page_title: Neuroanatomy of intimacy
section_title: Romantic love
hierarchical_section_title: Neuroanatomy of intimacy / Components of intimacy and neuroanatomy / Romantic love
caption_attribution_description: English: Brain. 日本語: ヒトの脳を前方やや下方から見た図。扁桃体は暗い赤色で示された領域の先端にあるアーモンド形の領域である。視床、脳弓、乳頭体、淡蒼球、被殻、尾状核、海馬、などが図示されている。. 脳. Português: Cérebro com localização das amígdalas. Türkçe: İnsan beyninin alt tarafından, beynin ön tarafı başta olacak şekilde görülüşü. Amigdala koyu kırmızı olarak gösterilmiştir.
context_page_description: Even though intimacy has been broadly defined in terms of romantic love and sexual desire, the neuroanatomy of intimacy needs further explanation in order to fully understand their neurological functions in different components within intimate relationships, which are romantic love, lust, attachment, and rejection in love. Also, known functions of the neuroanatomy involved can be applied to observations seen in people who are experiencing any of the stages in intimacy. Research analysis of these systems provide insight on the biological basis of intimacy, but the neurological aspect must be considered as well in areas that require special attention to mitigate issues in intimacy, such as violence against a beloved partner or problems with social bonding.
context_section_description: Romantic love is described as involving an individual who pays closer attention to another individual in special ways, involving attention on traits worthy to pursue.  Through functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), studies have shown that the right ventral tegmental area (VTA) is stimulated when subjects are shown a picture of their beloved.  As part of the reward mechanism, the VTA signals to other parts of the brain, such as the caudate nucleus to release dopamine for reward.  
  Older studies have generally attributed love to the limbic system consisting of the temporal lobes, hypothalamus, amygdala as well as the hippocampus.  These functional components of the limbic system are important components of emotional processing, motivation, and memory.  Specifically, current research also suggests components, such as the hypothalamus, as playing a role in romantic love because it possesses the penchant for bonding in mammals by secreting the neuropeptides, oxytocin and vasopressin. Other research has implicated nerve growth factor (NGF), a neurotrophin that is fundamental in the neuron survival and development in the nervous system, in early-stage romantic love in subjects experiencing euphoria and emotional dependency, which is often a characteristic in romantic love.
caption: Neuroanatomical structures involved in romantic love are closely related to structures that are involved in motivation and emotion.
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