Investigation of the role of vasopressin in the nociception induced by the neuropathic pain model in mice

• Grant number: 22/04712-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2022
• End date: December 31, 2022
• Field of knowledge: Humanities - Psychology - Physiological Psychology
• Principal Investigator: Azair Liane Matos Do Canto de Souza
• Grantee: Jonatã Silva de Oliveira
• Host Institution: Centro de Educação e Ciências Humanas (CECH). Universidade Federal de São Carlos (UFSCAR). São Carlos , SP, Brazil

Abstract

The success of social interaction is a necessary condition for human survival and depends on the ability to understand the intentions and emotions of the other. Empathy is the capacity to understand or feel what another is feeling. The literature has shown that, like humans, other animals can show behavioral responses related to empathy. Empathy can be observed in other animal species, for example in rodents. In this sense, recent studies have shown that living with male mice, housed in pairs with a conspecific submitted to neuropathic pain, increases the anxiety and nociceptive response in observers submitted to the abdominal writhing test, showing that pain can undergo social modulation. Other studies have demonstrated an increase in prosocial behaviors and analgesic action of vasopressin, suggesting the participation of this neurotransmission in the modulation of empathic responses. Considering these findings, this study has as aims to investigate the effects of vasopressin modulating the pain hypersensitivity induced by a mouse cohabiting with a partner subjected to sciatic nerve constriction. In this study, male Swiss mice will be housed in pairs for 28 days. Then, they will be divided into two groups: sciatic nerve constricted cagemate [CNC; i.e., one animal of each pair was subjected to sciatic nerve constriction (SNC)], and cagemate sham (S; a similar procedure but with no nerve constriction), and returning to living with conspecific cagemate for further 14 days. On 28º day the animal that living with cagemate SNC [Observer (Ob-CNC)] or Sham (Ob-S) will be received a systemic injection of saline or vasopressin in the doses of 0,005, 0,05 e 0,5 mg/kg, subcutaneous (s.c.), and after 30 minutes, will be received the injection of 0.1 mL.10 g-1 b. w. of 0.6% acetic acid intraperitoneally (i.p.), the nociceptive response will be assessed by recording the number of abdominal writhes exhibited by the animals (Ob-CNC or Ob-S) for 5 min. The hot plate test assessment will be used as a measure to verify the effectiveness of the constriction surgery.(AU)