K Tchalova, J E Lydon, L Atkinson, A S Fleming, J Kennedy, V Lecompte, M J Meaney, E Moss, K A O'Donnell, K J O'Donnell, P P Silveira, M B Sokolowski, M Steiner, J A Bartz
The endogenous opioid system is thought to play an important role in mother-infant attachment. In infant rhesus macaques, variation in the μ-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1) is related to differences in attachment behavior that emerges following repeated separation from the mother; specifically, infants carrying at least one copy of the minor G allele of the OPRM1 C77G polymorphism show heightened and more persistent separation distress, as well as a pattern of increased contact-seeking behavior directed towards the mother during reunions (at the expense of affiliation with other group members)...
April 5, 2024: Translational Psychiatry