Table 1.

Summary of neurobehavioral changes of pups in response to maternal odor versus acetophenone across development. Social buffering of the stress response occurs at both PN14 and PN23 (Hennessy et al., 2009; Sullivan & Perry, 2015).

Assessments		PN7	PN14	PN23
Social buffering		No*	Yes	Yes
Behaviors	Y-maze test	Preference maternal & acetophenone		Preference maternal
	Nipple attachment test	Only maternal odor		Neither
Brain area activation	Anterior cingulate cortex (ACC)	Maternal odor	None	Maternal odor = acetophenone > no odor
	Medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC)	Maternal odor	None	Maternal odor
	Basolateral amygdala (BLA)	None	None	Maternal odor > Acetophenone > no odor
Functional connectivity	PFC–amygdala	Maternal odor	Maternal odor acetophenone	Maternal odor acetophenone

^*Adult-like social buffering does not occur at PN7. However, maternal cues produce prolonged social buffering by preventing corticosterone (CORT) release unless pups are deprived of maternal cues for 1–2 h (Lehmann & Feldon, 2000). The results of the two behavioral tests are summarized, indicating which odors were approached (preferred), and which odors support nipple attachment, at each test age. The ROI and functional connectivity results for each brain areas are also summarized, indicating which regions showed significant activity or connectivity levels, at each test age.