Emily Chan
“By analyzing electroencephalogram signals from both dogs and humans, it is found that mutual gaze and petting induce interbrain synchronization in the frontal and parietal regions of the human-dog [pairs], respectively,” wrote the researchers.
As the pairs grew more familiar with each other over the course of five days, the ability to synchronize brain activity appeared to strengthen.
The information flow analysis suggested that the human took on the role of the leader, and the dog was the follower during these interactions.
If the dogs were genetically mutated and had social impairment traits similar to autism in humans, the synchronization did not occur.
“Dogs with Shank3 mutations, which represent a promising complementary animal model of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), show a loss of interbrain coupling and reduced attention during human-dog interactions,” the researchers wrote.
When the dogs with the genetic mutation were given a small dose of LSD, the effects of the mutation seemed to be reversed.
The finding indicates that LSD may help individuals with autism manage social interactions. More research needs to be done to confirm this link.
The study was published in the journal Advanced Science.
