The researchers say in the latest Nature Neuroscience that mice living and running by themselves have less brain cell growth than those that run with other rats. However, the implications for humans aren't clear, but show that social interaction plays an important role in determining how a basic function, such as physical activity, affects brains and bodies.

"These results suggest that, in the absence of social interaction, a normally beneficial experience can exert a potentially detrimental influence on the brain," said Elizabeth Gould, a psychology professor at Princeton University in New Jersey and a co-author of the study.

Gould and her team started the study to understand how a stressful activity - in this case, running - benefits a person's health. To do so, Gould and her colleagues made the rats run on running wheels, either alone or with other rats, and studied how the exercise affected "neurogenesis," which is the creation of new neurons in the brain.

The rodents that ran in groups generated twice as many new neurons than the isolated critters. The rats living and running alone also had higher levels of "corticosterone," a hormone related to stress, which being isolated may have caused because the rats wanted company.

"For most species, social interaction is very natural," Gould said. "This makes a lot of sense for species, which thrive with cooperative activities, like sharing food and cooperative breeding. If given a chance, most rats would seek out social situations, especially positive ones, and so animals are unlikely to stay in an isolated setting."

However, Gould said she's not sure if humans are the same. By their very nature, rats are highly motivated to run, especially on wheels, but many humans are not motivated to exercise, especially and run or jog.

What's more, the solitary rats in Gould's study weren't exposed to other rats, while humans living alone usually have other social contacts outside their houses, she said.

Still, the findings do provide more evidence that social interaction can be healthy and "buffer the negative effects of stress," she said.

The findings have joggers thinking twice about their activities. On the blog for the United Kingdom's Daily Mail newspaper, Tony of Wellington, New Zealand, said he is surely rethinking his jogging habits.

"I've tried jogging with rats and I don't find them socially interactive," he wrote. "I think I will keep jogging in the mornings with the dog."

Source: Nubella News
Posted by: Steve Smith
Website: www.nubella.com

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