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de Sousa EB, Heymbeeck JAA, Feitosa LM, Xavier AGO, Dos Santos Campos K, do Socorro Dos Santos Rodrigues L, de Freitas LM, do Carmo Silva RX, Ikeda SR, de Nazaré Dos Santos Silva S, Rocha SP, do Nascimento WL, da Silva Moraes ER, Herculano AM, Maximino C, Pereira A, Lima-Maximino M. Activation of NOS-cGMP pathways promotes stress-induced sensitization of behavioral responses in zebrafish. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2024; 243:173816. [PMID: 38971472 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2024.173816] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2024] [Revised: 06/20/2024] [Accepted: 07/03/2024] [Indexed: 07/08/2024]
Abstract
Nitric oxide (NO) is a molecule involved in plasticity across levels and systems. The role of NOergic pathways in stress-induced sensitization (SIS) of behavioral responses, in which a particular stressor triggers a state of hyper-responsiveness to other stressors after an incubation period, was assessed in adult zebrafish. In this model, adult zebrafish acutely exposed to a fear-inducing conspecific alarm substance (CAS) and left undisturbed for an incubation period show increased anxiety-like behavior 24 h after exposure. CAS increased forebrain glutamate immediately after stress and 30 min after stress, an effect that was accompanied by increased nitrite levels immediately after stress, 30 min after stress, 90 min after stress, and 24 h after stress. CAS also increased nitrite levels in the head kidney, where cortisol is produced in zebrafish. CAS-elicited nitrite responses in the forebrain 90 min (but not 30 min) after stress were prevented by a NOS-2 blocker. Blocking NOS-1 30 min after stress prevents SIS; blocking NOS-2 90 min after stress also prevents stress-induced sensitization, as does blocking calcium-activated potassium channels in this latter time window. Stress-induced sensitization is also prevented by blocking guanylate cyclase activation in both time windows, and cGMP-dependent channel activation in the second time window. These results suggest that different NO-related pathways converge at different time windows of the incubation period to induce stress-induced sensitization.
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Affiliation(s)
- Eveline Bezerra de Sousa
- Laboratório de Bacteriologia e Neuropatologia, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil; Programa de Pós-Graduação em Neurociências e Biologia Celular, Instituto de Estudos em Saúde e Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém, PA, Brazil
| | - João Alphonse Apóstolo Heymbeeck
- Laboratório de Neurofarmacologia e Biofísica, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil; Programa de Pós-Graduação em Neurociências e Comportamento, Núcleo de Teoria e Pesquisa do Comportamento, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém, PA, Brazil
| | - Leonardo Miranda Feitosa
- Laboratório de Neurofarmacologia e Biofísica, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil; Programa de Pós-Graduação em Neurociências e Comportamento, Núcleo de Teoria e Pesquisa do Comportamento, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém, PA, Brazil
| | | | - Kimberly Dos Santos Campos
- Departamento de Morfologia e Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil
| | | | - Larissa Mota de Freitas
- Departamento de Morfologia e Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil
| | - Rhayra Xavier do Carmo Silva
- Departamento de Morfologia e Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil
| | - Saulo Rivera Ikeda
- Departamento de Morfologia e Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil
| | | | - Sueslene Prado Rocha
- Departamento de Morfologia e Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil
| | - Wilker Leite do Nascimento
- Departamento de Morfologia e Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil
| | | | - Anderson Manoel Herculano
- Laboratório de Neurofarmacologia Experimental, Instituto de Ciências Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém, PA, Brazil
| | - Caio Maximino
- Laboratório de Neurociências e Comportamento "Frederico Guilherme Graeff", Instituto de Estudos em Saúde e Biológicas, Universidade Federal do Sul e Sudeste do Pará (Unifesspa), Marabá, PA, Brazil.
| | - Antonio Pereira
- Laboratório de Processamento de Sinais, Instituto de Tecnologia, Universidade Federal do Pará (UFPA), Belém, PA, Brazil
| | - Monica Lima-Maximino
- Laboratório de Neurofarmacologia e Biofísica, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil; Departamento de Morfologia e Ciências Fisiológicas, Universidade do Estado do Pará, Campus VIII, Marabá, PA, Brazil
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Sales AJ, Joca SRL, Del Bel E, Guimarães FS. The antidepressant-like effect of doxycycline is associated with decreased nitric oxide metabolite levels in the prefrontal cortex. Behav Brain Res 2024; 458:114764. [PMID: 37972712 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2023.114764] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/14/2023] [Revised: 11/13/2023] [Accepted: 11/13/2023] [Indexed: 11/19/2023]
Abstract
Doxycycline is an antibiotic that has shown neuroprotective, anti-inflammatory, and antidepressant-like effects. Low doses of doxycycline revert the behavioral and neuroinflammatory responses induced by lipopolysaccharide treatment in a mice model of depression. However, the molecular mechanisms involved in the antidepressant action of doxycycline are not yet understood. Doxycycline inhibits the synthesis of nitric oxide (NO), which increases after stress exposure. Inducible NO synthase (iNOS) inhibition also causes antidepressant-like effects in animal models sensitive to antidepressant-like effects such as the forced swimming test (FST). However, no direct study has yet investigated if the antidepressant-like effects of doxycycline could involve changes in NO-mediated neurotransmission. Therefore, this study aimed at investigating: i) the behavioral effects induced by doxycycline alone or in association with ineffective doses of a NO donor (sodium nitroprusside, SNP) or an iNOS inhibitor (1400 W) in mice subjected to the FST; and ii) doxycycline effects in NO metabolite levels in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus these animals. Male mice (8 weeks) received i.p. injection of saline or doxycycline (10, 30, and 50 mg/kg), alone or combined with SNP (0.1, 0.5, and 1 mg/kg) or 1400 W (1, 3, and 10 µg/kg), and 30 min later were submitted to the FST. Animals were sacrificed immediately after, and NO metabolites nitrate/nitrite (NOx) were measured in the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus. Doxycycline (50 mg/kg) reduced both the immobility time in the FST and NOx levels in the prefrontal cortex of mice compared to the saline group. The antidepressant-like effect of doxycycline in the FST was prevented by SNP (1 mg/kg) pretreatment. Additionally, sub-effective doses of doxycycline (30 mg/kg) associated with 1400 W (1 µg/kg) induced an antidepressant-like effect in the FST. Altogether, our data suggest that the reducing NO levels in the prefrontal cortex through inhibition of iNOS could be related to acute doxycycline treatment resulting in rapid antidepressant-like effects in mice.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda J Sales
- Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Sâmia R L Joca
- Department of Biomedicine, Aarhus University, Aarhus, Denmark
| | - Elaine Del Bel
- Departament of Basic and Oral Science, Faculty of Odontology of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil
| | - Francisco S Guimarães
- Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, SP, Brazil.
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Fronza MG, Ferreira BF, Pavan-Silva I, Guimarães FS, Lisboa SF. "NO" Time in Fear Response: Possible Implication of Nitric-Oxide-Related Mechanisms in PTSD. Molecules 2023; 29:89. [PMID: 38202672 PMCID: PMC10779493 DOI: 10.3390/molecules29010089] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/31/2023] [Revised: 12/05/2023] [Accepted: 12/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is a psychiatric condition characterized by persistent fear responses and altered neurotransmitter functioning due to traumatic experiences. Stress predominantly affects glutamate, a neurotransmitter crucial for synaptic plasticity and memory formation. Activation of the N-Methyl-D-Aspartate glutamate receptors (NMDAR) can trigger the formation of a complex comprising postsynaptic density protein-95 (PSD95), the neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS), and its adaptor protein (NOS1AP). This complex is pivotal in activating nNOS and nitric oxide (NO) production, which, in turn, activates downstream pathways that modulate neuronal signaling, including synaptic plasticity/transmission, inflammation, and cell death. The involvement of nNOS and NOS1AP in the susceptibility of PTSD and its comorbidities has been widely shown. Therefore, understanding the interplay between stress, fear, and NO is essential for comprehending the maintenance and progression of PTSD, since NO is involved in fear acquisition and extinction processes. Moreover, NO induces post-translational modifications (PTMs), including S-nitrosylation and nitration, which alter protein function and structure for intracellular signaling. Although evidence suggests that NO influences synaptic plasticity and memory processing, the specific role of PTMs in the pathophysiology of PTSD remains unclear. This review highlights pathways modulated by NO that could be relevant to stress and PTSD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana G. Fronza
- Pharmacology Departament, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 14049-900, Brazil; (M.G.F.); (B.F.F.); (I.P.-S.)
| | - Bruna F. Ferreira
- Pharmacology Departament, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 14049-900, Brazil; (M.G.F.); (B.F.F.); (I.P.-S.)
| | - Isabela Pavan-Silva
- Pharmacology Departament, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 14049-900, Brazil; (M.G.F.); (B.F.F.); (I.P.-S.)
| | - Francisco S. Guimarães
- Pharmacology Departament, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 14049-900, Brazil; (M.G.F.); (B.F.F.); (I.P.-S.)
| | - Sabrina F. Lisboa
- Pharmacology Departament, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 14049-900, Brazil; (M.G.F.); (B.F.F.); (I.P.-S.)
- Biomolecular Sciences Department, School of Pharmaceutical Sciences of Ribeirão Preto, University of São Paulo, São Paulo 14040-903, Brazil
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Briânis RC, Andreotti JP, Moreira FA, Iglesias LP. Interplay between endocannabinoid and endovanilloid mechanisms in fear conditioning. Acta Neuropsychiatr 2023:1-10. [PMID: 37982167 DOI: 10.1017/neu.2023.54] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/21/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE The transient receptor potential cation channel, subfamily V (vanilloid), member 1 (TRPV1) mediates pain perception to thermal and chemical stimuli in peripheral neurons. The cannabinoid receptor type 1 (CB1), on the other hand, promotes analgesia in both the periphery and the brain. TRPV1 and CB1 have also been implicated in learned fear, which involves the association of a previously neutral stimulus with an aversive event. In this review, we elaborate on the interplay between CB1 receptors and TRPV1 channels in learned fear processing. METHODS We conducted a PubMed search for a narrative review on endocannabinoid and endovanilloid mechanisms on fear conditioning. RESULTS TRPV1 and CB1 receptors are activated by a common endogenous agonist, arachidonoyl ethanolamide (anandamide), Moreover, they are expressed in common neuroanatomical structures and recruit converging cellular pathways, acting in concert to modulate fear learning. However, evidence suggests that TRPV1 exerts a facilitatory role, whereas CB1 restrains fear responses. CONCLUSION TRPV1 and CB1 seem to mediate protective and aversive roles of anandamide, respectively. However, more research is needed to achieve a better understanding of how these receptors interact to modulate fear learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rayssa C Briânis
- Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Biological Sciences; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
| | - Julia P Andreotti
- Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Biological Sciences; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
| | - Fabrício A Moreira
- Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Biological Sciences; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
| | - Lia P Iglesias
- Department of Pharmacology, Institute of Biological Sciences; Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, MG, Brazil
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On making (and turning adaptive to) maladaptive aversive memories in laboratory rodents. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 147:105101. [PMID: 36804263 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105101] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/06/2022] [Revised: 02/03/2023] [Accepted: 02/14/2023] [Indexed: 02/18/2023]
Abstract
Fear conditioning and avoidance tasks usually elicit adaptive aversive memories. Traumatic memories are more intense, generalized, inflexible, and resistant to attenuation via extinction- and reconsolidation-based strategies. Inducing and assessing these dysfunctional, maladaptive features in the laboratory are crucial to interrogating posttraumatic stress disorder's neurobiology and exploring innovative treatments. Here we analyze over 350 studies addressing this question in adult rats and mice. There is a growing interest in modeling several qualitative and quantitative memory changes by exposing already stressed animals to freezing- and avoidance-related tests or using a relatively high aversive training magnitude. Other options combine aversive/fearful tasks with post-acquisition or post-retrieval administration of one or more drugs provoking neurochemical or epigenetic alterations reported in the trauma aftermath. It is potentially instructive to integrate these procedures and incorporate the measurement of autonomic and endocrine parameters. Factors to consider when defining the organismic and procedural variables, partially neglected aspects (sex-dependent differences and recent vs. remote data comparison) and suggestions for future research (identifying reliable individual risk and treatment-response predictors) are discussed.
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Neuronal nitric oxide synthase inhibition accelerated the removal of fluoxetine's anxiogenic activity in an animal model of PTSD. Behav Brain Res 2023; 437:114128. [PMID: 36174841 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2022.114128] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/11/2022] [Revised: 09/06/2022] [Accepted: 09/23/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
While SSRIs are the current first-line pharmacotherapies against post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), they suffer from delayed onset of efficacy and low remission rates. One solution is to combine SSRIs with other treatments. Neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS) has been shown to play a role in serotonergic signaling, and there is evidence of synergism between nNOS modulation and SSRIs in models of other psychiatric conditions. Therefore, in this study, we combined subchronic fluoxetine (Flx) with 7-nitroindazole (NI), a selective nNOS inhibitor, and evaluated their efficacy against anxiety-related behavior in an animal model of PTSD. We used the underwater trauma model to induce PTSD in rats. Animals underwent the open field (OFT) and elevated plus maze tests on days 14 (baseline) and 21 (post-treatment) after PTSD induction to assess anxiety-related behaviors. Between the two tests, the rats received daily intraperitoneal injections of 10 mg/kg Flx or saline, and were injected intraperitoneally before the second test with either 15 mg/kg NI or saline. The change in behaviors between the two tests was compared between treatment groups. Individual treatment with both Flx and NI had anxiogenic effects in the OFT. These effects were associated with modest increases in cFOS expression in the hippocampus. Combination therapy with Flx + NI did not show any anxiogenic effects, while causing even higher expression levels of cFOS. In conclusion, addition of NI treatment to subchronic Flx therapy accelerated the abrogation of Flx's anxiogenic properties. Furthermore, hippocampal activity, as evidenced by cFOS expression, was biphasically related to anxiety-related behavior.
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