This study explored an area of the brain (that of which for the most part is unknown) called the Dorsal Raphe Nucleus. This study done on mice (using optogenetics) showed that social isolation led the dopamine neurons to become "primed" or "sensitized", so as to suggest that the mice ought to interact with others. Stimulation of dopamine neurons resulted in animals interacting more with others, while inhibition of the neurons resulted in less interaction. This makes sense in light of the fact that illnesses like depression are linked to dopamine dysfunction.
Another thing to note is that dominant mice were more sensitive to these neural changes, simply because dominance and social rank requires a high(er) amount of social interaction.
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