Essential Role of BDNF in the Mesolimbic Dopamine Pathway in Social Defeat Stress

Contact Information

Keywords

Eric Nestler, eric.nestler@utsouthwestern.edu

N/A

Abstract

Mice experiencing repeated aggression develop a long-lasting aversion to social contact, which can be normalized by chronic, but not acute, administration of antidepressant. Using viral-mediated, mesolimbic dopamine pathway-specific knockdown of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF), we showed that BDNF is required for the development of this experience-dependent social aversion. Gene profiling in the nucleus accumbens indicates that local knockdown of BDNF obliterates most of the effects of repeated aggression on gene expression within this circuit, with similar effects being produced by chronic treatment with antidepressant. These results establish an essential role for BDNF in mediating long-term neural and behavioral plasticity in response to aversive social experiences.

Citation

Berton, O., McClung, C. A., DiLeone, R. J., Krishnan, V., Renthal, W., Russo, S. J., ... & Nestler, E. J. (2006). Essential role of BDNF in the mesolimbic dopamine pathway in social defeat stress. Science, 311(5762), 864-868.

DOI

10.1126/science.1120972

EWB Constructs:

homeostasis

EWB Measures:

social interaction

data availability:

data availability details:

N/A

brain imaging paradigm:

VTA

brain region/circuit:

Exclusion Criteria:

N/A

Inclusion Criteria

N/A

Non-EWB Behavioral
Measures:

gene profiling

First author:

Oliver Berton

species:

mouse

sample size:

18-36

study design:

case control

longitudinal data?

younger controls?

N/A

interventions:

Knockdown of BDNF to examine it's role in experience-dependent social aversion

study population:

N/A

sex (% female):

N/A

ethnicity (%white)

N/A

Age (mean, sd):

adult

biological/Physiological Measures:

N/A