Motherhood holds a unique place in mammalian behavior and knowledge of its neurobiology
may serve as a prototype for other forms of sociality. In mammals, maternity is at
the heart of both reproduction and individual survival. Seeking to highlight the importance
of breast-feeding, Linneaus defined Mammalia taxonomically according to the unique capacity of female mammals to lactate. Although
hatchlings produced by their reptilian ancestors as well as by some contemporary reptiles
sometimes benefit from maternal defense, newborn mammals cannot survive without their
mother's milk. Hence, in mammals the attachment relationship between a mother and
child also is the most accepted form of enduring social bond, with potential benefits
for both (
1
). Even though social bonds with fathers and other group members (allomothers) may
also be very important, the bonds between mother and offspring were the earliest social
relationships. These attachments shaped the infrastructure of the mammalian nervous
system and ultimately the structure of families and more generally societies.To read this article in full you will need to make a payment
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Article info
Publication history
Accepted:
September 10,
2011
Received:
September 9,
2011
Identification
Copyright
© 2011 Society of Biological Psychiatry. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
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- Neural Correlates of Hypothalamic-Pituitary-Adrenal Regulation of Mothers with Their InfantsBiological PsychiatryVol. 70Issue 9
- PreviewNeural correlates of stress regulation via the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis have been identified, but little is known about how these apply to real-world interpersonal stress contexts such as mother-infant interaction. We extended stress regulation research by examining maternal neural activation to infant cry related to HPA regulation with their infants.
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