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Updated: Jun 9, 2026
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Social Defeat Stress Model for Adolescent C57BL/6 Male and Female Mice
Published on: March 15, 2024
Testosterone decrease does not play a major role in the suppression of hippocampal cell proliferation following
Bauke Buwalda1, Karin van der Borght, Jaap M Koolhaas
1Behavioral Physiology, University of Groningen, P.O. Box 14, 9750AA HAREN, The Netherlands. b.buwalda@rug.nl
Physiology & Behavior
|August 25, 2010
Summary
Social defeat stress in rats suppresses hippocampal cell proliferation, impacting neurogenesis. Testosterone supplementation partially mitigated these effects, suggesting a complex interaction between stress, hormones, and brain cell development.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Endocrinology
Background:
- Social defeat stress in rodents mimics human stress-related disorders.
- Stress suppresses testosterone and desensitizes serotonin 5-HT(1A) receptors.
- Testosterone supplementation previously prevented hippocampal 5-HT(1A) receptor changes in tree shrews.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if social defeat reduces hippocampal cell proliferation and neurogenesis in rats.
- To determine if testosterone supplementation can prevent stress-induced reductions in hippocampal cell proliferation.
Main Methods:
- Male rats underwent repeated social defeat stress for 5 days.
- Plasma testosterone levels and hippocampal cell proliferation (BrdU labeling) were measured.
- Testosterone supplementation was administered to a subset of stressed rats.
Main Results:
- Social defeat significantly decreased plasma testosterone and hippocampal cell proliferation 24 hours and 3 weeks post-stress.
- Testosterone supplementation prevented the drop in testosterone and partially reduced the negative impact on cell proliferation at 3 weeks.
- Cell survival in the dentate gyrus was unaffected by social defeat stress.
Conclusions:
- Repeated social defeat stress suppresses hippocampal cell proliferation in rats.
- Testosterone supplementation offers partial protection against stress-induced proliferation deficits.
- The stress-induced reduction in hippocampal cell proliferation is not solely due to transient testosterone suppression.
