Publications

Dagher, S. et al. (2025) Comparative Analysis of Tickling and Conspecific Play in Tame Mice and Golden Hamsters. Behav. Brain Res., 115849. 10.1016/j.bbr.2025.115849

We delve into the playful world of mouse and hamsters, exploring their interactions with humans and conspecifics. We uncover the impacts of selective breeding for tameness and context-dependent vocalizations.

Ishiyama, S. (2025) The neurobiology of ticklishness. Neurosci Res. 10.1016/j.neures.2025.05.002

A comprehensive review on the neurobiology of ticklishness. Topics include somatosensory processing, self-tickling, emotional modulation, sociosexual dimensions, and evolutionary perspectives, among others.

Dagher, S., and Ishiyama, S. (2024) Rat Anterior Insula Symmetrically Represents Tickling-Induced Playful Emotions. bioRxiv. 10.1101/2024.04.02.587725

Dagher, S., and Ishiyama, S. (2024) Tickle fetishism: pleasure beyond playfulness. Front Psychol. 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1342342

Dagher, S., DeAngelo, D., Sato, R.Y., Norimoto, H., Koide, T., and Ishiyama, S. (2024) Comparative Analysis of Tickling and Conspecific Play in Tame Mice and Golden Hamsters. bioRxiv. 10.1101/2024.03.19.585680

See final publication above (Dagher et al. (2025) Behav Brain Res)

Dagher, S., and Ishiyama, S. (2023). Protocol for precise signal synchronization of electrophysiology, videography, and audio recordings using a custom-made pulse generator. STAR Protocols 4. 10.1016/j.xpro.2023.102306

While signal synchronization of different devices is critical in systems neuroscience experiments, this knowledge is often kept within research groups. By sharing our synchronization protocol, together with our custom-designed low-cost pulse generator, we want to help experimental neuroscientists build their recording setup without hurdles that many labs including our own have faced.

Kaufmann, L.V., Brecht, M., Ishiyama, S. (2023). Tickle contagion in the rat
somatosensory cortex, iScience, doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2022.105718

Ishiyama, S., Kaufmann, L.V., and Brecht, M. (2019). Behavioral and Cortical Correlates of Self-Suppression, Anticipation, and Ambivalence in Rat Tickling. Curr. Biol. 29, 3153-3164.

Ishiyama, S., and Brecht, M. (2016). Neural correlates of ticklishness in the rat somatosensory cortex. Science 354, 757-760.