PUBLICATION
Neurochemical and Behavioral Responses to Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress Following Developmental Isolation: The Zebrafish as a Model for Major Depression
- Authors
- Fulcher, N., Tran, S., Shams, S., Chatterjee, D., Gerlai, R.
- ID
- ZDB-PUB-160728-17
- Date
- 2017
- Source
- Zebrafish 14(1): 23-34 (Journal)
- Registered Authors
- Gerlai, Robert T.
- Keywords
- none
- MeSH Terms
-
- Animals
- Behavior, Animal*
- Brain/metabolism
- Depressive Disorder, Major/diagnosis
- Depressive Disorder, Major/etiology*
- Depressive Disorder, Major/metabolism
- Disease Models, Animal*
- Dopamine/metabolism
- Hydroxyindoleacetic Acid/metabolism
- Serotonin/metabolism
- Social Isolation*
- Stress, Psychological/complications*
- Stress, Psychological/metabolism
- Weight Gain
- Zebrafish/physiology*
- PubMed
- 27454937 Full text @ Zebrafish
Citation
Fulcher, N., Tran, S., Shams, S., Chatterjee, D., Gerlai, R. (2017) Neurochemical and Behavioral Responses to Unpredictable Chronic Mild Stress Following Developmental Isolation: The Zebrafish as a Model for Major Depression. Zebrafish. 14(1):23-34.
Abstract
Unpredictable chronic mild stress (UCMS) and developmental social isolation are often utilized in laboratory animals to mimic unpredictable life stressors and early life adversity that may contribute to the development of major depressive disorder in humans. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) have been used to examine the effects of both developmental social isolation and UCMS. However, anxiety-like behavioral responses, social behavior, and neurochemical changes induced by stressors have not been well characterized. Furthermore, the possible interaction between UCMS and developmental isolation remains unexplored. In this study, we analyzed the effect of UCMS on developmentally isolated and socially reared zebrafish. The UCMS procedure entailed delivering unpredictably varying mild stressors twice a day for 15 consecutive days. To quantify social and anxiety-like behaviors, we measured the zebrafish's behavioral and neurochemical (dopaminergic and serotonergic) responses to an animated image of conspecifics in a novel tank. Our results suggest that UCMS increased anxiety-like behavioral responses, whereas developmental isolation altered motor responses during stimulus presentation. We also found that UCMS diminished weight gain and reduced whole-brain levels of dopamine and serotonin's metabolite 5-HIAA in developmentally isolated, but not socially reared zebrafish. Our findings reinforce the utility of combining developmental isolation with UCMS in zebrafish to model depressive-like behavior in humans.
Genes / Markers
Expression
Phenotype
Mutations / Transgenics
Human Disease / Model
Sequence Targeting Reagents
Fish
Orthology
Engineered Foreign Genes
Mapping