Researchers map neurons in the brain involved with social interactions
with others in groups
Certain neurons are important for effective social behavior and healthy relationships within groups

Date:
October 21, 2021
Source:
Massachusetts General Hospital
Summary:
In social experiments, three monkeys sat around a rotary table and
took turns offering food to one of the other two monkeys. Certain
neurons in the brain responded to the actions of other monkeys
in the group and influenced an animal's upcoming decisions to
reciprocate or retaliate.



FULL STORY ========================================================================== Meaningful social interactions are critical to an individual's well-being,
and such interactions rely on people's behaviors towards one another. In research published in Science, investigators at Massachusetts General
Hospital (MGH) have mapped the neurons in the brain that allow a monkey
to process and remember the interactions and behaviors of another monkey
to influence the animal's own actions. The findings might be used to
develop treatment strategies for people with neuropsychiatric conditions.


==========================================================================
The study had three Rhesus monkeys sit around a rotary table and take
turns to offer an apple slice to one of the other two monkeys. At the
same time, the researchers recorded the activity of individual neurons
in a brain area known to play a role in social cognition, called the dorsomedial prefrontal cortex (dmPFC).

During these interactions, the monkeys reciprocated past offers of
an apple slice and retaliated when they did not receive a slice from
another. The researchers' recordings identified distinct neurons in the
dmPFC that responded to the actions of other monkeys in the group. Certain neurons were activated with a particular action and outcome of specific individuals within the group (such as a neighbor monkey offering an apple
slice leads to the outcome of receiving the reward). Many of the neurons encoded information not only about the actions and outcomes of specific individuals but also about their past behavior. This information about
past interactions with group members influenced an animal's upcoming
decisions to reciprocate or retaliate, and investigators could use the
neuronal information to predict which monkey would receive an apple
slice from a particular monkey even before it was offered.

"This finding suggested that the dmPFC plays a role in strategic
decisions. To test this idea, we disrupted the normal activity in
this area and found that the animals were less likely to reciprocate,"
says lead author Raymundo Ba'ez- Mendoza, PhD, an investigator in the Department of Neurosurgery at MGH.

The results suggest that the dmPFC plays an important role in mapping
out our actions and outcomes as well as the actions of others. "In neuropsychiatric conditions in which this ability is compromised,
treatments aimed at improving the functioning of this brain area, either directly or indirectly, might improve peoples' lives," says senior author
Ziv Williams, MD.

Co-authors include Emma P. Mastrobattista, and Amy J. Wang, MD.

Funding for the study was provided by the National Institutes of Health,
the Brain & Behavior Research Foundation, the MGH Fund for Medical
Discovery, and the Howard Hughes Medical Institute.

========================================================================== Story Source: Materials provided by Massachusetts_General_Hospital. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.


========================================================================== Journal Reference:
1. Raymundo Ba'ez-Mendoza, Emma P. Mastrobattista, Amy J. Wangand,
Ziv M.

Williams. Social agent identity cells in the prefrontal cortex
of interacting groups of primates. Science, 2021 DOI: 10.1126/
science.abb4149 ==========================================================================

Link to news story: https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2021/10/211021175207.htm

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