This subproject is one of many research subprojects utilizing the resources provided by a Center grant funded by NIH/NCRR. The subproject and investigator (PI) may have received primary funding from another NIH source, and thus could be represented in other CRISP entries. The institution listed is for the Center, which is not necessarily the institution for the investigator. We collected data demonstrating that the glutamate agonist, d-cycloserine facilitates social bond formation in prairie voles. D-cycloserine is a drug that has been used in clinical trials. We showed that peripherally administered D-cycloserine enhances partner preference formation in female prairie voles. This study was followed by site specific infusions the drug into the amygdala, nucleus accumbens and caudate putamen. Our results suggested that D-cycloserine infused into the nucleus accumbens and amygdala, but not into the caudate facilitates partner preference formation. These studies will have direct translational implications for designing drug treatments in autism. Prairie voles are an ideal animal model for investigating the brain mechanisms that regulate affiliative behavior and social bonding. We hypothesized that enhanced oxytocin and glutamate signaling in the brain may be an effective treatment for the disruption in social cognition in psychiatric disorders such as autism.
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