Oxytocin receptors mediate social selectivity in prairie vole peer relationships.

ABSTRACT: Friendships, or selective peer relationships, are a vital component of healthy social functioning in humans, and deficits in these relationships are associated with negative physical and mental health consequences. Like humans, prairie voles are among the few mammalian species that form selective social bonds with both peers and mates, making them an excellent model for the mechanistic investigation of selective social attachment. Here, we explored the role of oxytocin receptors in selective peer attachment using female prairie voles lacking a functional oxytocin receptor gene (Oxtr^1-/-). We found that Oxtr^1-/- animals exhibited significant delays in peer relationship formation compared with wild-type animals. Oxytocin receptor function also contributed to the mainten

SUBMITTER: Black AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12707787 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature