Maternal Influences on Hormonal Activity and Behavior

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97-29595 Hennessy It is well established in humans that adaptive physiological functioning and health are influenced by the social environment. This effect is perhaps most apparent in the mother-infant relationships. Infants that are involuntarily separated from their mothers may suffer severe physiological and behavioral consequences. Most of what we know concerning the physiological effects has derived from studies using nonhuman primates. These effects include increases in sympathetic activity, changes in neurotransmitter levels, and increased activity of the pituitary-adrenal system, a neuroendocrine system associated with stress. In contrast, the presence of the mother in threatening environment can reduce stress-associated neuroendocrine responses of the infant. It has been assumed that the mother's capacity to reduce stress responses somehow generalizes or transfer to other social partners as the individual matures. This issue, however, has received little study and is poorly understood. One reason is that for many years, it was only possible to study such questions in primates, and possibly humans. In his previous NSF support, Dr. Hennessy developed a rodent model in which the responses to maternal separation is similar to those of primates and this offers many practical advantages. In the present series of studies, he will used this rodent model system to examine the effect of the mother's presence on neuroendocrine stress responsible in juvenile and adult offspring. Dr. Hennessy will involve undergraduates into his research program directed towards determining if, and at what age, other social partners attain the capacity to moderate stress-responsiveness. The results from these studies will provide fundamental information regarding the development of social influences on stress-related neuroendocrine activity.