As. Fleming et al., Neurobiology of mother-infant interactions: experience and central nervoussystem plasticity across development and generations, NEUROSCI B, 23(5), 1999, pp. 673-685
The optimal coordination between the new mammalian mother and her young inv
olves a sequence of behaviors on the part of each that ensures that the you
ng will be adequately cared for and show healthy physical, emotional, and s
ocial development. This coordination is accomplished by each member of the
relationship having the appropriate sensitivities and responses to cues tha
t characterize the other. Among many mammalian species, new mothers are att
racted to their infants' odors and some recognize them based on their odors
; they also respond to their infants' vocalizations, thermal properties, an
d touch qualities. Together these cues ensure that the mother will nurse an
d protect the offspring and provide them with the appropriate physical and
stimulus environment in which to develop. The young. in rum, orient to the
mother and show a suckling pattern that reflects a sensitivity to the mothe
rs odor, touch, and temperature characteristics. This article explores the
sensory, endocrine, and neural mechanisms that underlie this early mother-y
oung relationship, from the perspective of, first, the mother and, then, th
e young, noting the parallels between them. It emphasizes the importance of
learning and plasticity in the formation and maintenance of the mother-you
ng relationship and mediation of these experience effects by the brain and
its neurochemistry. Finally, it discusses ways in which the infants' early
experiences with their mothers (or the absence of these experiences) may co
me to influence how they respond to their own infants when they grow up, pr
oviding a psychobiological mechanism for the inter-generational transmissio
n of parenting styles and responsiveness. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. Al
l rights reserved.