# Molecular Mechanisms of Social Behavior

> **NIH NIH R35** · UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN · 2024 · $390,134

## Abstract

Multiple human psychiatric disorders are associated with unusual social behaviors related
to aggression, anxiety, and affiliation. Although the genetic component of these disorders is well
established, their inheritance is complex and identification of the causative genes is often
extremely difficult. The growth of phenotypic and genetic information, however, revealed that
unusual behaviors observed in these disorders often represent the extreme ends of behavioral
variation observed in the general population, suggesting that genes implicated in social behavior
in unaffected population also influence disorder risk and symptom severity. To identify the genes
and pathways disturbed in psychiatric disorders, an understanding of the molecular basis of
mammalian social behavior would provide a crucial step forward.
 The goals of this project are to resolve differences in affiliation, aggression, and anxiety-
like behaviors segregating in the red fox (Vulpes vulpes) with the intent of providing valuable
insights into the mechanisms underlying a broad range of mammalian social behaviors, including
human psychiatric disorders. The specific fox strains developed at the Institute of Cytology and
Genetics (ICG) of the Russian Academy of Sciences exhibit markedly different, genetically
determined behavioral phenotypes with significant parallels to typical and atypical human
behaviors. The fox strains are well prepared for genetic, molecular, and cellular studies of social
behavior and represent a unique, novel, and significant large animal model. The identification of
molecular mechanisms influencing social behavior in foxes is expected to provide new insights
into human disorders of social behavior and facilitate integration of human and rodent studies,
thereby leading to the development of potential therapies.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10935992
- **Project number:** 5R35GM144276-03
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN
- **Principal Investigator:** ANNA KUKEKOVA
- **Activity code:** R35 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2024
- **Award amount:** $390,134
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2022-08-15 → 2027-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10935992

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10935992, Molecular Mechanisms of Social Behavior (5R35GM144276-03). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10935992. Licensed CC0.

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