BIONB 4130 - Molecules of Social Behavior and Emotion

Spring. 3 credits. Letter grades only.

Prerequisite: BIONB 2220 or permission of instructor. Offered alternate years.

D. P. McCobb.

The goal is to explore the rapidly developing field encompassing the neuroscience of emotion, motivation, and social predispositions. Focusing on neuroendocrine modulators (transmitters and hormones), including oxytocin, vasopressin, serotonin, and dopamine, together with their receptors, we will consider their roles in desire or ‘seeking’, reward, fear and aggression, affiliation and cooperation, courtship and mating, and parental care. Roles of modulators will be considered in contexts of neural systems, the ecology of social interactions, and the evolution of diversity, by emphasizing cutting edge comparative, as well as manipulative studies. We work as a learning community, with lots of student input on focal topics, frequent short oral and written presentations, peer feedback, and lots of group discussion.