Importance of mother-infant communication for social bond formation in mammals.
Mother-infant bonding is a universal relationship of all mammalian species. Here, we describe the role of reciprocal communication between mother and infant in the formation of bonding for several mammalian species. Mother-infant bond formation is reinforced by various social cues or stimuli, including communicative signals, such as odor and vocalizations, or tactile stimuli. The mother also develops cross-modal sensory recognition of the infant, during bond formation. Many studies have indicated that the oxytocin neural system plays a pivotal role in bond formation by the mother; however, the underlying neural mechanisms for infants have not yet been clarified. The comparative understanding of cognitive functions of mother and infants may help us understand the biological significance of mother-infant communication in mammalian species.
Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology, Azabu University, Chuo-ku, Sagamihara, Japan.
Shota
S
Okabe
Miho
M
Nagasawa
Kazutaka
K
Mogi
Takefumi
T
Kikusui
D000819:Animal Communication; D000818:Animals; D003071:Cognition / Q000502:physiology*; D008322:Mammals / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology*; D009769:Object Attachment; D010121:Oxytocin / Q000502:physiology*; D012903:Smell / Q000502:physiology; D012919:Social Behavior; D014110:Touch / Q000502:physiology
D010121:Oxytocin