Circadian arrhythmia dysregulates emotional behaviors in aged Siberian hamsters.

ABSTRACT: Emotional behaviors are influenced by the circadian timing system. Circadian disruptions are associated with depressive-like symptoms in clinical and preclinical populations. Circadian rhythm robustness declines markedly with aging and may contribute to susceptibility to emotional dysregulation in aged individuals. The present experiments used a model of chronic circadian arrhythmia generated noninvasively, via a series of circadian-disruptive light treatments, to investigate interactions between circadian desynchrony and aging on depressive- and anxiety-like behaviors, and on limbic neuroinflammatory gene expression that has been linked with emotionality. We also examined whether a social manipulation (group housing) would attenuate effects of arrhythmia on emotionality. In aged (14-18 mo

SUBMITTER: Prendergast BJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4343037 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature