Dataset Information

Neural and behavioural correlates of repeated social defeat.

ABSTRACT: Dominance hierarchies are common across the animal kingdom and have important consequences for reproduction and survival. Animals of lower social status cope with repeated social defeat using proactive and reactive behaviours. However, there remains a paucity of information on how an individual's coping behaviours changes over time or what neural mechanisms are involved. We used a resident-intruder paradigm in the African cichlid fish Astatotilapia burtoni to investigate the neural correlates of these two opposing behaviour groups. Fish initially used both proactive and reactive behaviours, but had a dramatic increase in use of proactive behaviours during the third interaction, and this was followed by cessation of proactive behaviours and exclusive use of reactive coping. By quantifying neural activation in socially-relevant brain regions, we identify a subset of brain nuclei, including those homologous to the mammalian amygdala, showing higher activation in fish displaying proactive but not reactive behaviours. Fish displaying reactive behaviours had greater neural activation in the superior raphe, suggesting a possible conserved function during social defeat across vertebrates. These data provide the first evidence on the involvement of specific brain regions underlying proactive and reactive coping in fishes, indicating that these nuclei have conserved functions during social defeat across taxa.

SUBMITTER: Butler JM

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5931592 | biostudies-literature | 2018 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Neural and behavioural correlates of repeated social defeat.

Butler Julie M JM Whitlow Sarah M SM Roberts David A DA Maruska Karen P KP

Scientific reports 20180501 1

Dominance hierarchies are common across the animal kingdom and have important consequences for reproduction and survival. Animals of lower social status cope with repeated social defeat using proactive and reactive behaviours. However, there remains a paucity of information on how an individual's coping behaviours changes over time or what neural mechanisms are involved. We used a resident-intruder paradigm in the African cichlid fish Astatotilapia burtoni to investigate the neural correlates of ...[more]

PMID: 29717159

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Project description:BackgroundPost-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a devastating psychological disorder. Patients with PTSD canonically demonstrate an increased risk for inflammatory diseases, as well as increased sympathetic tone and norepinephrine (NE) outflow. Yet, the exact etiology and causal nature of these physiologic changes remain unclear. Previously, we demonstrated that exogenous NE alters mitochondrial superoxide in T-lymphocytes to produce a pro-inflammatory T-helper 17 (TH17) phenotype, and observed similar TH17 polarization in a preclinical model of PTSD. Therefore, we hypothesized sympathetic-driven neuroimmune interactions could mediate psychological trauma-induced T-lymphocyte inflammation.MethodsRepeated social defeat stress (RSDS) is a preclinical murine model that recapitulates the behavioral, autonomic, and inflammatory aspects of PTSD. Targeted splenic denervation (Dnx) was performed to deduce the contribution of splenic sympathetic nerves to RSDS-induced inflammation. Eighty-five C57BL/6J mice underwent Dnx or sham-operation, followed by RSDS or control paradigms. Animals were assessed for behavioral, autonomic, inflammatory, and redox profiles.ResultsDnx did not alter the antisocial or anxiety-like behavior induced by RSDS. In circulation, RSDS Dnx animals exhibited diminished levels of T-lymphocyte-specific cytokines (IL-2, IL-17A, and IL-22) compared to intact animals, whereas other non-specific inflammatory cytokines (e.g., IL-6, TNF-α, and IL-10) were unaffected by Dnx. Importantly, Dnx specifically ameliorated the increases in RSDS-induced T-lymphocyte mitochondrial superoxide, TH17 polarization, and pro-inflammatory gene expression with minimal impact to non-T-lymphocyte immune populations.ConclusionsOverall, our data suggest that sympathetic nerves regulate RSDS-induced splenic T-lymphocyte inflammation, but play less of a role in the behavioral and non-T-lymphocyte inflammatory phenotypes induced by this psychological trauma paradigm.

Dataset Information

Neural and behavioural correlates of repeated social defeat.

Publications

Neural and behavioural correlates of repeated social defeat.

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