From Neuroscience News: For More Info, Go Here…
Summary: Social isolation during key periods of adolescence leads to long-term disruptions in social behavior and activity in neural patterns.
Source: Mount Sinai Hospital
Mount Sinai Researchers find social isolation during key developmental windows drives long term changes to activity patterns of neurons involved in initiating social approach in an animal model.
Bottom Line: Loneliness is increasingly being recognized as a serious threat to mental health and wellbeing in our society. Our study in an animal model shows that social isolation during adolescence leads to long-term disruptions in social behavior and disruptions to activity patterns of a type of inhibitory neuron in the brain, which are frequently disrupted in psychiatric disorders including Schizophrenia. Activity patterns of these inhibitory neurons are sufficient to rescue social deficits induced by juvenile social isolation.
