Social touch and memory in naked mole-rats and what it means for human social disorders
Official title: Role of social touch and social memory in organizing naked mole-rat colonies
Funded at Columbia Univ New York Morningside · NIH-11393020 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A large NIH grant is studying how touch helps social animals remember colony members, with potential clues for autism, depression, and other social difficulties in people.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Columbia Univ New York Morningside NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project start | August 14, 2025 |
| Project end | July 31, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $1,151,500 |
| NIH project number | 5DP1AT013723-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11393020 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People with autistic disorder or chronic depressive disorder could benefit from advances informed by this work, as it seeks to uncover universal social-brain principles.
✕Less likely to help
Results may not directly benefit individuals if findings do not translate to human biology or new therapies.
What this research studies
This project looks at how a highly social mammal, the naked mole-rat, uses touch to recognize and remember many colony members. By focusing on the tactile system and the hippocampus, researchers hope to uncover neural mechanisms behind social behavior that could translate to humans with social disorders. The study combines behavioral observations with brain analysis to link social touch, memory, and brain circuits. If the findings translate, they could guide new approaches to understanding social deficits in autistic and depressive conditions.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Better understanding of social brain mechanisms could inform future therapies or interventions for social challenges in humans.
How similar studies have gone: Previous work in social animals and human studies suggest social touch and memory involve shared brain pathways, though this specific approach is novel in its direct comparison to a highly social non-human model.
Where this research is happening
-
Columbia Univ New York Morningside
New York, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Abdus-Saboor, Ishmail John — Columbia Univ New York Morningside
- Study coordinator: Abdus-Saboor, Ishmail John
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.