Scientists identify brain chemical associated with grief

Regensburg, Germany, October 17: Scientists have identified a major chemical in brain responsible for dealing with the sudden demise or long-term disjunction of a partner.

Oliver Bosch and his colleagues from the University of Regensburg, Germany claim that the discovery in prairie vole, a rodent, could result in working out a treatment for people afflicted with extreme depressiondefine after losing a partner.

“Here we have a change in the activity in a part of the brain linked to behaviours such as anxiety and depression,” Dr. Bosch said. “This could mimic what you find in humans after an unplanned separation or loss,” he added.

The research team also comprised of experts from Emory University, Atlanta. They took up the study with respect to prairie voles, as these creatures are known to form everlasting bonds with their mates. This is a rarity in case of mammals.

Though previous studies on the subject have proclaimed that losing a partner is associated with a higher risk of depression, Dr. Bosch and his colleagues wanted to identify the biological cause for the same.

In the study, groups of voles were separated from their mates and siblings. The remaining ones were kept together to examine their response to the situation.

The voles that were separated displayed increased levels of anxiety. As per a report in the journal Neuropsychopharmacology, symptoms of depression were observed only in the voles that had lost a mate.

A series of more tests conducted by the researchers showed that levels of “corticotrophin releasing factor”, a brain chemical and neurotransmitter, increased in the voles which had formed a strong bond with a partner.

Dr. Bosch further said that no such increase was seen in voles which were administered a compound to block signalling of the chemical in the brain. This suggests that drugs could be used in people as well to overcome depression on account of loss of a partner.

Dr. Bosch commented, “It might be possible to potentially ease this bereavement, and in the future use these blockers to treat patients that are really suffering from losing a partner.”