Differential effects of acute and repeated stress on hippocampus and amygdala inputs to the nucleus accumbens shell

The basolateral amygdala (BLA) and ventral subiculum (vSub) of the hippocampus convey emotion and context information, respectively, to the nucleus accumbens (NAc). Using in vivo extracellular recordings from NAc neurons, we examined how acute and repeated restraint stress alters the plasticity of the vSub and BLA afferent pathways. High-frequency (HFS) and low-frequency (LFS) stimulation was applied to the vSub to assess the impact on NAc responses to vSub and BLA inputs. In addition, iontophoretic application of the dopamine D2-antagonist sulpiride was used to explore the role of dopamine in the NAc in mediating the effects of stress on plasticity. Acute and repeated restraint caused disparate effects on BLA- and vSub-evoked responses in the NAc. Following repeated restraint, but not after acute restraint, HFS of the vSub failed to potentiate the vSub–NAc pathway while instead promoting a long-lasting reduction of the BLA–NAc pathway and these effects were independent of D2-receptor activity. In contrast, LFS to the vSub pathway after acute restraint resulted in potentiation in the vSub–NAc pathway while BLA-evoked responses were unchanged. When sulpiride was applied prior to LFS of the vSub after acute stress, there was a pronounced decrease in vSub-evoked responses similar to control animals. This work provides new insight into the impact of acute and repeated stress on the integration of context and emotion inputs in the NAc. These data support a model of stress whereby the hippocampus is inappropriately activated and dominates the information processing within this circuit via a dopaminergic mechanism after acute bouts of stress.