Posts Tagged ‘ohsu’
Social mice feel their neighbor’s pain
The more social the mouse, the more sensitive it is to the distress of its neighbor, according to a study that appeared in PLoS One Wednesday (2.11.09).
Researchers from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) say the findings may help bring them one step closer to understanding how genes affect social skills and empathy toward others, and guide future studies on such psychosocial disorders as autism, schizophrenia and depression.
To observe how social behavior influences empathy, the scientists selected two breeds of mice with quite different personalities – C57BL/6J (B6) mice, the social butterflies of the mouse world, and BALB/cJ (BALB), the wallflowers, and measured their reaction to the distress of a nearby mouse.
From the comfort of an observation cell, both B6 and BALB mice witnessed a pair of mice receiving an electric shock to the paws preceded by a brief tone in a neighboring chamber. After several rounds of experiencing the tone-and-shock, just the sound of the tone alone led the pair of mice in the testing chamber to freeze in fear.
Later, B6 and BALB mice were placed in the testing chamber. Though having never experienced the foot-shock following the tone, B6 mice froze in fear upon hearing the tone while the BALB mice were unresponsive. Only after gaining first-hand exposure to the tone-and-shock did the BALB mice freeze in response to the tone.
This study shows that “mice are capable of a more complex form of empathy than we ever believed possible,” OHSU neuroscientist Garet Lahvis said in a press release. “We believe there’s a genetic contribution to the ability for empathy that has broad implications for autism research and other psychosocial disorders.”
Because of the genetic differences between B6 and BALB mice, the researchers now hope to use future studies to tease out the genes that may influence empathy in mice.
Related links:
Mouse study reveals genetic component of empathy (press release)
Empathy Might Be in the Genes (U.S. News & World Report, 2.11.09)
