Intimacy between a couple and sex reshape the brain, strengthening the bond between partners: there are dozens of brain regions in which a real electrical storm is unleashed, as demonstrated by the mapping carried out in prairie voles, small monogamous rodents widely used as model for studying mating biology.
The results are published in the journal eLife by the University of Texas at Austin in collaboration with the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory.
Researchers coordinated by Steven Phelps examined more than 200 prairie voles to study their brain activity during courtship, mating and the formation of the pair bond, three phases that follow one another at very fast pace in the space of just one day.
The first complete, high-resolution mapping of their brains highlighted the activation of 68 distinct regions, organized into seven neuronal circuits.
Many of these areas have never been associated with mating, so they could pave the way for new research in the human brain too.
What surprised the researchers most is that the brain activity of voles in love does not differ between males and females, although it is known that sexual hormones (testosterone, estrogen and progesterone) play a crucial role in sexual and parental behavior.
The activation of the 68 brain regions is closely linked to male ejaculation, an experience that creates emotional turmoil in the males involved but not only: in females too it determines greater brain activity which contributes to strengthening the couple's bond.
“Brain and behavioral data suggest that both sexes may have similar responses to orgasm, and these 'orgasms' coordinate bond formation,” says Phelps.
“If this were true, it would imply that orgasms may serve as a means of promoting connection, as has long been suggested in humans.”
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