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Chronic unpredictable stress during adolescence causes long-term anxiety
L E Chaby1, S A Cavigelli2, A M Hirrlinger3
1Center for Brain, Behavior, and Cognition, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, United States; Department of Ecosystem Science & Management, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, United States; Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, United States.
Behavioural Brain Research
|December 3, 2014
Summary
Adolescent stress in rats led to lasting anxiety behaviors into adulthood, even without changes in stress hormone levels. This highlights the long-term impact of early-life stress on adult anxiety.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Behavioral Science
- Endocrinology
Background:
- Adolescent stress can induce persistent behavioral and cognitive alterations.
- Anxiety disorders often emerge during adolescence, exacerbated by adverse experiences.
- The long-term effects of adolescent stress on adult anxiety remain unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the enduring impact of chronic unpredictable stress during adolescence on anxiety-related behaviors in adult rats.
- To determine if stress-induced behavioral changes persist into late adulthood.
Main Methods:
- Adolescent rats were exposed to chronic unpredictable stress.
- Behavioral testing, including a feeding test in a novel environment, was conducted 6.5 months later.
- Fecal corticoid metabolite levels were measured as an indicator of stress.
Main Results:
- Rats exposed to adolescent stress exhibited significantly increased anxiety behaviors in a novel environment feeding test.
- These anxiety-like behaviors persisted into late adulthood (6.5 months post-stress).
- Basal levels of fecal corticoid metabolites did not differ between stressed and control rats in adulthood.
Conclusions:
- Chronic stress during adolescence can lead to long-lasting anxiety phenotypes in adulthood.
- Behavioral manifestations of anxiety may persist long after the stressor is removed, independent of basal stress hormone levels.
- Adolescent stress represents a critical period for developing long-term vulnerability to anxiety.
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