Sex differences in the traumatic stress response: the role of adult gonadal hormones.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Our previous study revealed that adult female rats respond differently to trauma than adult males, recapitulating sex differences in symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) exhibited by women and men. Here, we asked two questions: does the female phenotype depend on (1) social housing condition and/or (2) circulating gonadal hormones?

Methods

For the first study, the effects of single prolonged stress (SPS) were compared for females singly or pair-housed. For the second study, adult male and female rats were gonadectomized or sham-gonadectomized 2 weeks prior to exposure to SPS, with half the gonadectomized rats given testosterone. In addition to the typical measures of the trauma response in rats, acoustic startle response (ASR), and the dexamethasone s

SUBMITTER: Pooley AE 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6043950 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature