Evaluation of the involvement of amygdala vasopressinergic neurotransmission in nociception-related empathy in male and female mice

• Grant number: 23/09692-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master
• Start date: November 01, 2023
• End date: October 31, 2025
• 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

Social interaction is a necessary factor for human survival and depends on the ability tounderstand the intentions and emotions of others, characteristics associated withempathy, which can be observed in humans and other animals. Living with aconspecific with neuropathic pain increased anxiety and hypernociception in observermice (Ob). The amygdala, one of the structures involved in the modulation ofnociception and empathic responses, played a significant role in thisprocess. Additionally, we recently demonstrated that vasopressin promotes the reversalof hypernociception induced by living with chronic pain in male mice. The aim of thisstudy is to investigate the role of the amygdala vasopressinergic system onhypernociception induced in male and female mice that living with conspecificsubjecetd to a chronic pain. Male and female Swiss-albino mice will be housed in pairsand, on the 14th day of cohabited, one animal of the pair will be subjected to sciaticnerve constriction surgery (CNC) or not (Sham), returning to cohabiting with itsconspecific (Ob -CNC and Ob-S) for another 14 days. On the 24th day, male or femalemice (Ob-CNC and Ob-S) will be subjected to stereotaxic bilateral implantation ofcannulas directed to the amygdala. On the 28th day, mice (Ob-CNC and Ob-S) willreceive bilateral intra-amygdala injection of vasopressin (V1aR, V1bR, and V2Ragonist), and atosiban (V1aR antagonist). Five minutes, after the injection, they willreceive injection of 0.6% acetic acid intraperitoneal (i.p.) for 5-minute evaluation ofabdominal writhing in the presence of the respective conspecific (CNC or Sham). Toconfirm the effectiveness of the surgery, and the interaction with the animal withnociception, the CNC and Sham animals, which will not undergo the abdominalwrithing test, will be submitted to the hot plate test.