Psychobiological proximate factors maintaining pro-social behavior

2021 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 18H02712
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (B)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 51020:Cognitive and brain science-related
• Research Institution: Institute of Physical and Chemical Research
• Principal Investigator: Yamazaki Yumiko 国立研究開発法人理化学研究所, 生命機能科学研究センター, 副チームリーダー (20399447)
• Project Period (FY): 2018-04-01 – 2021-03-31
• Keywords: 向社会的行動 / 利他行動 / 選択行動 / 腸内細菌叢 / 高次社会認知機能

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The purpose of this research project is to examine the psycho-physiological proximal factors on pro-social behaviour in common marmosets which share the pro-social characteristics with humans. Under the experimental situations where two marmosets could see each other during the tasks, effect of reinforcement by presence and appearance of companion animal was proved to be dependent on the characteristics of them (e.g., sexually matured male or female). In the situations where they could choose their responses with selfish, shared, and altruistic consequences, they showed different sensitivities to self-rewards and other-rewards, and characteristics of fecal microbiota may have relationship with the choice patterns. In total, a set of studies revealed that marmosets could modulate their pro-social behaviour flexibly depending on various social contexts, which would have been influenced by endogenous factors such as microbiota.

Free Research Field

認知神経科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

ヒトやマーモセットは他個体の生存に利する行動、利他行動をその進化の中で獲得してきた。利他行動は随意的行動である以上、進化的な要因のみならず、多くの獲得行動と同様に至近的要因、すなわち行動随伴性が存在するはずである。本研究はマーモセットの向社会的行動において、相手への特別な関心や直前の経験のような至近要因が、向社会的行動の表出や選択に影響を与えること、そしてそのパターンが腸内細菌叢と関係を有することを示した。今後、向社会的行動研究の最適なモデル動物であるマーモセットを利用し、高次社会認知機能と健康状態の関係解明と、腸内細菌叢の制御を通した非侵襲的で革新的な介入方法の開発が期待できる。