Stress and parental behaviors

In nearly all mammalian species, newborn pups are weak and vulnerable, relying heavily on care and protection from parents for survival. Thus, developmentally hardwired neural circuits are in place to ensure the timely expression of parental behaviors. Furthermore, several neurochemical systems, inc...

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Main Authors: Yifan Wang, Dayu Lin
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-07-01
Series:Neuroscience Research
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168010224001548
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author Yifan Wang
Dayu Lin
author_facet Yifan Wang
Dayu Lin
author_sort Yifan Wang
collection DOAJ
description In nearly all mammalian species, newborn pups are weak and vulnerable, relying heavily on care and protection from parents for survival. Thus, developmentally hardwired neural circuits are in place to ensure the timely expression of parental behaviors. Furthermore, several neurochemical systems, including estrogen, oxytocin, and dopamine, facilitate the emergence and expression of parental behaviors. However, stress can adversely affect these systems, impairing parental behaviors. In this review, we will summarize our current knowledge regarding the impact of stress on pup-directed behavior circuits that lead to infant neglect, abuse, and, in extreme cases, killing. We will discuss various stressors that influence parental behaviors at different life stages and how stress induces changes in the neurochemical systems that support parental care, ultimately leading to its poor performance.
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spelling doaj-art-8bb5c44caae44ccc8fb23523bfa861da2025-08-20T02:08:38ZengElsevierNeuroscience Research0168-01022025-07-0121610486610.1016/j.neures.2024.12.004Stress and parental behaviorsYifan Wang0Dayu Lin1Neuroscience Institute, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA; Corresponding author.Neuroscience Institute, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Psychiatry, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA; Department of Neuroscience and physiology, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA; Corresponding author at: Neuroscience Institute, New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, USA.In nearly all mammalian species, newborn pups are weak and vulnerable, relying heavily on care and protection from parents for survival. Thus, developmentally hardwired neural circuits are in place to ensure the timely expression of parental behaviors. Furthermore, several neurochemical systems, including estrogen, oxytocin, and dopamine, facilitate the emergence and expression of parental behaviors. However, stress can adversely affect these systems, impairing parental behaviors. In this review, we will summarize our current knowledge regarding the impact of stress on pup-directed behavior circuits that lead to infant neglect, abuse, and, in extreme cases, killing. We will discuss various stressors that influence parental behaviors at different life stages and how stress induces changes in the neurochemical systems that support parental care, ultimately leading to its poor performance.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168010224001548Parental behaviorsStressEstrogenOxytocinMesolimbic dopamine systemHPA axis
spellingShingle Yifan Wang
Dayu Lin
Stress and parental behaviors
Neuroscience Research
Parental behaviors
Stress
Estrogen
Oxytocin
Mesolimbic dopamine system
HPA axis
title Stress and parental behaviors
title_full Stress and parental behaviors
title_fullStr Stress and parental behaviors
title_full_unstemmed Stress and parental behaviors
title_short Stress and parental behaviors
title_sort stress and parental behaviors
topic Parental behaviors
Stress
Estrogen
Oxytocin
Mesolimbic dopamine system
HPA axis
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0168010224001548
work_keys_str_mv AT yifanwang stressandparentalbehaviors
AT dayulin stressandparentalbehaviors