Researchers have uncovered how social interactions influence brain development in common marmosets, drawing parallels with human evolution.
The study reveals that brain regions involved in social processing mature slowly, mirroring the development seen in humans. This protracted brain maturation supports prolonged learning from social interactions, underlying the advanced socio-cognitive skills observed in these primates.
Primate brain development is influenced by various factors, which differ between species based on their social structures. In independent breeders, like great apes, parents are solely responsible for raising offspring. In cooperative breeders, such as common marmosets (Callithrix jacchus) and humans, however, other group members also help raise infants from birth.
An international research team, led by Paola Cerrito from the University of Zurich’s Department of Evolutionary Anthropology, investigated how these social interactions influence brain development in common marmosets. Their study sheds light on the timing of brain growth and its link to socio-cognitive skills, particularly the prosocial and cooperative behaviors seen in marmosets.
Social Interactions and Brain Maturation
The research team analyzed brain development using magnetic resonance data and showed that in marmosets, the brain regions involved in the processing of social interactions exhibit protracted development – in a similar way to humans. These brain regions only reach maturity in early adulthood, allowing the animals to learn from social interactions for longer.
Like humans, immature marmosets are surrounded and cared for by multiple caregivers from birth and are therefore exposed to intense social interaction. Feeding is also a cooperative business: the immature animals are fed by group members and as they get older, they have to beg for food because their mothers are already busy with the next offspring. According to the study, the need to elicit care from several group members significantly shapes brain development and contributes to the sophisticated socio-cognitive motivation (and observed skills) of these primates.
Comparative Insights and Human Evolution
Given their similarities with humans, marmosets are an important model for studying the evolution of social cognition. “Our findings underscore the importance of social experiences to the formation of neural and cognitive networks, not only in primates, but also in humans,” explains Cerrito.
The early-life social inputs that characterize infants’ life in cooperatively breeding species may be a driving force in the development of humans’ marked social motivation. “This insight could have an impact on various fields, ranging from evolutionary biology to neuroscience and psychology,” adds Cerrito.
Reference: “Neurodevelopmental timing and socio-cognitive development in a prosocial cooperatively breeding primate (Callithrix jacchus)” by Paola Cerrito, Eduardo Gascon, Angela C. Roberts, Stephen J. Sawiak and Judith M. Burkart, 30 October 2024, Science Advances.
DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.ado3486
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