Effects of different timing of stress on corticosterone, BDNF and memory in male rats

Learning and memory seem to be affected by chronic stress. Previous reports have considered chronic stress as a precipitating factor of different neuropsychological disorders, while others reported neurobiological adaptations following stress. The present study investigated the effects of chronic stress before, after, and during learning on the changes of learning and memory, on serum and hippocampal levels of corticosterone (CORT), brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and body weight in rats. Male Wistar rats were randomly divided into four groups (n=10) including Control (Co), Stress-Learning-Rest (St-L-Re), Rest-Learning-Stress (Re-L-St), and Stress-Learning-Stress (St-L-St) groups. The chronic restraint stress was applied 6 h/day for 21 days. Moreover, the passive avoidance test was used to assess memory deficit, 1, 7, and 21 days after training. At the end of experiments, CORT and BDNF levels were measured. The findings did not support adaptation in chronic stress conditions. The acquisition time as well as the short and mid-term memories was significantly impaired in the St-L-Re group. Short, mid, and long-term memories were significantly impaired in the Re-L-St and St-L-St groups compared with the Co group, as a result of the enhancement of CORT and reduction of BDNF levels. In the St-L-St group, changes in memory functions were less pronounced than in the Re-L-St group. Also, body weight declined following the chronic stress, while recovery period enhanced the body weight gain in stressed rats. It can be concluded that a potential time-dependent involvement of stress and recovery period on the level of BDNF. Longer duration time of chronic stress might promote adaptive effects on memory and CORT level.