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Noradrenergic innervations of the medial prefrontal cortex mediate empathy for pain in rats via the α1 and β receptors. Behav Brain Res 2022; 426:113828. [DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2022.113828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2021] [Revised: 03/01/2022] [Accepted: 03/02/2022] [Indexed: 12/26/2022]
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Affective dimensions of pain and region -specific involvement of nitric oxide in the development of empathic hyperalgesia. Sci Rep 2020; 10:10141. [PMID: 32576847 PMCID: PMC7311399 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-020-66930-w] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2020] [Accepted: 06/01/2020] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Empathy for pain depends on the ability to feel, recognize, comprehend and share painful emotional conditions of others. In this study, we investigated the role of NO in a rat model of empathic pain. Pain was socially transferred from the sibling demonstrator (SD) who experienced five formalin injection to the naïve sibling observer (SO) through observation. SO rats received L-NAME (a nonspecific NO synthase inhibitor) or L-arginine (a precursor of NO) prior to observing the SD. Nociception, and concentrations of NO metabolites (NOx) in the serum, left and right hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and cerebellum were evaluated. Nociceptive responses were significantly increased in the pain-observing groups. NOx levels measured 24 h after the last pain observation using the Griess method, were indicative of NOx concentration decreases and increases in the left hippocampus and cerebellum, respectively. There was an increase in tissue concentration of NOx in cerebellum and prefrontal cortex in both pain and observer groups 7 days after the fifth formalin injection. Our results suggest that NO is involved in development of empathic hyperalgesia, and observation of sibling’s pain can change NO metabolites in different brain regions in observer rats.
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Du R, Luo WJ, Geng KW, Li CL, Yu Y, Wei N, Chen J. Empathic Contagious Pain and Consolation in Laboratory Rodents: Species and Sex Comparisons. Neurosci Bull 2020; 36:649-653. [PMID: 31953799 PMCID: PMC7270450 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-020-00465-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2019] [Accepted: 12/08/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Rui Du
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, China
| | - Wen-Jun Luo
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, China
| | - Kai-Wen Geng
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, China
| | - Chun-Li Li
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, People's Liberation Army, Xi'an, 710038, China
| | - Yang Yu
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, People's Liberation Army, Xi'an, 710038, China
| | - Na Wei
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, China
- Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, People's Liberation Army, Xi'an, 710038, China
| | - Jun Chen
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, China.
- Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, People's Liberation Army, Xi'an, 710038, China.
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Zoratto F, Franchi F, Macrì S, Laviola G. Methylphenidate administration promotes sociability and reduces aggression in a mouse model of callousness. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2019; 236:2593-2611. [PMID: 30955107 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-019-05229-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2018] [Accepted: 03/18/2019] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Deficits in empathy constitute a distinctive feature of several psychopathologies, including conduct disorder (CD). The co-occurrence of callous-unemotional (CU) traits, excess rates of aggression and violation of societal norms confers specific risk for adult psychopathy. To date, the off-label use of methylphenidate (MPH) constitutes the drug treatment of choice. OBJECTIVES Herein, we tested the therapeutic potential of MPH in a recently devised mouse model recapitulating the core phenotypic abnormalities of CD. METHODS Two subgroups of BALB/cJ male mice exhibiting opposite profiles of emotional contagion (i.e. socially transmitted adoption of another's emotional states) were investigated for reactive aggression, sociability, attention control, anxiety-related behaviours and locomotor activity, in response to MPH administration (0.0, 3.0 or 6.0 mg/kg). RESULTS Our data indicate that mice selected for excess callousness exhibit phenotypic abnormalities isomorphic to the symptoms of CD: stability of the low emotional contagion trait, increased aggression and reduced sociability. In accordance with our predictions, MPH reduced aggression and increased sociability in callous mice; yet, it failed to restore the low responsiveness to the emotions of a conspecific in pain, isomorphic to CU traits. CONCLUSIONS Although our data support the notion that MPH may contribute to the management of excess aggression in CD patients, additional studies shall identify specific treatments to target the callousness domain. The latter, unaffected by MPH in our experimental model, demands focused consideration whereby it constitutes a specifier associated with a worse prognosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Francesca Zoratto
- Reference Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, I-00161, Rome, Italy.
| | - Francesca Franchi
- Reference Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, I-00161, Rome, Italy
| | - Simone Macrì
- Reference Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, I-00161, Rome, Italy
| | - Giovanni Laviola
- Reference Centre for Behavioural Sciences and Mental Health, Istituto Superiore di Sanità, Viale Regina Elena 299, I-00161, Rome, Italy.
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Towards an animal model of callousness. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2018; 91:121-129. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2016.12.029] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/02/2016] [Revised: 10/14/2016] [Accepted: 12/23/2016] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
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Lü YF, Yang Y, Li CL, Wang Y, Li Z, Chen J. The Locus Coeruleus-Norepinephrine System Mediates Empathy for Pain through Selective Up-Regulation of P2X3 Receptor in Dorsal Root Ganglia in Rats. Front Neural Circuits 2017; 11:66. [PMID: 28979194 PMCID: PMC5611373 DOI: 10.3389/fncir.2017.00066] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2017] [Accepted: 09/01/2017] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Empathy for pain (vicariously felt pain), an ability to feel, recognize, understand and share the painful emotions of others, has been gradually accepted to be a common identity in both humans and rodents, however, the underlying neural and molecular mechanisms are largely unknown. Recently, we have developed a rat model of empathy for pain in which pain can be transferred from a cagemate demonstrator (CD) in pain to a naïve cagemate observer (CO) after 30 min dyadic priming social interaction. The naïve CO rats display both mechanical pain hypersensitivity (hyperalgesia) and enhanced spinal nociception. Chemical lesions of bilateral medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) abolish the empathic pain response completely, suggesting existence of a top-down facilitation system in production of empathy for pain. However, the social transfer of pain was not observed in non-cagemate observer (NCO) after dyadic social interaction with a non-cagemate demonstrator (NCD) in pain. Here we showed that dyadic social interaction with a painful CD resulted in elevation of circulating norepinephrine (NE) and increased neuronal activity in the locus coeruleus (LC) in the CO rats. Meanwhile, CO rats also had over-expression of P2X3, but not TRPV1, in the dorsal root ganglia (DRG). Chemical lesion of the LC-NE neurons by systemic DSP-4 and pharmacological inhibition of central synaptic release of NE by clonidine completely abolished increase in circulating NE and P2X3 receptor expression, as well as the sympathetically-maintained development of empathic mechanical hyperalgesia. However, in the NCO rats, neither the LC-NE neuronal activity nor the P2X3 receptor expression was altered after dyadic social interaction with a painful NCD although the circulating corticosterone and NE were elevated. Finally, in the periphery, both P2X3 receptor and α1 adrenergic receptor were found to be involved in the development of empathic mechanical hyperalgesia. Taken together with our previous results, empathy for pain observed in the CO rats is likely to be mediated by activation of the top-down mPFC-LC/NE-sympathoadrenomedullary (SAM) system that further up-regulates P2X3 receptors in the periphery, however, social stress observed in the NCO rats is mediated by activation of both hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenocortical axis and SAM axis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yun-Fei Lü
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical UniversityXi'an, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, PLAXi'an, China.,Anesthesia and Operation Center, 302 Military HospitalBeijing, China
| | - Yan Yang
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical UniversityXi'an, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, PLAXi'an, China
| | - Chun-Li Li
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical UniversityXi'an, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, PLAXi'an, China
| | - Yan Wang
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical UniversityXi'an, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, PLAXi'an, China
| | - Zhen Li
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical UniversityXi'an, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, PLAXi'an, China
| | - Jun Chen
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, The Fourth Military Medical UniversityXi'an, China.,Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, PLAXi'an, China.,Beijing Institute for Brain DisordersBeijing, China
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Parsons MH, Banks PB, Deutsch MA, Corrigan RF, Munshi-South J. Trends in urban rat ecology: a framework to define the prevailing knowledge gaps and incentives for academia, pest management professionals (PMPs) and public health agencies to participate. JOURNAL OF URBAN ECOLOGY 2017. [DOI: 10.1093/jue/jux005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/26/2022] Open
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Chen J. Empathy for Distress in Humans and Rodents. Neurosci Bull 2017; 34:216-236. [PMID: 28493169 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-017-0135-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 50] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2017] [Accepted: 03/01/2017] [Indexed: 01/10/2023] Open
Abstract
Empathy is traditionally thought to be a unique ability of humans to feel, understand, and share the emotional state of others. However, the notion has been greatly challenged by the emerging discoveries of empathy for pain or distress in rodents. Because empathy is believed to be fundamental to the formation of prosocial, altruistic, and even moral behaviors in social animals and humans, studies associated with decoding the neural circuits and unraveling the underlying molecular and neural mechanisms of empathy for pain or distress in rodents would be very important and encouraging. In this review, the author set out to outline and update the concept of empathy from the evolutionary point of view, and introduce up-to-date advances in the study of empathy and its neural correlates in both humans and rodents. Finally, the author highlights the perspectives and challenges for the further use of rodent models in the study of empathy for pain or distress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun Chen
- Institute for Biomedical Sciences of Pain, Tangdu Hospital, Fourth Military Medical University, Xi'an, 710038, China. .,Key Laboratory of Brain Stress and Behavior, PLA, Xi'an, 710038, China. .,Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Beijing, 100069, China.
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Yang H, Jung S, Seo J, Khalid A, Yoo JS, Park J, Kim S, Moon J, Lee ST, Jung KH, Chu K, Lee SK, Jeon D. Altered behavior and neural activity in conspecific cagemates co-housed with mouse models of brain disorders. Physiol Behav 2016; 163:167-176. [DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2016.05.031] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2016] [Revised: 05/13/2016] [Accepted: 05/16/2016] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Kikusui T, Ishio Y, Nagasawa M, Mogil JS, Mogi K. Early weaning impairs a social contagion of pain-related stretching behavior in mice. Dev Psychobiol 2016; 58:1101-1107. [DOI: 10.1002/dev.21443] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2016] [Accepted: 06/21/2016] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Takefumi Kikusui
- Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology; Azabu University; Sagamihara Kanagawa Japan
| | - Yukino Ishio
- Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology; Azabu University; Sagamihara Kanagawa Japan
| | - Miho Nagasawa
- Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology; Azabu University; Sagamihara Kanagawa Japan
- Department of Physiology; Jichi Medical University; Shimotsuke Tochigi Japan
| | - Jeffrey S. Mogil
- Department of Psychology; McGill University; Montreal Quebec Canada
| | - Kazutaka Mogi
- Department of Animal Science and Biotechnology; Azabu University; Sagamihara Kanagawa Japan
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