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Li DC, Hinton EA, Guo J, Knight KA, Sequeira MK, Wynne ME, Dighe NM, Gourley SL. Social experience in adolescence shapes prefrontal cortex structure and function in adulthood. Mol Psychiatry 2024:10.1038/s41380-024-02540-6. [PMID: 38580810 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-024-02540-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/27/2023] [Revised: 03/15/2024] [Accepted: 03/18/2024] [Indexed: 04/07/2024]
Abstract
During adolescence, the prefrontal cortex (PFC) undergoes dramatic reorganization. PFC development is profoundly influenced by the social environment, disruptions to which may prime the emergence of psychopathology across the lifespan. We investigated the neurobehavioral consequences of isolation experienced in adolescence in mice, and in particular, the long-term consequences that were detectable even despite normalization of the social milieu. Isolation produced biases toward habit-like behavior at the expense of flexible goal seeking, plus anhedonic-like reward deficits. Behavioral phenomena were accompanied by neuronal dendritic spine over-abundance and hyper-excitability in the ventromedial PFC (vmPFC), which was necessary for the expression of isolation-induced habits and sufficient to trigger behavioral inflexibility in socially reared controls. Isolation activated cytoskeletal regulatory pathways otherwise suppressed during adolescence, such that repression of constituent elements prevented long-term isolation-induced neurosequelae. Altogether, our findings unveil an adolescent critical period and multi-model mechanism by which social experiences facilitate prefrontal cortical maturation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dan C Li
- Medical Scientist Training Program, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
| | - Elizabeth A Hinton
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Jidong Guo
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | | | - Michelle K Sequeira
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Meghan E Wynne
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Niharika M Dighe
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA
| | - Shannon L Gourley
- Emory National Primate Research Center, Emory University, Atlanta, GA, USA.
- Department of Pediatrics, Children's Healthcare of Atlanta, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral sciences, Emory University School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA, USA.
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Sears RM, Andrade EC, Samels SB, Laughlin LC, Moloney DM, Wilson DA, Alwood MR, Moscarello JM, Cain CK. Devaluation of response-produced safety signals reveals circuits for goal-directed versus habitual avoidance in dorsal striatum. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2024.02.07.579321. [PMID: 38370659 PMCID: PMC10871355 DOI: 10.1101/2024.02.07.579321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/20/2024]
Abstract
Active avoidance responses (ARs) are instrumental behaviors that prevent harm. Adaptive ARs may contribute to active coping, whereas maladaptive avoidance habits are implicated in anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorders. The AR learning mechanism has remained elusive, as successful avoidance trials produce no obvious reinforcer. We used a novel outcome-devaluation procedure in rats to show that ARs are positively reinforced by response-produced feedback (FB) cues that develop into safety signals during training. Males were sensitive to FB-devaluation after moderate training, but not overtraining, consistent with a transition from goal-directed to habitual avoidance. Using chemogenetics and FB-devaluation, we also show that goal-directed vs. habitual ARs depend on dorsomedial vs. dorsolateral striatum, suggesting a significant overlap between the mechanisms of avoidance and rewarded instrumental behavior. Females were insensitive to FB-devaluation due to a remarkable context-dependence of counterconditioning. However, degrading the AR-FB contingency suggests that both sexes rely on safety signals to perform goal-directed ARs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robert M Sears
- Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, 1 Park Avenue, 8 Floor, New York, NY 10016
- Emotional Brain Institute, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962
- These authors contributed equally
| | - Erika C Andrade
- Emotional Brain Institute, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962
- These authors contributed equally
| | - Shanna B Samels
- Emotional Brain Institute, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962
| | - Lindsay C Laughlin
- Emotional Brain Institute, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962
| | - Danielle M Moloney
- Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, 1 Park Avenue, 8 Floor, New York, NY 10016
| | - Donald A Wilson
- Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, 1 Park Avenue, 8 Floor, New York, NY 10016
- Emotional Brain Institute, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962
| | - Matthew R Alwood
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Texas A&M Institute for Neuroscience, Texas A&M University, 301 Old Main, TAMU MS 3474, College Station, TX 77843-3474
| | - Justin M Moscarello
- Department of Psychological & Brain Sciences, Texas A&M Institute for Neuroscience, Texas A&M University, 301 Old Main, TAMU MS 3474, College Station, TX 77843-3474
| | - Christopher K Cain
- Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, NYU Grossman School of Medicine, 1 Park Avenue, 8 Floor, New York, NY 10016
- Emotional Brain Institute, Nathan Kline Institute for Psychiatric Research, 140 Old Orangeburg Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962
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3
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Zhou X, Meng Y, Li J, Shen X. Childhood adversity and mind wandering: the mediating role of cognitive flexibility and habitual tendencies. Eur J Psychotraumatol 2024; 15:2301844. [PMID: 38197454 PMCID: PMC10783837 DOI: 10.1080/20008066.2024.2301844] [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: 06/20/2023] [Accepted: 12/24/2023] [Indexed: 01/11/2024] Open
Abstract
ABSTRACTBackground: Initial evidence proposes that exposure to childhood adversity may induce avoidance or withdrawal behaviour. However, it remains unclear whether childhood adversity results in avoidance from externally directed thinking to both deliberate and spontaneous mind wandering, i.e. intentionally or unintentionally diverting attention from ongoing task to task-independent thoughts.Objective: To assess the associations between childhood adversity, and mind wandering, and to evaluate the mediating roles of cognitive flexibility, and habit tendencies.Methods: A total of 601 Chinese subjects (378 females, Mage = 19.37) participated in the current study. The participants completed a series of questionnaires including demographics, childhood maltreatment, cognitive flexibility, habitual tendencies, and mind wandering.Results: Hierarchical regression analyses showed childhood adversity, the control facet of cognitive flexibility, and the automaticity facet of habitual tendencies had significant contributions to deliberate mind wandering (β = 0.10, β = -0.40, and β = 0.06) and spontaneous mind wandering (β = 0.09, β = -0.28, and β = 0.07). Serial mediation analyses revealed that the control and automaticity partially mediated associations between childhood adversity and mind wandering (deliberate mind wandering: 95% CIs = [0.037 0.078], and spontaneous mind wandering: 95% CIs = [0.023, 0.062]).Conclusions: The findings underscore the pivotal role of mediators in delineating the relationship between childhood adversity and mind wandering in everyday life. Interventions geared toward augmenting the control component of cognitive flexibility and regulating the automatic component of habitual tendencies show the potential to ameliorate the propensity of individuals affected by childhood adversity to disengage cognitively from the present moment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xinqi Zhou
- Institute of Brain and Psychological Sciences, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China
| | - Yayun Meng
- School of Psychology, Central China Normal University, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China
| | - Jiarui Li
- Sichuan Southwest Vocational College of Civil Aviation, Chengdu, People’s Republic of China
| | - Xi Shen
- Center for Mental Health Education, Faculty of Psychology, Southwest University, Chongqing, People’s Republic of China
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4
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Xu Y, Harms MB, Green CS, Wilson RC, Pollak SD. Childhood unpredictability and the development of exploration. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2023; 120:e2303869120. [PMID: 38011553 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2303869120] [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: 03/08/2023] [Accepted: 09/12/2023] [Indexed: 11/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Early in development, the process of exploration helps children gather new information that fosters learning about the world. Yet, it is unclear how childhood experiences may influence the way humans approach new learning. What influences decisions to exploit known, familiar options versus trying a novel alternative? We found that childhood unpredictability, characterized by unpredictable caregiving and unstable living environments, was associated with reduced exploratory behavior. This effect holds while controlling for individual differences, including anxiety and stress. Individuals who perceived their childhoods as unpredictable explored less and were instead more likely to repeat previous choices (habitual responding). They were also more sensitive to uncertainty than to potential rewards, even when the familiar options yielded lower rewards. We examined these effects across multiple task contexts and via both in-person (N = 78) and online replication (N = 84) studies among 10- to 13-y-olds. Results are discussed in terms of the potential cascading effects of unpredictable environments on the development of decision-making and the effects of early experience on subsequent learning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuyan Xu
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706
| | - Madeline B Harms
- Department of Psychology, University of Minnesota Duluth, Duluth, MN 55812
| | - C Shawn Green
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706
| | - Robert C Wilson
- Department of Psychology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85721
- Cognitive Science Program, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ 85716
| | - Seth D Pollak
- Department of Psychology, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI 53706
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Franco CY, Knowlton BJ. Effects of early-life stress on probabilistic reversal learning and response perseverance in young adults. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2023; 205:107839. [PMID: 37805120 PMCID: PMC10841364 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2023.107839] [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: 03/30/2023] [Revised: 09/08/2023] [Accepted: 10/04/2023] [Indexed: 10/09/2023]
Abstract
Early life stress (ELS), including experiences with abuse and neglect, are related to several negative health outcomes in adulthood. One area that has received attention is the increased rate of substance abuse disorder in individuals who had experienced ELS. Given the critical role habitual behavior in the development of substance abuse, ELS may affect the trajectory of neural development such that habitual responding is more dominant than in individuals who did not experience ELS. Here, we examine learning of a probabilistic classification task (the Weather Prediction Task) in healthy young adults who reported significant ELS and those that did not. This task can be learned in a declarative, model-based manner, or in a more habitual, stimulus-response manner. Participants learned to choose the outcome (sun or rain) that was probabilistically associated with each cue combination through reinforcement on each trial. After 100 trials, the probabilities were reversed, and we conceptualized habitual behavior as perseverating responses based on the old probabilities. We also collected information about subjective socio-economic status (sSES), anxiety, depression, and substance use from participants. Using multiple regression, we found that our measure of habitual responding was correlated with reported alcohol use, suggesting that our measure of habit has validity for health behaviors. Furthermore, we found that some forms of early life stress led to greater response perseverance after contingencies were reversed. Overall, the results suggest that childhood adversity may contribute to the development of habit.
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Affiliation(s)
- Corinna Y Franco
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Barbara J Knowlton
- Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
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6
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Giovanniello JR, Paredes N, Wiener A, Ramírez-Armenta K, Oragwam C, Uwadia HO, Lim K, Nnamdi G, Wang A, Sehgal M, Reis FM, Sias AC, Silva AJ, Adhikari A, Malvaez M, Wassum KM. A dual-pathway architecture enables chronic stress to promote habit formation. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2023:2023.10.03.560731. [PMID: 37873076 PMCID: PMC10592885 DOI: 10.1101/2023.10.03.560731] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/25/2023]
Abstract
Chronic stress can change how we learn and, thus, how we make decisions by promoting the formation of inflexible, potentially maladaptive, habits. Here we investigated the neuronal circuit mechanisms that enable this. Using a multifaceted approach in male and female mice, we reveal a dual pathway, amygdala-striatal, neuronal circuit architecture by which a recent history of chronic stress shapes learning to disrupt flexible goal-directed behavior in favor of inflexible habits. Chronic stress inhibits activity of basolateral amygdala projections to the dorsomedial striatum to impede the action-outcome learning that supports flexible, goal-directed decisions. Stress also increases activity in direct central amygdala projections to the dorsomedial striatum to promote the formation of rigid, inflexible habits. Thus, stress exerts opposing effects on two amygdala-striatal pathways to promote premature habit formation. These data provide neuronal circuit insights into how chronic stress shapes learning and decision making, and help understand how stress can lead to the disrupted decision making and pathological habits that characterize substance use disorders and other psychiatric conditions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Anna Wiener
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | | | | | | | - Kayla Lim
- Dept. of Biological Chemistry, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Gift Nnamdi
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Alicia Wang
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Megha Sehgal
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | | | - Ana C Sias
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
| | - Alcino J Silva
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
- Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Avishek Adhikari
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
- Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | | | - Kate M Wassum
- Dept. of Psychology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095
- Brain Research Institute, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
- Integrative Center for Learning and Memory, University of California Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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7
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Giovanniello J, Bravo-Rivera C, Rosenkranz A, Matthew Lattal K. Stress, associative learning, and decision-making. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2023; 204:107812. [PMID: 37598745 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2023.107812] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Revised: 06/02/2023] [Accepted: 08/17/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023]
Abstract
Exposure to acute and chronic stress has significant effects on the basic mechanisms of associative learning and memory. Stress can both impair and enhance associative learning depending on type, intensity, and persistence of the stressor, the subject's sex, the context that the stress and behavior is experienced in, and the type of associative learning taking place. In some cases, stress can cause or exacerbate the maladaptive behavior that underlies numerous psychiatric conditions including anxiety disorders, obsessive-compulsive disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance use disorder, and others. Therefore, it is critical to understand how the varied effects of stress, which may normally facilitate adaptive behavior, can also become maladaptive and even harmful. In this review, we highlight several findings of associative learning and decision-making processes that are affected by stress in both human and non-human subjects and how they are related to one another. An emerging theme from this work is that stress biases behavior towards less flexible strategies that may reflect a cautious insensitivity to changing contingencies. We consider how this inflexibility has been observed in different associative learning procedures and suggest that a goal for the field should be to clarify how factors such as sex and previous experience influence this inflexibility.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Christian Bravo-Rivera
- Departments of Psychiatry and Anatomy & Neurobiology, University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine, San Juan, PR 00935, United States.
| | - Amiel Rosenkranz
- Center for Neurobiology of Stress Resilience and Psychiatric Disorders, Chicago Medical School, Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science, United States.
| | - K Matthew Lattal
- Department of Behavioral Neuroscience, Oregon Health & Science University, United States.
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Zühlsdorff K, López-Cruz L, Dutcher EG, Jones JA, Pama C, Sawiak S, Khan S, Milton AL, Robbins TW, Bullmore ET, Dalley JW. Sex-dependent effects of early life stress on reinforcement learning and limbic cortico-striatal functional connectivity. Neurobiol Stress 2023; 22:100507. [PMID: 36505960 PMCID: PMC9731893 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2022.100507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2022] [Revised: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 11/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a stress-related condition hypothesized to involve aberrant reinforcement learning (RL) with positive and negative stimuli. The present study investigated whether repeated early maternal separation (REMS) stress, a procedure widely recognized to cause depression-like behaviour, affects how subjects learn from positive and negative feedback. The REMS procedure was implemented by separating male and female rats from their dam for 6 h each day from post-natal day 5-19. Control rat offspring were left undisturbed during this period. Rats were tested as adults for behavioral flexibility and feedback sensitivity on a probabilistic reversal learning task. A computational approach based on RL theory was used to derive latent behavioral variables related to reward learning and flexibility. To assess underlying brain substrates, a seed-based functional MRI connectivity analysis was applied both before and after an additional adulthood stressor in control and REMS rats. Female but not male rats exposed to REMS stress showed increased response 'stickiness' (repeated responses regardless of reward outcome). Following repeated adulthood stress, reduced functional connectivity from the basolateral amygdala (BLA) to the dorsolateral striatum (DLS), cingulate cortex (Cg), and anterior insula (AI) cortex was observed in females. By contrast, control male rats exposed to the second stressor showed impaired learning from negative feedback (i.e., non-reward) and reduced functional connectivity from the BLA to the DLS and AI compared to maternally separated males. RL in male rats exposed to REMS was unaffected. The fMRI data further revealed that connectivity between the mOFC and other prefrontal cortical and subcortical structures was positively correlated with response 'stickiness'. These findings reveal differences in how females and males respond to early life adversity and subsequent stress. These effects may be mediated by functional divergence in resting-state connectivity between the basolateral amygdala and fronto-striatal brain regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Zühlsdorff
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Corresponding author. Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing St, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK.
| | - Laura López-Cruz
- Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics, The Open University, Walton Hall, Kents Hill, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA, UK
| | - Ethan G. Dutcher
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Jolyon A. Jones
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Claudia Pama
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Stephen Sawiak
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Box 65, Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Shahid Khan
- GlaxoSmithKline Research & Development, Stevenage, UK
| | - Amy L. Milton
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Trevor W. Robbins
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Edward T. Bullmore
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Department of Psychiatry, Herchel Smith Building for Brain and Mind Sciences, Forvie Site, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ, UK
| | - Jeffrey W. Dalley
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Department of Psychiatry, Herchel Smith Building for Brain and Mind Sciences, Forvie Site, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ, UK
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Gadberry TM, Goodman J, Packard MG. Chronic corticosterone administration in adolescence enhances dorsolateral striatum-dependent learning in adulthood. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:970304. [PMID: 36035016 PMCID: PMC9413048 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.970304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2022] [Accepted: 07/28/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Previous evidence indicates a link between early life stress (ELS) in humans and a predisposition to psychopathologies that are characterized in part by maladaptive habitual behaviors. Stress and anxiety influence the relative use of mammalian memory systems implicated in these disorders. Specifically, cognitive memory functions of the hippocampus are typically impaired by stress/anxiety, whereas habit memory functions of the dorsolateral striatum (DLS) are enhanced. A stress/anxiety bias toward habit memory has largely been demonstrated in adult rodents and humans, and the effects of ELS on the later use of DLS-dependent habit memory in adult rodents have not been extensively examined. The present study addressed this question by chronically elevating corticosterone (CORT) during adolescence, and investigated the effects of this treatment on DLS-dependent habit learning in adulthood. In experiment 1, adolescent rats received a single daily injection of either CORT (5 mg/kg) or vehicle (cVEH) over 5 days and then matured undisturbed before training as adults in a DLS-dependent water plus-maze task. Rats administered CORT injections during adolescence displayed a strong trend toward enhanced learning during adulthood relative to vehicle-treated rats. Adolescent CORT administration also increased anxiety-like behavior in adulthood in an elevated plus-maze. In experiment 2, adolescent CORT administration enhanced task acquisition in adulthood, and this effect was blocked by concurrent administration of the glucocorticoid antagonist mifepristone (30 mg/kg). Taken together, these findings suggest that chronic elevation of glucocorticoids during adolescence are sufficient to facilitate habit learning in adulthood, and indicate that glucocorticoid function may be a potential underlying mechanism by which ELS influences subsequent habitual behaviors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ty M. Gadberry
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
| | - Jarid Goodman
- Department of Psychology, Delaware State University, Dover, DE, United States
| | - Mark G. Packard
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Texas A&M Institute for Neuroscience, Texas A&M University, College Station, TX, United States
- *Correspondence: Mark G. Packard,
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