The neurobiology of social bonds.
When released in the brain through giving birth or mating, the neuropeptides oxytocin and vasopressin are involved in promoting parent-offspring and monogamous bonds in animals such as sheep and voles. Bonds are only formed in species where receptors for these neuropeptides are highly expressed in dopamine-producing reward centres. In humans, dysfunctions in these same systems can be associated with autism and, when we see people we love, these systems become activated.
Kendrick
Keith M
KM
The Babraham Institute Cambridge, UK.
D000818:Animals; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008322:Mammals; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009446:Neurobiology; D010121:Oxytocin / Q000378:metabolism*; D010152:Pair Bond; D012919:Social Behavior; D014667:Vasopressins / Q000378:metabolism*
D014667:Vasopressins; D010121:Oxytocin