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Oxytocin receptor (Oxtr) signaling influences complex social behaviors in diverse
37 species, including social monogamy in prairie voles. How Oxtr regulates specific
38 components of social attachment behaviors and the neural mechanisms mediating them
39 remains unknown. Here, we examine prairie voles lacking Oxtr and demonstrate that
40 pair bonding comprises distinct behavioral modules: the preference for a bonded
41 partner, and the rejection of novel potential mates. Our longitudinal study of social
42 attachment shows that Oxtr sex-specifically influences early interactions between novel
43 partners facilitating the formation of partner preference. Additionally, Oxtr suppresses
44 promiscuity towards novel potential mates following pair bonding, contributing to
45 rejection. Oxtr function regulates coordinated patterns of gene expression in regions
46 implicated in attachment behaviors and regulates the expression of oxytocin in the
47 paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus, a principal source of oxytocin. Thus, Oxtr
48 controls genetically separable components of pair bonding behaviors and coordinates
49 development of the neural substrates of attachment.