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Peripubertal anxiety profile can predict predisposition to spatial memory impairments following chronic stress
Rudy Bellani1, Linda J Luecken, Cheryl D Conrad
1Department of Psychology, Arizona State University, Box 1104, Tempe, AZ 85287-1104, USA. Rudy.Bellani@mail.Rockefeller.edu
Insights
Peripubertal anxiety predicts chronic stress effects on spatial memory. High anxiety rats showed impaired memory after stress, unlike low anxiety rats, indicating an interaction influencing adult cognition.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Behavioral Neuroscience
- Stress Research
Background:
- Chronic stress negatively impacts cognitive functions, particularly spatial memory.
- Anxiety during development may alter an individual's vulnerability to stress.
- The hippocampus is crucial for spatial memory and is sensitive to stress.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if peripubertal anxiety levels predict the effects of chronic stress on spatial memory.
- To examine the long-term impact of chronic stress on memory in rats with varying anxiety levels.
- To assess the relationship between anxiety, chronic stress, and corticosterone levels.
Main Methods:
- Peripubertal rats (Sprague-Dawley) were assessed for anxiety using open field and elevated plus mazes.
- Rats underwent chronic restraint stress (6 h/day/21 days) starting in young adulthood.
- Spatial memory was tested using the Y-maze at two inter-trial intervals (4 h and 1 min).
- Basal corticosterone levels were measured one month after stress cessation.
Main Results:
- All rats showed intact spatial memory in the 1-min Y-maze task.
- Chronically stressed rats with high peripubertal anxiety exhibited impaired spatial memory in the 4-h Y-maze task.
- Chronically stressed low anxiety rats and control rats (low and high anxiety) retained intact spatial memory.
- High anxiety rats displayed elevated basal corticosterone levels one month post-stress.
Conclusions:
- Peripubertal anxiety levels interact with chronic stress to impair adult hippocampal-dependent spatial memory.
- Early life anxiety may confer vulnerability to the cognitive detriments of chronic stress.
- These findings highlight the lasting impact of developmental anxiety and stress on cognitive function and physiological stress responses.
Abstract:
We tested the hypothesis that peripubertal anxiety levels are predictive of the detrimental effects of chronic stress on hippocampal-dependent spatial memory. The anxiety levels of peripubertal male Sprague-Dawley rats (43 days old) were characterized using open field and elevated plus mazes, followed by chronic restraint stress for 6 h/day/21 days beginning in young adulthood (75 days). Following chronic stress treatment, rats were tested on the spatial Y-maze using two inter-trial interval levels of difficulty (4 h: 1 day post-chronic stress; 1 min: 2 days post-chronic stress). As expected, all groups displayed intact spatial memory in the less difficult 1 min version of the Y-maze. However, in the 4 h version of the Y-maze, chronically stressed high anxiety rats showed impaired spatial memory, while chronically stressed low anxiety and control (low and high anxiety) rats displayed intact spatial memory. Moreover, a month after chronic stress ended, high anxiety rats had significantly higher basal corticosterone levels than low anxiety rats (control and stress). These results indicate that peripubertal anxiety and chronic stress interact to influence hippocampal-dependent spatial memory in adulthood.
