The ties that bond: neurochemistry of attachment in voles

• Mating induces partner preference, aggression, and bi-parental care in prairie voles.
• Species differences in mating strategies are explained by neurogenetic variation.
• Vasopressin, oxytocin, dopamine, and stress peptide signaling facilitate attachment.
• Nucleus accumbens dopamine programs formation and maintenance of pair-bonds.
• Anterior hypothalamic vasopressin regulates selective aggression.

In socially monogamous prairie voles (Microtus ochrogaster), mating induces three primary types of behavior; namely, partner preference, selective aggression toward conspecific strangers, and bi-parental care, making this rodent an ideal model system to study sociality and underlying neurochemical mechanisms associated with monogamous mating strategies. Here, we highlight species differences in neurochemical receptor distributions associated with mating experience leading to the establishment of stable pair-bonds. Specifically, we illustrate the role of nucleus accumbens dopamine in programming the formation and maintenance of monogamous bonds and describe the role of anterior hypothalamic vasopressin in the regulation of selective aggression. We conclude by discussing recent molecular work in voles and emphasize the importance of this rodent for future research in the behavioral neurobiology field.