When is it socially acceptable to feel sick?

Lopes, Patrícia C.

doi:10.1098/rspb.2014.0218

Cited by 101 publications

(110 citation statements)

References 77 publications

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“…The fact that these changes were not uniform could indicate that the inflammatory challenge interacted with other factors (such as social status) in determining the extent to which behaviours changed36.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Infection-induced behavioural changes reduce connectivity and the potential for disease spread in wild mice contact networks

Lopes

Block

König

2016

Sci Rep

Self Cite

166

178

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Infection may modify the behaviour of the host and of its conspecifics in a group, potentially altering social connectivity. Because many infectious diseases are transmitted through social contact, social connectivity changes can impact transmission dynamics. Previous approaches to understanding disease transmission dynamics in wild populations were limited in their ability to disentangle different factors that determine the outcome of disease outbreaks. Here we ask how social connectivity is affected by infection and how this relationship impacts disease transmission dynamics. We experimentally manipulated disease status of wild house mice using an immune challenge and monitored social interactions within this free-living population before and after manipulation using automated tracking. The immune-challenged animals showed reduced connectivity to their social groups, which happened as a function of their own behaviour, rather than through conspecific avoidance. We incorporated these disease-induced changes of social connectivity among individuals into models of disease outbreaks over the empirically-derived networks. The models revealed that changes in host behaviour frequently resulted in the disease being contained to very few animals, as opposed to becoming widespread. Our results highlight the importance of considering the role that behavioural alterations during infection can have on social dynamics when evaluating the potential for disease outbreaks.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Infection-induced behavioural changes reduce connectivity and the potential for disease spread in wild mice contact networks

Lopes

Block

König

2016

Sci Rep

Self Cite

166

178

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“…If the benefit of “hiding” a sickness response from a potential mate outweighs the costs of losing the opportunity to mate, then one would predict social modulation of sickness behavior (Avistur and Yirmiya, 1999; Lopes, 2014). Indeed, male zebra finch ( Taeniopygia guttata ) injected with LPS and exposed to a novel female mask sickness behavior; they exhibit courting behaviors and activation of the HPG axis similar to control-injected males (Lopes et al, 2013).…”

Section: Acute Phase Response and Sickness Behaviormentioning

confidence: 99%

Neuroendocrine-immune circuits, phenotypes, and interactions

Ashley

Demas

2017

Hormones and Behavior

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Multidirectional interactions among the immune, endocrine, and nervous systems have been demonstrated in humans and non-human animal models for many decades by the biomedical community, but ecological and evolutionary perspectives are lacking. Neuroendocrine-immune interactions can be conceptualized using a series of feedback loops, which culminate into distinct neuroendocrine-immune phenotypes. Behavior can exert profound influences on these phenotypes, which can in turn reciprocally modulate behavior. For example, the behavioral aspects of reproduction, including courtship, aggression, mate selection and parental behaviors can impinge upon neuroendocrine-immune interactions. One classic example is the immunocompetence handicap hypothesis (ICHH), which proposes that steroid hormones act as mediators of traits important for female choice while suppressing the immune system. Reciprocally, neuroendocrine-immune pathways can promote the development of altered behavioral states, such as sickness behavior. Understanding the energetic signals that mediate neuroendocrine-immune crosstalk is an active area of research. Although the field of psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) has begun to explore this crosstalk from a biomedical standpoint, the neuroendocrine-immune-behavior nexus has been relatively underappreciated in comparative species. The field of ecoimmunology, while traditionally emphasizing the study of non-model systems from an ecological evolutionary perspective, often under natural conditions, has focused less on the physiological mechanisms underlying behavioral responses. This review summarizes neuroendocrine-immune interactions using a comparative framework to understand the ecological and evolutionary forces that shape these complex physiological interactions.

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“…Further, avoidant behavior of conspecifics may contribute to these social costs (Avitsur, Cohen, & Yirmiya, 1997). In certain situations, opportunity costs are so high that the immune response is suppressed in order to enable normal behavior (Aubert, Goodall, Dantzer, & Gheusi, 1997;Lopes, 2014;Lopes et al, 2013;Lopes, Adelman, Wingfield, & Bentley, 2012;Owen-Ashley & Wingfield, 2006). For example, male zebra finches whose immune systems were artificially provoked, display symptoms of illness when they are housed in a single cage, but when housed in a group cage, they do not display these symptoms (Lopes et al, 2012).…”

Section: The Environment Of Evolutionary Adaptednessmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Signaling Theory of Symptoms

Steinkopf

2015

Evol Psychol

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Placebo research shows that the subjective quality of care and social support, as well as the patients' expectations of treatment, influence therapeutic outcomes. However, this phenomenon, known as the placebo effect, does not usually cure the disease, but rather can provide symptomatic relief: It may soothe symptoms such as pain, swelling, or nausea that constitute part of an immune response. The function of this mechanism remains unclear. This article puts forward the Signaling Theory of Symptoms (STS) as a possible explanation. According to STS, discernible aspects of an immune response, such as pain, swelling, or nausea, not only serve a defensive and healing function but also a signaling function: symptoms signal the need for care and treatment to potential helpers. Once help and treatment are granted, the signaling function is fulfilled and the symptoms diminish. This mechanism may have been a significant advantage in preindustrial environments, when sufferers depended on extensive social support and personal treatment. Nowadays, from the point of view of modern materialist medicine, the mobilization of social support no longer seems so crucial, and thus the placebo effect has been assigned a somewhat mysterious quality.

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When is it socially acceptable to feel sick?

Cited by 101 publications

References 77 publications

Infection-induced behavioural changes reduce connectivity and the potential for disease spread in wild mice contact networks

Infection-induced behavioural changes reduce connectivity and the potential for disease spread in wild mice contact networks

Neuroendocrine-immune circuits, phenotypes, and interactions

The Signaling Theory of Symptoms

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