title: Maternal behavior in basic science: translational research and clinical applicability.
abstract: Clinical aspects of the mother-infant relationship and related issues are well studied and very relevant to medical practice. Nevertheless, some approaches in this context cannot plausibly be investigated in humans due to their ethical implications and to the potential harm to the mother's and child's health. Studies on maternal behavior in animals have evident importance to some clinical fields, such as psychiatry and psychology, particularly considering topics, including mother-infant relationship, postpartum depression, cognitive and behavioral development of children, and associated issues. Hence, this theoretical article draws attention to the clinical applicability of studies about maternal behavior in animals to psychobiology, taking into account a translational perspective.
authors.forename: Gabriel Natan
authors.initials: GN
authors.lastname: Pires
authors.forename: Sergio
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Tufik
authors.forename: Márcia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Giovenardi
authors.forename: Monica Levy
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Andersen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000502:physiology* / Q000523:psychology; D023421:Models, Animal; D009034:Mother-Child Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D057170:Translational Research, Biomedical / Q000379:methods