TY - JOUR A1 - Strekalova, Tatyana A1 - Pavlov, Dmitrii A1 - Trofimov, Alexander A1 - Anthony, Daniel C. A1 - Svistunov, Andrei A1 - Proshin, Andrey A1 - Umriukhin, Aleksei A1 - Lyundup, Alexei A1 - Lesch, Klaus-Peter A1 - Cespuglio, Raymond T1 - Hippocampal over-expression of cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) is associated with susceptibility to stress-induced anhedonia in mice JF - International Journal of Molecular Sciences N2 - The phenomenon of individual variability in susceptibility/resilience to stress and depression, in which the hippocampus plays a pivotal role, is attracting increasing attention. We investigated the potential role of hippocampal cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), which regulates plasticity, neuroimmune function, and stress responses that are all linked to this risk dichotomy. We used a four-week-long chronic mild stress (CMS) paradigm, in which mice could be stratified according to their susceptibility/resilience to anhedonia, a key feature of depression, to investigate hippocampal expression of COX-2, a marker of microglial activation Iba-1, and the proliferation marker Ki67. Rat exposure, social defeat, restraints, and tail suspension were used as stressors. We compared the effects of treatment with either the selective COX-2 inhibitor celecoxib (30 mg/kg/day) or citalopram (15 mg/kg/day). For the celecoxib and vehicle-treated mice, the Porsolt test was used. Anhedonic (susceptible) but not non-anhedonic (resilient) animals exhibited elevated COX-2 mRNA levels, increased numbers of COX-2 and Iba-1-positive cells in the dentate gyrus and the CA1 area, and decreased numbers of Ki67-positive cells in the subgranular zone of the hippocampus. Drug treatment decreased the percentage of anhedonic mice, normalized swimming activity, reduced behavioral despair, and improved conditioned fear memory. Hippocampal over-expression of COX-2 is associated with susceptibility to stress-induced anhedonia, and its pharmacological inhibition with celecoxib has antidepressant effects that are similar in size to those of citalopram. KW - major depression KW - inducible cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2) KW - hippocampus KW - anhedonia KW - chronic stress KW - stress resilience KW - fear conditioning KW - celecoxib KW - citalopram KW - mouse Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-284056 SN - 1422-0067 VL - 23 IS - 4 ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Svirin, Evgeniy A1 - Veniaminova, Ekaterina A1 - Costa-Nunes, João Pedro A1 - Gorlova, Anna A1 - Umriukhin, Aleksei A1 - Kalueff, Allan V. A1 - Proshin, Andrey A1 - Anthony, Daniel C. A1 - Nedorubov, Andrey A1 - Tse, Anna Chung Kwan A1 - Walitza, Susanne A1 - Lim, Lee Wei A1 - Lesch, Klaus-Peter A1 - Strekalova, Tatyana T1 - Predation stress causes excessive aggression in female mice with partial genetic inactivation of tryptophan hydroxylase-2: evidence for altered myelination-related processes JF - Cells N2 - The interaction between brain serotonin (5-HT) deficiency and environmental adversity may predispose females to excessive aggression. Specifically, complete inactivation of the gene encoding tryptophan hydroxylase-2 (Tph2) results in the absence of neuronal 5-HT synthesis and excessive aggressiveness in both male and female null mutant (Tph2\(^{−/−}\)) mice. In heterozygous male mice (Tph2\(^{+/−}\)), there is a moderate reduction in brain 5-HT levels, and when they are exposed to stress, they exhibit increased aggression. Here, we exposed female Tph2\(^{+/−}\) mice to a five-day rat predation stress paradigm and assessed their emotionality and social interaction/aggression-like behaviors. Tph2\(^{+/−}\) females exhibited excessive aggression and increased dominant behavior. Stressed mutants displayed altered gene expression of the 5-HT receptors Htr1a and Htr2a, glycogen synthase kinase-3 β (GSK-3β), and c-fos as well as myelination-related transcripts in the prefrontal cortex: myelin basic protein (Mbp), proteolipid protein 1 (Plp1), myelin-associated glycoprotein (Mag), and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (Mog). The expression of the plasticity markers synaptophysin (Syp) and cAMP response element binding protein (Creb), but not AMPA receptor subunit A2 (GluA2), were affected by genotype. Moreover, in a separate experiment, naïve female Tph2\(^{+/−}\) mice showed signs of enhanced stress resilience in the modified swim test with repeated swimming sessions. Taken together, the combination of a moderate reduction in brain 5-HT with environmental challenges results in behavioral changes in female mice that resemble the aggression-related behavior and resilience seen in stressed male mutants; additionally, the combination is comparable to the phenotype of null mutants lacking neuronal 5-HT. Changes in myelination-associated processes are suspected to underpin the molecular mechanisms leading to aggressive behavior. KW - tryptophan hydroxylase-2 (Tph2) KW - female aggression KW - 5-HT receptors KW - glycogen synthase kinase-3 β (GSK-3β) KW - myelination KW - predation stress Y1 - 2022 U6 - http://nbn-resolving.de/urn/resolver.pl?urn:nbn:de:bvb:20-opus-267250 SN - 2073-4409 VL - 11 IS - 6 ER -