Anhedonia Following Early-Life Adversity Involves Aberrant Interaction of Reward and Anxiety Circuits and Is Reversed by Partial Silencing of Amygdala Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone Gene.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Anhedonia, the diminished ability to experience pleasure, is an important dimensional entity linked to depression, schizophrenia, and other emotional disorders, but its origins and mechanisms are poorly understood. We have previously identified anhedonia, manifest as decreased sucrose preference and social play, in adolescent male rats that experienced chronic early-life adversity/stress (CES). Here we probed the molecular, cellular, and circuit processes underlying CES-induced anhedonia and tested them mechanistically.

Methods

We examined functional brain circuits and neuronal populations activated by social play in adolescent CES and control rats. Structural connectivity between stress- and reward-related networks was probed using high-resolution diffusion tenso

SUBMITTER: Bolton JL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5723546 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature