Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2014 Jun 24:8:171.
doi: 10.3389/fnins.2014.00171. eCollection 2014.

Social bonding: regulation by neuropeptides

Claudia Lieberwirth  1 , Zuoxin Wang  2
Affiliations
Review

Social bonding: regulation by neuropeptides

Claudia Lieberwirth et al. Front Neurosci. .

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.

Keywords: affiliation; oxytocin; pair bond; social recognition; vasopressin.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Adams K. B., Sanders S., Auth E. A. (2004). Loneliness and depression in independent living retirement communities: risk and resilience factors. Aging Ment. Health 8, 475–485 10.1080/13607860410001725054 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Ainsworth M. S. (1979). Infant–mother attachment. Am. Psychol. 34, 932–937 10.1037/0003-066X.34.10.932 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Akther S., Korshnova N., Zhong J., Liang M., Cherepanov S. M., Lopatina O., et al. (2013). CD38 in the nucleus accumbens and oxytocin are related to paternal behavior in mice. Mol. Brain 6, 1–10 10.1186/1756-6606-6-41 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Alpass F. M., Neville S. (2003). Loneliness, health and depression in older males. Aging Ment. Health 7, 212–216 10.1080/1360786031000101193 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Anda R. F., Croft J. B., Felitti V. J., Nordenberg D., Giles W. H., Williamson D. F., et al. (1999). Adverse childhood experiences and smoking during adolescence and adulthood. JAMA 282, 1652–1658 10.1001/jama.282.17.1652 - DOI - PubMed