Participation of vasopressin and oxytocin in the long-term behavioral effects of neonatal stress in Wistar rats

• Grant number: 14/13454-2
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: December 01, 2014
• End date: June 05, 2016
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Pharmacology - Neuropsychopharmacology
• Agreement: Coordination of Improvement of Higher Education Personnel (CAPES)
• Principal Investigator: Deborah Suchecki
• Grantee: Carlos Eduardo Neves Girardi
• Host Institution: Escola Paulista de Medicina (EPM). Universidade Federal de São Paulo (UNIFESP). Campus São Paulo. São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

This study aims to characterize the involvement of the neuropeptides oxytocin and vasopressin in the long-term effects of stressful events in the neonatal period, a critical period for neural development in rodents. Different stressors applied in this critical period caused significant behavioral changes in rats when tested during adolescence. We rule out the participation of corticosterone in these changes, since the profile of corticosterone release in response to the different stressors is not consistent with the behavioral effects observed in adolescence. Thus, we initiate a new approach in our research field, which aims to identify the factors involved in mediating these behavioral effects. The neuropeptides oxytocin and vasopressin participate in the stress response and this participation is even more pronounced during childhood. Additionally, these neuropeptides play an essential role in neural development and participate in the modulation of numerous emotional behaviors, likely involved in the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders. Thus, it is fundamental to identify their participation in mediating the long-term effects caused by stress in childhood. We expect that the findings of this proposal will contribute to the current global scientific effort focusing on the neurobiology of psychiatric disorders in which the common goal is the search for biomarkers to aid in the accurate diagnosis of these disorders and to guide the search for more effective therapeutic strategies. (AU)

Scientific publications

(References retrieved automatically from Web of Science and SciELO through information on FAPESP grants and their corresponding numbers as mentioned in the publications by the authors)

CESCHIM, VIVIANE C.; SUMARAN, PAULA; BORGES, ANDREA A.; GIRARDI, CARLOS EDUARDO N.; SUCHECKI, DEBORAH. Maternal deprivation during early infancy in rats increases oxytocin immunoreactivity in females and corticosterone reactivity to a social test in both sexes without changing emotional behaviour. Hormones and Behavior, v. 129, MAR 2021. (14/13454-2, 08/07448-9, 15/26364-4)