Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 7, 2026
07:09
The Sciatic Nerve Cuffing Model of Neuropathic Pain in Mice
Published on: July 16, 2014
49.7K
Persistent, comorbid pain and anxiety can be uncoupled in a mouse model
1Institute of Neurobiology, Institutes of Brain Science and State Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology, Collaborative Innovation Center for Brain Science, Fudan University, Shanghai 200032, China.
Physiology & Behavior
|July 14, 2015
Summary
Persistent inflammatory pain and social defeat stress do not worsen anxiety-like behaviors in mice. In fact, pain can reduce social avoidance caused by stress, challenging typical comorbidity models.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Behavioral Science
- Pain Research
Background:
- Anxiety and pain frequently coexist clinically.
- Animal models show contradictory interactions between pain and anxiety.
- Investigating the interplay between stress-induced anxiety and inflammatory pain is crucial.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the reciprocal relationship between anxiety-like behaviors and nociception.
- To compare the effects of social defeat (SD) stress and chronic pain in two mouse strains.
- To understand how these conditions interact in a comorbid state.
Main Methods:
- Induction of persistent inflammatory pain using Complete Freund's Adjuvant (CFA).
- Application of social defeat (SD) stress over 10 days.
- Behavioral assessments including social interaction (SI) tests, elevated plus maze (EPM), and open field (OF) tests.
- Evaluation of mechanical allodynia and thermal hyperalgesia.
Main Results:
- SD stress induced significant anxiety-like behaviors (social avoidance) in C57BL/6J mice.
- FVB/NJNju mice showed more resilience to SD stress.
- CFA-induced pain caused allodynia and hyperalgesia but not anxiety-like behaviors.
- Comorbid pain and SD stress did not worsen anxiety or pain.
- SD stress-induced social avoidance was reduced in CFA-inflamed mice.
Conclusions:
- Persistent inflammatory pain and SD stress-induced anxiety may not exacerbate each other.
- Inflammatory pain can antagonize anxiety-like behaviors induced by social stress.
- Findings challenge assumptions about the exacerbating nature of comorbid pain and anxiety in animal models.
