Oxytocin receptors mediate social selectivity in prairie vole peer relationships

Friendships, or selective peer relationships, are a vital component of healthy social functioning in humans, and deficits in these relationships are associated with negative physical and mental health consequences. Like humans, prairie voles are among the few mammalian species that form selective social bonds with both peers and mates, making them an excellent model for the mechanistic investigation of selective social attachment. Here, we explored the role of oxytocin receptors in selective peer attachment using female prairie voles lacking a functional oxytocin receptor gene (Oxtr^1-/-). We found that Oxtr^1-/- animals exhibited significant delays in peer relationship formation compared with wild-type animals. Oxytocin receptor function also contributed to the maintenance of peer bonds, as Oxtr^1-/- voles displayed reduced relationship stability and lost selective attachments rapidly in a multi-chamber, group-living habitat. Oxtr^1-/- voles also showed deficits in general social reward as well as selective social reward for a peer partner over an unfamiliar conspecific. Evoked oxytocin release in the nucleus accumbens was reduced in male and female Oxtr^1-/- animals compared with their wild-type counterparts, indicating that these voles do not have a compensatory increase in oxytocinergic signaling. Together, these data indicate that oxytocin receptors influence the formation, persistence, and reward value of peer relationships.