Prelimbic cortex glucocorticoid receptors regulate the stress-mediated inhibition of pain contagion in male mice.

ABSTRACT: Experiencing pain with a familiar individual can enhance one's own pain sensitivity, a process known as pain contagion. When experiencing pain with an unfamiliar individual, pain contagion is suppressed in males by activating the endocrine stress response. Here, we coupled a histological investigation with pharmacological and behavioral experiments to identify enhanced glucocorticoid receptor activity in the prelimbic subdivision of the medial prefrontal cortex as a candidate mechanism for suppressing pain contagion in stranger mice. Acute inhibition of glucocorticoid receptors in the prelimbic cortex was sufficient to elicit pain contagion in strangers, while their activation prevented pain contagion in cagemate dyads. Slice physiology recordings revealed enhanced excitatory transmission

SUBMITTER: Lidhar NK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8115346 | biostudies-literature | 2021 May

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature