Gender-specific impact of brain-derived neurotrophic factor signaling on stress-induced depression-like behavior.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Major depressive disorder is a leading debilitating disease known to occur at a two-fold higher rate in women than in men. The neurotrophic hypothesis of depression suggests that loss of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) may increase susceptibility for depression-like behavior, although direct evidence is lacking.

Methods

Using the chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) paradigm, we investigated whether male and female mice with inducible BDNF deletion in the forebrain were more susceptible to depression-related behavior.

Results

We demonstrate that in certain behavioral measures the loss of BDNF lowers the threshold for female mice studied at random throughout estrus to display anxiogenic and anhedonic behaviors after chronic stress compared with wild-t

SUBMITTER: Autry AE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC2734472 | biostudies-literature | 2009 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature