Effects of Stress on Behavioral and Biological Indices of Depression in Male and Female Rats
Abstract
The literature has consistently emphasized a relationship between chronic stress and depression, which bears relevance for Warriors given their exposure to extended and stressful combat deployments. It is also well known that there are gender disparities with regard to depression. However, there has been a lack of biobehavioral experimental investigations of these relationships with relevance for male and female Warriors. Importantly, there is a link between stress and Brain-Derived Neurotrophic Factor(BDNF), a protein firmly implicated in synaptic plasticity and long-term potentiation(LTP).The purpose of the present experiment was to investigate the effects of moderate and severe levels of chronic Warrior-related stress (predator stress [Warrior Stress Paradigm]; tail-shock stress) on behavioral and biological indices of depression in male and female rats. Open-Field Activity recordings of Horizontal Activity (HA), Vertical Activity (VA), and Center Time/Movement Time (CT/MT) were utilized as unconditioned behavioral measurements of general locomotion, depressive-like behavior, and anxiety-like behavior, respectively. Biological measures included body weight, serum BDNF, and serum Corticosterone (CORT). Serum BDNF and CORT were collected via trunk blood and quantitated using commercial Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay (ELISA) kits.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Sep 30, 2016
- Accession Number
- AD1127816
Entities
People
- Aaron S. Weisbrod
Organizations
- Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences