. J. (2001) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/35053579 · Cited by 1,173
Microsatellites Within Genes: Structure, Function, and Evolution
Li, Y. (2004) · Molecular Biology and Evolution · doi:10.1093/molbev/msh073 · Cited by 1,132
Social amnesia in mice lacking the oxytocin gene
Ferguson, J. N., Young, L. J., Hearn, E. F., Matzuk, M. M., Insel, T. R., & Winslow, J. T. (2000) · Nature Genetics · doi:10.1038/77040 · Cited by 1,130
Oxytocin in the Medial Amygdala is Essential for Social Recognition in the Mouse
Ferguson, J. N., Aldag, J. M., Insel, T. R., & Young, L. J. (2001) · The Journal of Neuroscience · doi:10.1523/jneurosci.21-20-08278.2001 · Cited by 1,043
The neural basis of romantic love
Bartels, A., & Zeki, S. (2000) · NeuroReport · doi:10.1097/00001756-200011270-00046 · Cited by 1,020
Flagged first, then by citations
Research works printed but not linked: 1
- Aragona, B.J., Liu, Y., Cameron, A., Perlman, G. & Wang, Z.X. Opposite modulation of social attachment by D1- and D2-type dopamine receptor activation in nucleus accumbens shell. Horm. Behav. 44, 37 (2003).
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Essential role of BDNF in the mesolimbic dopamine pathway in social defeat stress
Berton, O., McClung, C. A., DiLeone, R. J., Krishnan, V., Renthal, W., Russo, S. J., Graham, D., Tsankova, N. M., Bolanos, C. A., Rios, M., et al. (2006) · Science · doi:10.1126/science.1120972 · Cited by 2,129
(2009) · Cited by 2,013
The Social Brain: Neural Basis of Social Knowledge
Adolphs, R. (2009) · Annual Review of Psychology · doi:10.1146/annurev.psych.60.110707.163514 · Cited by 1,827
“For instance, how olfactory information about a mate interacts with reward systems during mating to result in pair-bonding behavior of prairie voles has been worked out in spectacular detail (Insel & Young 2001, Young & Wang 2004).”
The link between childhood trauma and depression: insights from HPA axis studies in humans
Heim, C., Newport, D. J., Mletzko, T., Miller, A. H., & Nemeroff, C. B. (2008) · Psychoneuroendocrinology · doi:10.1016/j.psyneuen.2008.03.008 · Cited by 1,704
“The neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) has received considerable attention in preclinical and human research for its role in mediating social affiliation, mother–child attachment, social support and trust (Young and Wang, 2004; Kosfeld et al., 2005).”
BackgroundOxytocin and vasopressin in the human brain: social neuropeptides for translational medicine
Meyer-Lindenberg, A., Domes, G., Kirsch, P., & Heinrichs, M. (2011) · Nature Reviews Neuroscience · doi:10.1038/nrn3044 · Cited by 1,688
“— which is in line with animal studies indicating that central OXT facilitates pair bonding behaviou”
Result
Metadata
- Authors
- Young, L. J., & Wang, Z.
- Affiliations
- Emory University (US)
- Florida State University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Young, Larry J
- Venue
- Nature Neuroscience
- Published
- 2004-09-26
- Volume
- 7
- Issue
- 10
- Pages
- 1048-1054
- ISSN
- 1097-6256 (ISSN-L)
- 1546-1726
- OpenAlex
- W2055445652
- Cited by
- 1,523
- References
- 76
- Citations by year
- 2026: 42 · 2025: 63 · 2024: 54 · 2023: 64 · 2022: 62 · 2021: 65 · 2020: 73 · 2019: 60 · 2018: 83 · 2017: 85 · 2016: 99 · 2015: 96 · 2014: 86 · 2013: 106 · 2012: 85
- FWCI
- 6.10
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- www.springer.com/tdm (tdm)
- Locations
- Nature Neuroscience (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Topics
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Endocrine and Autonomic Systems › Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cellular and Molecular Neuroscience › Neurotransmitter Receptor Influence on Behavior
- Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Sensory Systems › Olfactory and Sensory Function Studies
- Keywords
- pair bonding, monogamy, oxytocin, vasopressin, mesolimbic dopamine system, reward learning, social attachment, individual recognition, social behavior
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Brain, Dopamine, Humans, Neural Pathways, Neuropeptides, Pair Bond, Reward, Receptors, Neuropeptide, Models, Animal
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