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Updated: May 8, 2026
07:44
Localization of the Locus Coeruleus in the Mouse Brain
Published on: March 7, 2019
Hyperactive basolateral amygdala mediates comorbid anxiety in chronic rhinosinusitis
Xiaojun Zhang1,2, Wensi Wu3, Haomiao Zhao1
1Department of Otorhinolaryngology, Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, National Health Commission Key Laboratory of Otorhinolaryngology (Shandong University), Shandong Provincial Key Medical and Health Discipline of Qilu Hospital of Shandong University, Jinan, China.
Journal of Neuroinflammation
|May 7, 2026
Summary
Chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) is linked to persistent anxiety due to overactive BLA neurons. Targeting this neural circuit may treat CRS-related anxiety.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Immunology
- Otolaryngology
Background:
- Anxiety disorder is a frequent comorbidity in chronic rhinosinusitis (CRS) patients.
- The specific brain regions and neural-immune mechanisms driving CRS-related anxiety remain unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the neural circuits and immunological factors underlying anxiety-like behaviors in a mouse model of CRS.
- To identify potential therapeutic targets for comorbid anxiety in CRS.
Main Methods:
- Established a papain-induced CRS mouse model and assessed anxiety-like behaviors.
- Utilized immunohistochemistry, fiber photometry, electrophysiology, viral tracing, and chemogenetics.
- Examined peripheral inflammation, sympathetic activity, blood-brain barrier (BBB) integrity, and IL-33 neutralization effects.
Main Results:
- CRS mice exhibited persistent anxiety-like behaviors linked to hyperactivation of BLA CaMKIIα-positive neurons.
- Inhibition of BLA neurons reduced anxiety, sympathetic activity, and inflammation; activation had opposite effects.
- A BLA-centered network involving vHPC and PMN regulated sympathetic and immune responses; IL-33 neutralization improved anxiety and reduced BLA hyperexcitability.
Conclusions:
- Dysregulated excitatory activity in the basolateral amygdala (BLA) drives anxiety comorbidity in CRS.
- A BLA-centered network involving the ventral hippocampus (vHPC) and premammillary nucleus (PMN) regulates peripheral sympathetic and immune responses in CRS-related anxiety.
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