Autism, diagnosis and therapy: why the dog is truly a friend of man, the research

A knowing look, a few cuddles, and a deep bond immediately develops between man and dog. Their brains synchronize, a Chinese study published in ‘Advanced Science’ showswhich by analyzing the interaction between humans and their four-legged best friends also traces a path in autism research.

During social interactions between humans, scientists explain, the activity of the neurons of the people who interact synchronizes. The same thing happens if the ‘dialogue’ involves a man and a dog: when they look at each other, eye to eye, a synchronization occurs in the frontal region of their brain, while caresses synchronize the parietal region. Both brain areas are associated with attention. The researchers observed that the strength of this synchronization increases as the man and dog become familiar, over the course of 5 days, and that in the relationship that is created the roles are well defined: the man is the leader, the dog is the follower.

The synchronization described by the researchers, as seen during the experiment, is lost in the case of dogs with certain genetic mutations that cause symptoms of social impairment characteristic of autism spectrum disorder. During interaction with humans, these animals also show reduced attention. Anomalies that have been shown to be reversible, the scientists report, with a single treatment based on LSD.

Previous scientific research has already indicated the psychedelic substance as a possible therapeutic option for some manifestations of the disorder. “There are two implications of this study” for Yong Q. Zhang of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing, corresponding author of the article: “One is that disrupted intercerebral synchronization could be used as a biomarker for autism, the other is that LSD or its derivatives could improve its social symptoms”.