The influence of cohabitation with a conspecific in chronic pain on autonomic activity, cardiovascular function and nociception responses in male and female Wistar rats: Characterization and study of the involvement of oxytocinergic mechanisms.

• Grant number: 23/12872-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Post-Doctoral
• Start date: September 01, 2025
• End date: August 31, 2028
• Field of knowledge: Biological Sciences - Pharmacology - Neuropsychopharmacology
• Principal Investigator: Carlos Cesar Crestani
• Grantee: Ligia Renata Rodrigues Tavares
• Host Institution: Faculdade de Ciências Farmacêuticas (FCFAR). Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP). Campus de Araraquara. Araraquara , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Like humans, rodents are highly social animals whose behaviors and physiology can be influenced by the emotional state of their conspecifics. Such responses are believed to be essential and adaptive for group survival; being that the observation of an animal under stress can indicate a threat, so that other rodents can benefit from perceiving and responding accordingly. However, prolonged or repeated contact with a distressed partner can induce behavioral and physiological dysfunctions as a result of socially transferred stress. In this sense, it is well described that chronic emotional stressors promote various dysfunctions and pathologies, including cardiovascular diseases. However, it remains unknown whether living with a conspecific in distress can induce changes in autonomic activity and cardiovascular function, resulting in increased mean arterial pressure and heart rate. Additionally, the possible influence of sex on prosocial behavior and related dysfunctions are still poorly understood, considering that few studies have explored factors underlying the differences between males and females in behavioral and physiological responses related to empathy. Regarding the potential mechanisms involved, evidence has indicated that oxytocinergic neurotransmission may be an important neurobiological mechanism involved in adaptation and resilience to aversive and stressful stimuli, inhibiting defensive behavior and playing an essential role in cardiovascular homeostasis through a complex set of central and peripheral actions. However, the potential involvement of oxytocinergic mechanisms in physiological and behavioral responses in rodents that have lived with conspecifics subjected to a chronic pain model are still poorly understood. Therefore, the objective of the present study is to characterize the nociceptive, cardiovascular and autonomic alterations in male and female rats promoted by living with a conspecific submitted to a chronic pain model; in addition to evaluating, through chemogenetic and neuropharmacological manipulations, the involvement of brain oxytocinergic mechanisms in these responses. (AU)