Involvement of dopamine, but not norepinephrine, in the sex-specific regulation of juvenile socially rewarding behavior by vasopressin.

ABSTRACT: Social play is a highly rewarding behavior displayed mostly during the juvenile period. We recently showed that vasopressin V1a receptor (V1aR) blockade in the lateral septum (LS) enhances social play in male juvenile rats, but reduces it in females. Here, we determined whether the LS-AVP system modulates dopamine (DA) and/or norepinephrine (NE) neurotransmission in the LS to regulate social play behavior in sex-specific ways. Using microdialysis combined with retrodialysis, we demonstrated that both LS-AVP administration and social play exposure increased extracellular LS-DA release in females, but not in males. Pharmacological blockade of LS-DA receptors reduced social play in both sexes, but required a higher dose in females. This suggests that baseline LS-DA release is sufficient for s

SUBMITTER: Bredewold R 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6098123 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature