Medium spiny neurons and pair bonding in the prairie vole

Does an individual's preference for monogamy have some connection to the electrophysiological properties of medium spiny neurons (MSNs) in the nucleus accumbens? In this podcast, Editor-in-Chief Bill Yates talks with Jaime Willett (North Carolina State University) and Dr. Andrea Vogel (Cornell University) about their recent study which explored this question in the prairie vole, one of the few animal models which demonstrate pair bonding. Their article was also chosen for March's APSselect. Listen to learn about prairie vole social behavior, MSN excitability, methodologies for quantifying partner preference, and more!

Nucleus accumbens core medium spiny neuron electrophysiological properties and partner preference behavior in the adult male prairie vole, Microtus ochrogaster
Jaime A. Willett, Ashlyn G. Johnson, Andrea R. Vogel, Heather B. Patisaul, Lisa A. McGraw, and John Meitzen
Journal of Neurophysiology, Published online April 18, 2018.
DOI: 10.1152/jn.00737.2017.