experiments on mice: stimulate neurons in this area, the male mice would stop mounting a receptive female mice and start to attack her

Grinnell College

University of Michigan - Ann Arbor

Aggressive behavior is modulated by neurotransmitter systems.
- Negative correlation between serotonin and aggression
- GABA and aggression
- Ventromedial hypothalamus (VMH)

Aggression has several neurochemical correlates

"A hypothalamic region involved in eating and sexual behaviors" (Breedlove & Watson).

Ventromedial Hypothalamus

Breedlove, S. & Watson, N. (2017). Behavioral neuroscience, eighth edition. Oxford University Press.

Behavioral Neuroscience 8th Edition

In a study, the most aggressive monkeys had the lowest levels of serotonin metabolites, which means they had the least serotonin released; mice with one of the serotonin receptor knocked out are hyper-aggressive; inhibitory role

Negative correlation between serotonin and aggression

The balance between inhibitory neurotransmitter GABA and excitatory neurotransmitter glutamate appears to be important in aggressive response to stimuli; antiaggression treatment based on these research

Learn Before

Related