Scientists studied prairie voles, rodents known to be monogamous, to analyze the relationship between love and chemicals in the brain.
Does absence really make the heart grow fonder? While loved ones and friends leave a “chemical imprint” in the brain, this bond almost disappears after a long period of separation, a new study suggests.
This could provide hope for those dealing with grief or the loss of a loved one, suggesting that the brain is able to reset itself to have time to look for a new partner.
Scientists from the University of Colorado Boulder (CU Boulder) in the US analyzed the role of dopamine in the brains of prairie voles using neuroimaging technology for a study published last week in the journal Current Biology.
Prairie voles are among the 3 to 5 percent of mammals that form monogamous bonds, stay together long-term, and grieve the loss of a partner.
One aspect of the study looked at the role of dopamine in the brain when partners are together. In one scenario, the prairie vole had to press a lever to reach its partner or climb a fence to reach it.
A fiber optic sensor monitored activity in the part of the animal’s brain called the nucleus accumbens, an area linked to reward and social motivation.
The sensor lights up when it detects dopamine, a neurotransmitter and hormone that plays a role in creating feelings of pleasure.
The researchers found that when the prairie vole pushed a lever or climbed a wall to be with its partner, the sensor lit up “like a rave,” said Anne Pierce, a CU Boulder graduate student and author principal of the study. A declaration.
The same thing happened when they sniffed or huddled together, but on the other hand, the sensor vanished when there was a random vole on the other side of the wall or door instead of the rodent’s partner.
“As humans, our entire social world is fundamentally defined by varying degrees of selective desire to interact with different people, whether it’s your romantic partner or your closest friends,” Zoe Donaldson, associate professor of behavioral neuroscience at CU Boulder and lead author of the study said in a statement.
“This research suggests that some people leave a unique chemical imprint in our brains that causes us to maintain these connections over time.”
“The brain resets itself to form a new connection”
The researchers also studied what happens after a long period of separation.
They separated the prairie vole partners for four weeks, which is a long time in a rodent’s life, before reuniting them.
They found that when the couple was together again, the dopamine rush almost disappeared.
“We look at this as a kind of reset in the brain that allows the animal to continue and potentially form a new bond,” Donaldson said.
More research is needed to determine how this finding translates to humans, but scientists believe it could have implications for people struggling to move on from a past relationship.
“We hope that by understanding what healthy connections look like in the brain, we can begin to identify new therapies to help the many people with mental illnesses that affect their social world,” Donaldson said.
2024-01-15 16:06:06
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