Monkey See, Monkey Perpetuate

A new study suggests that child abuse -- in monkeys, at least -- could permanently disrupt levels of serotinin in the brain.

And that can lead to -- you guessed it -- a cycle of violence.

Reuters has the story:

When baby monkeys in the study experienced high amounts of abuse and rejection from their mother in the month after birth, their brains often produced less serotonin. Low levels of serotonin are linked to anxiety, depression and aggression in monkeys and people.

The researchers followed monkey infants from birth into adulthood. They found that female monkeys that had been abused by their mothers as infants and later became abusive mothers had about 10 to 20 percent less serotonin than females that had been abused as babies but did not become abusive parents.