PACAP Controls Endocrine and Behavioral Stress Responses via Separate Brain Circuits.

ABSTRACT:

Background

The neuropeptide PACAP (pituitary adenylate cyclase-activating polypeptide) is a master regulator of central and peripheral stress responses, yet it is not clear how PACAP projections throughout the brain execute endocrine and behavioral stress responses.

Methods

We used AAV (adeno-associated virus) neuronal tracing, an acute restraint stress (ARS) paradigm, and intersectional genetics, in C57BL/6 mice, to identify PACAP-containing circuits controlling stress-induced behavior and endocrine activation.

Results

PACAP deletion from forebrain excitatory neurons, including a projection directly from medial prefrontal cortex to hypothalamus, impairs c-fos activation and corticotropin-releasing hormone (CRH) messenger RNA elevation in the paraventricular nucleus a

SUBMITTER: Jiang SZ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10593940 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature