New study examines how sense of smell affects mating and aggression in mice
New research by scientists at UCSF sheds light on how the odor detecting system in mice sends signals that affect their social behavior. "Understanding how mice process cues from the olfactory system--which regulates the sense of smell--should provide insight into the fundamental principles that mammalian brains use to transform sensory information into behavior," says lead investigator N...Animal models show that anabolic steroids flip the adolescent brain's switch for aggression
Anabolic steroids not only make teens more aggressive, but may keep them that way into young adulthood. The effect ultimately wears off but there may be other, lasting consequences for the developing brain. These findings, published in February's Behavioral Neuroscience, also showed that aggression rose and fell in synch with neurotransmitter levels in the brain's aggression control region. B...Aggression-related gene weakens brain's impulse control circuits
A version of a gene previously linked to impulsive violence appears to weaken brain circuits that regulate impulses, emotional memory and thinking in humans, researchers at the National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) have found. Brain scans revealed that people with this version ?especially males ?tended to have relatively smaller emotion-related brain str...Sex chromosome genes influence aggression andmaternal behavior, say UVa researchers
It has been well documented that, across human cultures and in most mammals, males are usually more aggressive and less nurturing than females. It's simple to blame male hormones, like testosterone, for male behavior such as aggression. But maybe it's in our genes, too. Indeed such social behavior also has a genetic basis, according to new research on mice by neuroscientists at the Univers...The higher the hierarchy, the greater the aggression
Individual variation in social behavior is one of the most striking features of cooperative animal societies. In a new study from the June issue of American Naturalist, Michael A. Cant (University of Cambridge), Justine B. Llop (University of Cambridge), and Jeremy Field (University College London) investigate the extent to which differences in aggressive behavior within a cooperative society can...Is Man’s Aggression Linked To His Finger
Aggression is traditionally thought of as a characteristic trait of man. Often it is mistaken for manliness //and other socially acceptable attributes of man. But can it be linked to the size of the fingers in a man’s hand?A recent study in the current issue of Biological Psychology says just that. Finger length ratio is the ratio of second finger or index finger to the fourth or ring...Fish Oil supplementation reduces physical aggression in school children’
Miho Itomura and his colleagues from Toyama University, Japan have found that supplementation of fish oil reduces the physical aggression of school children’s behavior. //Researchers have found that Docosahexaenoic acid (DHA), which is a main constituent of fish oil, is an important component of cell membranes of the retina and brain. The researchers have found behavior problems in boys who have...Violent computer games spur aggression: study
The link between computer images of brutality and the real thing may go further than first thought.Violent computer games trigger a mechanism in the brain // that makes people more likely to behave aggressively, says a recent US study. The study, which considered the effects of popular games such as Doom, Mortal Kombat and Grand Theft Auto, which involve brutal killings, high-powered we...Aggression And Fatherly Behavior: Men Have It In Their Genes
It has been known for a long time that maleness in most mammals relates to aggressive behavior and a less nurturing tendency, compared to females. Humans are no exception // to the above fact. The male sex hormones, more specifically testosterone has been blamed for such behavior. It has now been found that sex chromosomes also have a significant role in dictating male behavior. Neuro...A gene related to aggression weakens the brain
National Institutes of Health's (NIH) National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH) researchers have found out that gene previously linked to impulsive violence appears// to weaken brain circuits that regulate impulses, emotional memory and thinking in humans. It was studied through brain scans that revealed that people with this version of gene – especially males – tended to have relativ...