Sex-Specific Social Effects on Depression-Related Behavioral Phenotypes in Mice.

Area of Science:

• Neuroscience
• Behavioral Science
• Animal Models

Background:

• Social interaction and empathy are crucial for emotional well-being.
• Stress-related depression and anxiety are influenced by social conditions.
• The impact of group housing on stress phenotypes in rodents requires further investigation.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate how housing with stressed or unstressed conspecifics affects depression-related phenotypes in male and female mice.
• To determine the influence of social housing conditions on stress-induced behavioral changes.

Main Methods:

• Male and female C57BL/6J mice were housed in same-sex groups.
• Mice received either gentle handling (GH) or daily corticosterone (CORT) administration for 10 days.
• Cages were either unmixed (GH or CORT) or mixed (GH and CORT).
• Depression-related phenotypes were assessed using the forced swim test (FST) and sucrose preference test (SPT).

Main Results:

• Mixed housing induced sex-specific alterations in forced swim test behavior.
• Corticosterone-treated male mice housed with gently handled mice showed increased immobility.
• Gently handled female mice housed with corticosterone-treated females exhibited reduced immobility.

Conclusions:

• Social housing conditions significantly influence the evaluation of stress-induced behavioral phenotypes.
• Mixed housing of gently handled and corticosterone-treated animals maximizes the observed differences in behavioral deficits.
• These findings are critical for developing therapeutics for stress-induced behavioral deficits.