Translational implications of oxytocin-mediated social buffering following immobilization stress in female prairie voles

摘要

The supportive interpersonal social network resources available to individuals to provide help and assistance in times of need are one of the most studied aspects of resilience and recuperation in trauma research (1). Both the perceived availability and the objective presence of social support moderate the relationship between stress, stress response, and stress-induced psychopathology (1). A more recent report indicated that unstable family and social relationships impair coping and rehabilitation after trauma (2). Two meta-analysis studies of the predictors of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in adults likewise confirmed that the lack of social support is one of the most important risk factors for posttraumatic stress reactions (3,4). Social support protects against various adverse physical and mental disorders (e.g., cardiovascular reactivity, metabolic syndromes, and hypertension and depression and schizophrenia) (1). However, despite such accumulating evidence, the precise neurobiological mechanisms mediating the positive effects of social contact and social interactions on stress-responsive physiologic systems remain unknown.