The development of behavioral and endocrine abnormalities in rats after repeated exposure to direct and indirect stress

Abstract

Abstract:The present study compared the effects of direct and indirect stress on the behavior and hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis of rats. Animals were placed in a two compartment box. In one compartment the direct stressed rat was subjected to electric foot shocks randomly applied for 10 minutes (0.5 mA of 1 s duration). In the adjacent compartment, the indirect stressed rats witnessed the application of these electric foot shocks. Our data showed substantial behavioral changes in the open fi eld test, but limited effects in the elevated plus maze. The fi ndings suggested that single and repeated stress exposure may have different consequences, that the effects of stress exposure may develop over time and persist for an extended period, and that both direct and indirect stressed rats displayed a hyposensitive HPA axis following acute restraint stress. Overall our observations moderately indicate direct exposure to elicit behavioral changes, and both direct and indirect exposure to stress to result in aberrations within the neuroendocrine system. With additional development our stress models may be considered for studying the complex interrelationship between an external stressor, and the experience of the organism.

An Overview of Translationally Informed Treatments for Posttraumatic Stress Disorder: Animal Models of Pavlovian Fear Conditioning to Human Clinical Trials

“…Mice and rats exposed to extreme stress exhibit enhanced negative feedback in response to acute stress or cortisol (103–106). In other studies, however, subjects that exhibit PTSD-like behavior in response to extreme stress have increased circulating levels of corticosterone several days after stressor exposure compared to well adapted and non-exposed rats (96, 107, 108).…”

Integrated Metabolomics and Proteomics Analysis of Urine in a Mouse Model of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder

“…The mice in the control group were placed in the chamber for a similar period without receiving a foot shock. Thereafter, the mice in the foot shock group were subjected to the same moderate electric foot shock stressor for 12 days (twice a day) to induce stress adaptation ( Van den Berg et al, 1998 ; Daniels et al, 2008 ).…”

Зміни Електрогіпокампограми Та Поведінкових Реакцій Щурів При Посиленні Протягом Тривалого Стресу Гамк-Ергічних Механізмів Мозку

“…У цьому, очевидно, відігравало роль потенціювання безпосередньо гальмівного впливу ГАМК у мозкових структурах, тоді як пірацетам поліпшував метаболізм і енергетику нервових клітин, не викликаючи їх гальмування. Ми можемо припустити, що саме це могло зумовлювати характер змін у нашому експерименті дослідницької активності тварин, в яких відносно велику роль відіграють процеси не тільки збудження, а й гальмування [13]. Так, на початку дослідження гідазепам, посилюючи гальмування, змінював співвідношення вказаних процесів, що викликало зменшення дослідницької активності тварин.…”