"Is a hug as vital as our basic needs for food, water, and sleep? In the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology and the Center for Brain Science, the Dulac and Uchida labs are conducting pivotal research that quantifies the neuroscience behind social contact and interaction. They explore how social behavior is regulated by a homeostatic neural system, analogous to hunger or thirst. Specifically, they have identified hypothalamic neurons,  MPNIsolation and MPNReunion neurons, that encode social deprivation (“social need”) and social reunion (“social satiety”). These populations interact within an antagonistic circuit that dynamically balances social deprivation and satiety, with touch serving as the key sensory signal that regulates this system." - Genesis Gonzales, OCW