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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] [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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Tryon SC, Sakamoto IM, Kaigler KF, Gee G, Turner J, Bartley K, Fadel JR, Wilson MA. ChAT::Cre transgenic rats show sex-dependent altered fear behaviors, ultrasonic vocalizations and cholinergic marker expression. GENES, BRAIN, AND BEHAVIOR 2023; 22:e12837. [PMID: 36636833 PMCID: PMC9994175 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12837] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/26/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 01/03/2023] [Indexed: 01/14/2023]
Abstract
The cholinergic system is a critical regulator of Pavlovian fear learning and extinction. As such, we have begun investigating the cholinergic system's involvement in individual differences in cued fear extinction using a transgenic ChAT::Cre rat model. The current study extends behavioral phenotyping of a transgenic ChAT::Cre rat line by examining both freezing behavior and ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) during a Pavlovian cued fear learning and extinction paradigm. Freezing, 22 kHz USVs, and 50 kHz USVs were compared between male and female transgenic ChAT::Cre+ rats and their wildtype (Cre-) littermates during fear learning, contextual and cue-conditioned fear recall, cued fear extinction, and generalization to a novel tone. During contextual and cued fear recall ChAT::Cre+ rats froze slightly more than their Cre- littermates, and displayed significant sex differences in contextual and cue-conditioned freezing, 22 kHz USVs, and 50 kHz USVs. Females showed more freezing than males in fear recall trials, but fewer 22 kHz distress calls during fear learning and recall. Females also produced more 50 kHz USVs during exposure to the testing chambers prior to tone (or shock) presentation compared with males, but this effect was blunted in ChAT::Cre+ females. Corroborating previous studies, ChAT::Cre+ transgenic rats overexpressed vesicular acetylcholine transporter immunolabeling in basal forebrain, striatum, basolateral amygdala, and hippocampus, but had similar levels of acetylcholinesterase and numbers of ChAT+ neurons as Cre- rats. This study suggests that variance in behavior between ChAT::Cre+ and wildtype rats is sex dependent and advances theories that distinct neural circuits and processes regulate sexually divergent fear responses.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah C. Tryon
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & NeuroscienceUniversity of South Carolina School of MedicineColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
| | - Iris M. Sakamoto
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & NeuroscienceUniversity of South Carolina School of MedicineColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
| | - Kris F. Kaigler
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & NeuroscienceUniversity of South Carolina School of MedicineColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
| | - Gabriella Gee
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & NeuroscienceUniversity of South Carolina School of MedicineColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
| | - Jarrett Turner
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & NeuroscienceUniversity of South Carolina School of MedicineColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
| | - Katherine Bartley
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & NeuroscienceUniversity of South Carolina School of MedicineColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
| | - Jim R. Fadel
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & NeuroscienceUniversity of South Carolina School of MedicineColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
| | - Marlene A. Wilson
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology & NeuroscienceUniversity of South Carolina School of MedicineColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
- Columbia VA Health Care SystemColumbiaSouth CarolinaUSA
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Tyler RE, Bluitt MN, Engers JL, Lindsley CW, Besheer J. The effects of predator odor (TMT) exposure and mGlu 3 NAM pretreatment on behavioral and NMDA receptor adaptations in the brain. Neuropharmacology 2022; 207:108943. [PMID: 35007623 PMCID: PMC8844221 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2022.108943] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2021] [Revised: 12/09/2021] [Accepted: 01/04/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
A stressor can trigger lasting adaptations that contribute to neuropsychiatric disorders. Predator odor (TMT) exposure is an innate stressor that may activate the metabotropic glutamate receptor 3 (mGlu3) to produce stress adaptations. To evaluate functional involvement, the mGlu3 negative allosteric modulator (NAM, VU6010572; 3 mg/kg, i.p.) was administered before TMT exposure in male, Long Evans rats. Two weeks after, rats underwent context re-exposure, elevated zero maze (ZM), and acoustic startle (ASR) behavioral tests, followed by RT-PCR gene expression in the insular cortex and bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) to evaluate lasting behavioral and molecular adaptations from the stressor. Rats displayed stress-reactive behaviors in response to TMT exposure that were not affected by VU6010572. Freezing and hyperactivity were observed during the context re-exposure, and mGlu3-NAM pretreatment during stressor prevented the context freezing response. TMT exposure did not affect ZM or ASR measures, but VU6010572 increased time spent in the open arms of the ZM and ASR habituation regardless of stressor treatment. In the insular cortex, TMT exposure increased expression of mGlu (Grm3, Grm5) and NMDA (GriN2A, GriN2B, GriN2C, GriN3A, GriN3B) receptor transcripts, and mGlu3-NAM pretreatment blocked GriN3B upregulation. In the BNST, TMT exposure increased expression of GriN2B and GriN3B in vehicle-treated rats, but decreased expression in the mGlu3-NAM group. Similar to the insular cortex, mGlu3-NAM reversed the stressor-induced upregulation of GriN3B in the BNST. mGlu3-NAM also upregulated GriN2A, GriN2B, GriN3B and Grm2 in the control group, but not the TMT group. Together, these data implicate mGlu3 receptor signaling in some lasting adaptations of predator odor stressor and anxiolytic-like effects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan E Tyler
- Neuroscience Curriculum, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Maya N Bluitt
- Neuroscience Curriculum, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Julie L Engers
- Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Craig W Lindsley
- Warren Center for Neuroscience Drug Discovery, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Joyce Besheer
- Neuroscience Curriculum, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA; Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA.
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Abstract
This paper is the forty-second consecutive installment of the annual anthological review of research concerning the endogenous opioid system, summarizing articles published during 2019 that studied the behavioral effects of molecular, pharmacological and genetic manipulation of opioid peptides and receptors as well as effects of opioid/opiate agonists and antagonists. The review is subdivided into the following specific topics: molecular-biochemical effects and neurochemical localization studies of endogenous opioids and their receptors (1), the roles of these opioid peptides and receptors in pain and analgesia in animals (2) and humans (3), opioid-sensitive and opioid-insensitive effects of nonopioid analgesics (4), opioid peptide and receptor involvement in tolerance and dependence (5), stress and social status (6), learning and memory (7), eating and drinking (8), drug abuse and alcohol (9), sexual activity and hormones, pregnancy, development and endocrinology (10), mental illness and mood (11), seizures and neurologic disorders (12), electrical-related activity and neurophysiology (13), general activity and locomotion (14), gastrointestinal, renal and hepatic functions (15), cardiovascular responses (16), respiration and thermoregulation (17), and immunological responses (18).
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Affiliation(s)
- Richard J Bodnar
- Department of Psychology and Neuropsychology Doctoral Sub-Program, Queens College, City University of New York, 65-30 Kissena Blvd., Flushing, NY, 11367, United States.
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Kellis DM, Kaigler KF, Witherspoon E, Fadel JR, Wilson MA. Cholinergic neurotransmission in the basolateral amygdala during cued fear extinction. Neurobiol Stress 2020; 13:100279. [PMID: 33344731 PMCID: PMC7739185 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2020.100279] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2020] [Revised: 11/20/2020] [Accepted: 11/20/2020] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Cholinergic neuromodulation plays an important role in numerous cognitive functions including regulating arousal and attention, as well as associative learning and extinction processes. Further, studies demonstrate that cholinergic inputs from the basal forebrain cholinergic system influence physiological responses in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) as well as fear extinction processes. Since rodent models display individual differences in conditioned fear and extinction responses, this study investigated if cholinergic transmission in the BLA during fear extinction could contribute to differences between extinction resistant and extinction competent phenotypes in outbred Long-Evans male rats. Experiment 1 used in vivo microdialysis to test the hypothesis that acetylcholine (ACH) efflux in the BLA would increase with presentation of an auditory conditioned stimulus (CS+) during extinction learning. Acetylcholine efflux was compared in rats exposed to the CS+, a CS- (the tone never paired with a footshock), or to a context shift alone (without CS+ tone presentation). Consistent with acetylcholine's role in attention and arousal, ACH efflux in the BLA was increased in all three groups (CS+, CS-, Shift Alone) by the initial context shift into the extinction learning chamber, but returned more rapidly to baseline levels in the Shift Alone group (no CS+). In contrast, in the group exposed to the CS+, ACH efflux in the BLA remained elevated during continued presentation of conditioned cues and returned to baseline more slowly, leading to an overall increase in ACH efflux compared with the Shift Alone group. Based on the very dense staining in the BLA for acetylcholinesterase (ACHE), Experiment 2 examined if individual differences in fear extinction were associated with differences in cholinesterase enzyme activity (CHE) in the BLA and/or plasma with a separate cohort of animals. Cholinesterase activity (post-testing) in both the BLA and plasma was higher in extinction competent rats versus rats resistant to extinction learning. There was also a significant negative correlation between BLA CHE activity and freezing during extinction learning. Taken together, our results support a role for ACH efflux in the BLA during cued fear extinction that may be modulated by individual differences in ACHE activity, and are associated with behavioral responses during fear extinction. These findings implicate individual differences in cholinergic regulation in the susceptibility to disorders with dysregulation of extinction learning, such post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Devin M. Kellis
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, SC, 29208, United States
| | - Kris Ford Kaigler
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, SC, 29208, United States
| | - Eric Witherspoon
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, SC, 29208, United States
| | - Jim R. Fadel
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, SC, 29208, United States
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Affiliation(s)
- Marlene A Wilson
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, SC, United States
- Columbia VA Health Care System, Columbia, SC, United States
| | - Alexander J McDonald
- Department of Pharmacology, Physiology and Neuroscience, University of South Carolina School of Medicine, Columbia, SC, United States
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