Age and Sex Dependent Effects of Maternal Deprivation on Anxiety-Like and Depressive-Like Behaviors and Oxidative Stress in the Prefrontal Cortex of Rats
Age and Sex Dependent Effects of Maternal Deprivation on Anxiety-Like and Depressive-Like Behaviors and Oxidative Stress in the Prefrontal Cortex of Rats
Abdeljabbar Nassiri1, Mouloud Lamtai1*, Inssaf Berkiks1,2, Hajar Benmhammed1, Sidi Mohamed Coulibaly1,3, Miloud Chakit1, Laila Ibouzine-dine1, Abdelhalem Mesfioui1, Aboubaker El-Hessni1
ABSTRACT
Early life stress, represented by maternal deprivation (MD), is associated with numerous behavioral disorders in later life. In young adulthood, a single 24-hour period of MD has been proven to produce behavioral changes such as affective and cognitive disorders in rats. However, the short-term and long-term behavioral consequences of MD have not been examined in detail. Also, the mechanism by which MD causes these disorders is far from fully understood. Therefore, this study was designed to examine the impact of MD on anxiety- and depression-like behaviors and oxidative stress (OS) in the prefrontal cortex (PFC) of rats across different ages (adolescence, emerging adulthood, and middle adulthood) and the possible existence of sexual dimorphisms. Rat pups were maternally deprived on postnatal day 9 for 24 hours. The rats of both genders were then tested in the open field and the elevated plus-maze tests for anxiety, and in the forced swimming test for depression at different time points. Additionally, we removed the PFC for biochemical analysis, specifically measuring nitric oxide and lipid peroxidation. The results indicate that, in both genders, MD generates an anxiogenic and depressive effect compared to the control group, which are linked to an increased OS in the PFC of rats, with greater impact during adolescence and adulthood. Interestingly, most measures showed sex differences in responses, particularly in the MD group. Our findings suggest that MD causes short-term and long-term changes in anxiety-like and depression-like behaviors and OS. Such effects depend on gender and age.
Keywords | Maternal deprivation, Anxiety, Depression, Oxidative stress, Rat
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March 2024
Vol. 12, Iss. 3, pp. 392-585
