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Simon B, Thury AÁ, Török L, Földesi I, Csabafi K, Bagosi Z. The effects of alcohol on anxiety-like, depression-like, and social behavior immediately and a day after binge drinking. Alcohol 2023; 112:17-24. [PMID: 37236432 DOI: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2023.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 05/05/2023] [Accepted: 05/05/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023]
Abstract
The aim of the present study was to determine the effects of binge drinking on anxiety-like, depression-like, and social behavior. The participation of the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) receptors (CRF1 and CRF2) in these effects was also investigated. Therefore, male C57BL/6 mice were exposed to drinking in the dark, a classical animal model for binge drinking, and treated intracerebroventricularly (icv) with selective CRF1 antagonist antalarmin or selective CRF2 antagonist astressin2B, immediately or 24 h after binge drinking. After 30 min, the animals were investigated in an elevated plus-maze test and a forced swim test for anxiety-like and depression-like signs, respectively. In addition, mice were tested in a three-chamber social interaction arena for sociability and preference for social novelty. Immediately after binge drinking, mice exposed to alcohol expressed anxiolytic and antidepressant effects, which were reduced by astressin2B, but not antalarmin. Moreover, mice exposed to alcohol showed increased sociability and preference for social novelty immediately after binge drinking. In contrast, 24 h after binge drinking mice exposed to alcohol presented anxiety-like and depression-like signs, which were reversed by antalarmin, but not astressin2B. However, mice exposed to alcohol did not show any significant change in social interaction after 24 h. The present study demonstrates that alcohol exerts different effects on anxiety-like, depression-like, and social behavior immediately and a day after binge drinking, and that the anxiolytic and antidepressant effects produced by binge drinking are mediated by CRF2, whereas the anxiety-like and depression-like signs observed the next day are promoted by CRF1.
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Affiliation(s)
- Balázs Simon
- Department of Pathophysiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical School, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary.
| | - Attila Ágoston Thury
- Department of Pathophysiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical School, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - László Török
- Department of Traumatology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical School, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Imre Földesi
- Institute of Laboratory Medicine, Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical School, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Krisztina Csabafi
- Department of Pathophysiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical School, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
| | - Zsolt Bagosi
- Department of Pathophysiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Medical School, University of Szeged, Szeged, Hungary
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Bagosi Z, Megyesi K, Ayman J, Rudersdorf H, Ayaz MK, Csabafi K. The Role of Corticotropin-Releasing Factor (CRF) and CRF-Related Peptides in the Social Behavior of Rodents. Biomedicines 2023; 11:2217. [PMID: 37626714 PMCID: PMC10452353 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines11082217] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2023] [Revised: 08/02/2023] [Accepted: 08/05/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Since the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) was isolated from an ovine brain, a growing family of CRF-related peptides has been discovered. Today, the mammalian CRF system consists of four ligands (CRF, urocortin 1 (Ucn1), urocortin 2 (Ucn2), and urocortin 3 (Ucn3)); two receptors (CRF receptor type 1 (CRF1) and CRF receptor type 2 (CRF2)); and a CRF-binding protein (CRF-BP). Besides the regulation of the neuroendocrine, autonomic, and behavioral responses to stress, CRF and CRF-related peptides are also involved in different aspects of social behavior. In the present study, we review the experiments that investigated the role of CRF and the urocortins involved in the social behavior of rats, mice, and voles, with a special focus on sociability and preference for social novelty, as well as the ability for social recognition, discrimination, and memory. In general, these experiments demonstrate that CRF, Ucn1, Ucn2, and Ucn3 play important, but distinct roles in the social behavior of rodents, and that they are mediated by CRF1 and/or CRF2. In addition, we suggest the possible brain regions and pathways that express CRF and CRF-related peptides and that might be involved in social interactions. Furthermore, we also emphasize the differences between the species, strains, and sexes that make translation of these roles from rodents to humans difficult.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zsolt Bagosi
- Department of Pathophysiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi School of Medicine, University of Szeged, 6720 Szeged, Hungary; (H.R.); (M.K.A.); (K.C.)
| | - Kíra Megyesi
- Interdisciplinary Center for Excellence, Clinical Research Competence Center, Albert Szent-Györgyi School of Medicine, University of Szeged, 6720 Szeged, Hungary;
| | - Jázmin Ayman
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Albert Szent-Györgyi Albert School of Medicine, University of Szeged, 6720 Szeged, Hungary;
| | - Hanna Rudersdorf
- Department of Pathophysiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi School of Medicine, University of Szeged, 6720 Szeged, Hungary; (H.R.); (M.K.A.); (K.C.)
| | - Maieda Khan Ayaz
- Department of Pathophysiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi School of Medicine, University of Szeged, 6720 Szeged, Hungary; (H.R.); (M.K.A.); (K.C.)
| | - Krisztina Csabafi
- Department of Pathophysiology, Albert Szent-Györgyi School of Medicine, University of Szeged, 6720 Szeged, Hungary; (H.R.); (M.K.A.); (K.C.)
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Neuwirth LS, Verrengia MT, Harikinish-Murrary ZI, Orens JE, Lopez OE. Under or Absent Reporting of Light Stimuli in Testing of Anxiety-Like Behaviors in Rodents: The Need for Standardization. Front Mol Neurosci 2022; 15:912146. [PMID: 36061362 PMCID: PMC9428565 DOI: 10.3389/fnmol.2022.912146] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 06/21/2022] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Behavioral neuroscience tests such as the Light/Dark Test, the Open Field Test, the Elevated Plus Maze Test, and the Three Chamber Social Interaction Test have become both essential and widely used behavioral tests for transgenic and pre-clinical models for drug screening and testing. However, as fast as the field has evolved and the contemporaneous involvement of technology, little assessment of the literature has been done to ensure that these behavioral neuroscience tests that are crucial to pre-clinical testing have well-controlled ethological motivation by the use of lighting (i.e., Lux). In the present review paper, N = 420 manuscripts were examined from 2015 to 2019 as a sample set (i.e., n = ~20–22 publications per year) and it was found that only a meager n = 50 publications (i.e., 11.9% of the publications sampled) met the criteria for proper anxiogenic and anxiolytic Lux reported. These findings illustrate a serious concern that behavioral neuroscience papers are not being vetted properly at the journal review level and are being released into the literature and public domain making it difficult to assess the quality of the science being reported. This creates a real need for standardizing the use of Lux in all publications on behavioral neuroscience techniques within the field to ensure that contributions are meaningful, avoid unnecessary duplication, and ultimately would serve to create a more efficient process within the pre-clinical screening/testing for drugs that serve as anxiolytic compounds that would prove more useful than what prior decades of work have produced. It is suggested that improving the standardization of the use and reporting of Lux in behavioral neuroscience tests and the standardization of peer-review processes overseeing the proper documentation of these methodological approaches in manuscripts could serve to advance pre-clinical testing for effective anxiolytic drugs. This report serves to highlight this concern and proposes strategies to proactively remedy them as the field moves forward for decades to come.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorenz S. Neuwirth
- Department of Psychology, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
- SUNY Neuroscience Research Institute, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
- *Correspondence: Lorenz S. Neuwirth
| | - Michael T. Verrengia
- Department of Psychology, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
- SUNY Neuroscience Research Institute, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
| | - Zachary I. Harikinish-Murrary
- Department of Psychology, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
- SUNY Neuroscience Research Institute, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
| | - Jessica E. Orens
- Department of Psychology, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
- SUNY Neuroscience Research Institute, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
| | - Oscar E. Lopez
- Department of Psychology, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
- SUNY Neuroscience Research Institute, SUNY Old Westbury, Old Westbury, NY, United States
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4
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Nass SR, Lark ARS, Hahn YK, McLane VD, Ihrig TM, Contois L, Napier TC, Knapp PE, Hauser KF. HIV-1 Tat and morphine decrease murine inter-male social interactions and associated oxytocin levels in the prefrontal cortex, amygdala, and hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus. Horm Behav 2021; 133:105008. [PMID: 34171549 PMCID: PMC8277758 DOI: 10.1016/j.yhbeh.2021.105008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2020] [Revised: 04/11/2021] [Accepted: 05/22/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Many persons infected with HIV-1 (PWH) and opioid-dependent individuals experience deficits in sociability that interfere with daily living. Sociability is regulated by the prefrontal cortico-hippocampal-amygdalar circuit. Within this circuit HIV-1 trans-activator of transcription (HIV-1 Tat) and opioids can increase dendritic pathology and alter neuronal firing. Changes in sociability are also associated with dysregulation of hypothalamic neuropeptides such as oxytocin or corticotropin releasing factor (CRF) in the prefrontal cortico-hippocampal-amygdalar circuit. Accordingly, we hypothesized that the interaction of HIV-1 Tat and morphine would impair inter-male social interactions and disrupt oxytocin and CRF within the PFC and associated circuitry. Male mice were exposed to HIV-1 Tat for 8 weeks and administered saline or escalating doses of morphine twice daily (s.c.) during the last 2 weeks of HIV-1 Tat exposure. Tat attenuated aggressive interactions with an unknown intruder, whereas morphine decreased both non-aggressive and aggressive social interactions in the resident-intruder test. However, there was no effect of Tat or morphine on non-reciprocal interactions in the social interaction and novelty tests. Tat, but not morphine, decreased oxytocin levels in the PFC and amygdala, whereas both Tat and morphine decreased the percentage of oxytocin-immunoreactive neurons in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN). In Tat(+) or morphine-exposed mice, regional levels of CRF and oxytocin correlated with alterations in behavior in the social interaction and novelty tests. Overall, decreased expression of oxytocin in the prefrontal cortico-hippocampal-amygdalar circuit is associated with morphine- and HIV-Tat-induced deficits in social behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara R Nass
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0613, USA
| | - Arianna R S Lark
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0613, USA
| | - Yun K Hahn
- Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0709, USA
| | - Virginia D McLane
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0613, USA
| | - Therese M Ihrig
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0613, USA
| | - Liangru Contois
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0613, USA
| | - T Celeste Napier
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL 60612-2847, USA; Center for Compulsive Behavior and Addiction, Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL 60612-3818, USA
| | - Pamela E Knapp
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0613, USA; Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0709, USA; Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0059, USA
| | - Kurt F Hauser
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0613, USA; Department of Anatomy and Neurobiology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0709, USA; Institute for Drug and Alcohol Studies, Virginia Commonwealth University, Medical College of Virginia (MCV) Campus, Richmond, VA 23298-0059, USA.
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5
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Piccin A, Contarino A. The CRF 1 receptor mediates social behavior deficits induced by opiate withdrawal. J Neurosci Res 2020; 100:309-321. [PMID: 32725663 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.24697] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/05/2020] [Revised: 06/18/2020] [Accepted: 07/05/2020] [Indexed: 02/01/2023]
Abstract
Poor sociability and aggressive behavior are key clinical features of opioid use disorders. The corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) system may mediate behavioral effects of substances of abuse but its implication in substance-induced social behavior deficits and outward-directed hostility remains largely unknown. CRF signaling is mediated by two receptor types, termed CRF1 and CRF2 . The present study aimed at understanding the role for the CRF1 receptor in social and aggressive behavior induced by withdrawal from repeated opiate administration. Thus, wild-type (CRF1 +/+), CRF1 receptor heterozygous (CRF1 +/-), and null mutant (CRF1 -/-) female and male mice were treated with saline or escalating doses of morphine (20-100 mg/kg, i.p.) during six consecutive days and tested in the three-chamber task for sociability (i.e., preference for an unfamiliar same-sex conspecific vs. an object) 7 days after the last administration. Moreover, aggressive biting behavior toward the unfamiliar conspecific was assessed during the three-chamber test. Opiate withdrawal disrupted sociability in CRF1 +/+ and CRF1 +/-, but not in CRF1 -/-, female mice, without affecting aggressive biting behavior in any genotype. In contrast, opiate withdrawal did not affect sociability but increased aggressive biting behavior in male mice, independently of CRF1 receptor-deficiency. Nevertheless, in opiate-withdrawn CRF1 +/+, but not CRF1 +/- and CRF1 -/-, male mice, sociability directly correlated with aggressive biting behavior, suggesting a role for the CRF1 receptor in hostility-linked social approach. These findings demonstrate the implication of the CRF1 receptor in social behavior deficits associated with repeated opiate administration and withdrawal, revealing a new potential target for the treatment of opioid use disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Piccin
- Université de Bordeaux, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France.,CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
| | - Angelo Contarino
- Université de Bordeaux, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France.,CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
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6
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Piccin A, Contarino A. Sex-linked roles of the CRF 1 and the CRF 2 receptor in social behavior. J Neurosci Res 2020; 98:1561-1574. [PMID: 32468598 DOI: 10.1002/jnr.24629] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/10/2019] [Revised: 03/17/2020] [Accepted: 04/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Dysfunctional social behavior is a major clinical feature of mood, anxiety, autism spectrum, and substance-related disorders, and may dramatically contribute to the poor outcome of these diseases. Nevertheless, the mechanisms underlying social behavior deficits are still largely unknown. The corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) system, a major coordinator of the stress response, has been hypothesized to modulate social behavior. CRF signaling is mediated by two receptor types, termed CRF1 and CRF2 . Using the three-chamber task for sociability (i.e., preference for an unfamiliar conspecific vs. an object), this study demonstrates that CRF2 receptor null mutation (CRF2 -/-) reduces sociability in female mice but increases it in male mice. Both female and male CRF2 -/- mice display a preference for social odor cues over neutral cues, indicating that sex- and CRF2 receptor-dependent sociability is not due to altered olfaction or impaired social cues discrimination. Moreover, treatment with the CRF1 receptor-preferring antagonist, antalarmin, consistently induces sociability in non-social mice but disrupts it in social mice, independently of CRF2 receptor deficiency. Sex, CRF2 receptor deficiency, or antalarmin affect locomotor activity during the three-chamber test. However, throughout the study CRF1 and CRF2 receptor-linked sociability is independent of locomotor activity. The present findings highlight major functions for the CRF system in the regulation of social behavior. Moreover, they provide initial evidence of sex-linked roles for the CRF1 and the CRF2 receptor, emphasizing the importance of sex as a major biological variable to be taken into consideration in preclinical and clinical studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alessandro Piccin
- INCIA, UMR 5287, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.,CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
| | - Angelo Contarino
- INCIA, UMR 5287, Université de Bordeaux, Bordeaux, France.,CNRS, INCIA, UMR 5287, Bordeaux, France
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7
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Guo Q, Wang L, Yuan W, Li L, Zhang J, Hou W, Yang Y, Zhang X, Cai W, Ma H, Xun Y, Jia R, He Z, Tai F. Different effects of chronic social defeat on social behavior and the brain CRF system in adult male C57 mice with different susceptibilities. Behav Brain Res 2020; 384:112553. [PMID: 32057826 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2020.112553] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/30/2019] [Revised: 02/09/2020] [Accepted: 02/10/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
Chronic social defeat stress (CSDS) has been found to produce different impacts on anxiety-like behaviors, spatial cognitive function and memory in rodents with different susceptibilities. However, the impacts of chronic social defeat on social behaviors in adult male mice with different susceptibilities to social defeat and the underlying mechanisms in the brain remain unclear. In the present study, we found that ten days of social defeat reduced the tendency of susceptible adult male C57 mice to approach an unfamiliar individual and increased their avoidance of an unfamiliar CD-1 mouse but had no effects on resilient individuals. In addition, CSDS enhanced anxiety-like behavior in susceptible animals, but produced no effects in the resilient group. Meanwhile, CSDS increased the number of corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF)-positive neurons in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus and CRF-R2-positive neurons in the accumbens nucleus shell in both resilient and susceptible animals. CSDS increased the number of CRF-R1-positive neurons and CRF-R1 mRNA expression in the prelimbic cortex (PrL) and the number of CRF-R2-positive neurons in the basolateral amygdala, but reduced the number of CRF-R2-positive neurons and mRNA expression in the PrL in susceptible animals. Therefore, the different effects of CSDS on sociability and anxiety-like behavior in mice with different susceptibilities may be associated with region- and type-specific alterations in CRF receptor levels. These findings help us understand the underlying mechanism by which social stress affects emotion and social behavior and provides an important basis for the treatment of disorders of social and emotional behavior caused by social stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Qianqian Guo
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Limin Wang
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Wei Yuan
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Laifu Li
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Jing Zhang
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Wenjuan Hou
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Yang Yang
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Xueni Zhang
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Wenqi Cai
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Huan Ma
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - YuFeng Xun
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Rui Jia
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China
| | - Zhixiong He
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China.
| | - Fadao Tai
- Institute of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, College of Life Sciences, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China; Cognition Neuroscience and Learning Division, Key Laboratory of Modern Teaching Technology, Ministry of Education, Shaanxi Normal University, Xi'an, 710062, China.
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8
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Burns P, Bowditch J, McFadyen J, Loiacono R, Albiston AL, Pham V, Chai SY. Social behaviour is altered in the insulin-regulated aminopeptidase knockout mouse. Behav Brain Res 2019; 376:112150. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2019.112150] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2019] [Revised: 08/06/2019] [Accepted: 08/12/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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9
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Wagner S. Urocortins and their unfolding role in mammalian social behavior. Cell Tissue Res 2018; 375:133-142. [PMID: 30465153 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-018-2962-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2018] [Accepted: 11/07/2018] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
The corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) system is well known for its major role in coordinating the endocrine, autonomic and behavioral responses to stress. These functions have been shown to be mediated mainly by the binding of the CRF neuropeptide to its specific receptor CRFR1. Yet, the CRF system comprises several more neuropeptides, including the three urocortins, UCN1, UCN2 and UCN3, of which the latter two bind specifically to a distinct receptor-CRFR2. Unlike the brain-wide abundant expression of CRF and CRFR1, the brain expression of the urocortins and CRFR2 is rather restricted and seems to be focused in limbic areas associated with social behavior. Here, we will review accumulating evidence from recent studies that unfold the role of UCN2 and UCN3 in regulating mammalian social behavior, via activation of CRFR2.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shlomo Wagner
- Sagol Department of Neurobiology, the Integrated Brain and Behavior Research Center (IBBR), Faculty of Natural Sciences, University of Haifa, Mt. Carmel, 3498838, Haifa, Israel.
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