[Development of pathological behavior in C57BL/6J female mice under the long-lasting psychoemotional influence]

Long-lasting psychoemotional influence consisting of permanent stay of females with aggressive males separated with a perforated transparent partition in the same cage, and daily presence of females during intermale confrontations, is negative toward the females' behavior estimated in the some ethological tests. Elevated plus-maze and open field tests reveal an increased anxiety and inhibited exploratory behavior and motor activity. Within a month, the decreased females' reactions near the partition to both familiar and unfamiliar males testify to decreased communicativeness. In two months from the beginning, intermale confrontations become uninteresting for females too, as it was shown in the partition test. Abnormalities in the pain sensitivity estimated in the hot-plate test are found in females after the psychoemotional influence. More than half of all females have a prolonged diestrous stage of the estrous cycle. Moreover, after the psychoemotional influence females lose the capability to recognize intact female and male littermates as well as aggressive and submissive males. Taken together the results suggest that long-lasting psychoemotional influence can cause the anxiety-depression states in females.