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Assessment of Stress Effects on Cognitive Flexibility using an Operant Strategy Shifting Paradigm
Published on: May 4, 2020
Stress-protective neural circuits: not all roads lead through the prefrontal cortex
John P Christianson1, Benjamin N Greenwood
1Department of Psychology & Neuroscience .
Stress (Amsterdam, Netherlands)
|April 12, 2013
Summary
Uncontrollable stress increases anxiety via serotonin pathways in the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN). Stress controllability, safety signals, and exercise reduce anxiety by engaging different brain regions.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Psychiatry
- Behavioral Science
Background:
- Uncontrollable stressors induce anxiety-like behaviors and physiological changes in rats.
- Plasticity in the serotonergic dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN) is implicated in stressor-induced anxiety.
Purpose of the Study:
- To review evidence on the role of the DRN in anxiety.
- To explore mechanisms of stress-protective factors like controllability, safety signals, and exercise.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing research on stress, anxiety, and the DRN.
- Examination of neurochemical changes (serotonin release) and receptor activity (5-HT2C).
- Analysis of neural substrates involved in stress-protective factors.
Main Results:
- Uncontrollable stress increases serotonin release in DRN terminal regions (amygdala, striatum).
- Blocking 5-HT2C receptors in these regions reduces anxiety.
- Stressor controllability, safety signals, and exercise mitigate anxiety through distinct neural pathways.
Conclusions:
- The serotonergic DRN plays a crucial role in anxiety.
- Distinct neural mechanisms underlie stress-protective factors.
- Understanding these mechanisms may inform treatments for stress-related psychiatric disorders.
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