Sex differences in choice-based thermal nociceptive tests in adult rats

Bourgeois, JR; Feustel, Paul J.; Kopec, AM

doi:10.1016/j.bbr.2022.113919

Cited by 4 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…In agreement with the literature data, in baseline measurements, female mice showed a lower sensitivity to cold and a greater susceptibility to mechanical stimuli, accompanied by a smaller body weight, compared to males [ 31 , 32 , 33 ]. No significant difference between the two genotypes was present in these parameters, except for mechanonociception.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

IL-1 Mediates Chronic Stress-Induced Hyperalgesia Accompanied by Microglia and Astroglia Morphological Changes in Pain-Related Brain Regions in Mice

Fülöp

Hunyady

Bencze

et al. 2023

IJMS

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Chronic stress causes several pain conditions including fibromyalgia. Its pathophysiological mechanisms are unknown, and the therapy is unresolved. Since the involvement of interleukin-1 (IL-1) has been described in stress and inflammatory pain but no data are available regarding stress-induced pain, we studied its role in a chronic restraint stress (CRS) mouse model. Female and male C57Bl/6J wild-type (WT) and IL-1αβ-deficient (knock-out: IL-1 KO) mice were exposed to 6 h of immobilization/day for 4 weeks. Mechanonociception, cold tolerance, behavioral alterations, relative thymus/adrenal gland weights, microglia ionized calcium-binding adaptor molecule 1 (IBA1) and astrocyte glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) integrated density, number and morphological transformation in pain-related brain regions were determined. CRS induced 15–20% mechanical hyperalgesia after 2 weeks in WT mice in both sexes, which was significantly reduced in female but not in male IL-1 KOs. Increased IBA1+ integrated density in the central nucleus of amygdala, primary somatosensory cortex hind limb representation part, hippocampus cornu ammonis area 3 (CA3) and periaqueductal gray matter (PAG) was present, accompanied by a cell number increase in IBA1+ microglia in stressed female WTs but not in IL-1 KOs. CRS induced morphological changes of GFAP+ astrocytes in WT but not in KO mice. Stress evoked cold hypersensitivity in the stressed animals. Anxiety and depression-like behaviors, thymus and adrenal gland weight changes were detectable in all groups after 2 but not 4 weeks of CRS due to adaptation. Thus, IL-1 mediates chronic stress-induced hyperalgesia in female mice, without other major behavioral alterations, suggesting the analgesic potentials of IL-1 in blocking drugs in stress-related pain syndromes.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 91%

IL-1 Mediates Chronic Stress-Induced Hyperalgesia Accompanied by Microglia and Astroglia Morphological Changes in Pain-Related Brain Regions in Mice

Fülöp

Hunyady

Bencze

et al. 2023

IJMS

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“…This is consistent with previous observation that male rats avoid temperatures of 10°C more readily than female rats. 9 A recent study has identified a male-specific role of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) in spinal cord excitability. 15 Interestingly, the loss of one BDNF allele decreases cold sensitivity (withdrawal threshold from 18.5°C to 12.9°C) in male rats, 15 , 67 suggesting that sex-specific differences in cold sensitivity may be BDNF dependent.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

An improved conflict avoidance assay reveals modality-specific differences in pain hypersensitivity across sexes

Ferland,

Wang,

De Koninck

et al. 2024

Pain

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Abnormal encoding of somatosensory modalities (ie, mechanical, cold, and heat) are a critical part of pathological pain states. Detailed phenotyping of patients' responses to these modalities have raised hopes that analgesic treatments could one day be tailored to a patient's phenotype. Such precise treatment would require a profound understanding of the underlying mechanisms of specific pain phenotypes at molecular, cellular, and circuitry levels. Although preclinical pain models have helped in that regard, the lack of a unified assay quantifying detailed mechanical, cold, and heat pain responses on the same scale precludes comparing how analgesic compounds act on different sensory phenotypes. The conflict avoidance assay is promising in that regard, but testing conditions require validation for its use with multiple modalities. In this study, we improve upon the conflict avoidance assay to provide a validated and detailed assessment of all 3 modalities within the same animal, in mice. We first optimized testing conditions to minimize the necessary amount of training and to reduce sex differences in performances. We then tested what range of stimuli produce dynamic stimulus–response relationships for different outcome measures in naive mice. We finally used this assay to show that nerve injury produces modality-specific sex differences in pain behavior. Our improved assay opens new avenues to study the basis of modality-specific abnormalities in pain behavior.

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Evaluating pain behaviours: Widely used mechanical and thermal methods in rodents

Modi

Parekh

Pancholi

2023

Behavioural Brain Research

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Sex differences in choice-based thermal nociceptive tests in adult rats

Cited by 4 publications

References 52 publications

IL-1 Mediates Chronic Stress-Induced Hyperalgesia Accompanied by Microglia and Astroglia Morphological Changes in Pain-Related Brain Regions in Mice

IL-1 Mediates Chronic Stress-Induced Hyperalgesia Accompanied by Microglia and Astroglia Morphological Changes in Pain-Related Brain Regions in Mice

An improved conflict avoidance assay reveals modality-specific differences in pain hypersensitivity across sexes

Evaluating pain behaviours: Widely used mechanical and thermal methods in rodents

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