10.5061/DRYAD.B4D70
Studer, Erik
University of Gothenburg
Näslund, Jakob
University of Gothenburg
Andersson, Erik
University of Gothenburg
Nilsson, Staffan
Chalmers University of Technology
Westberg, Lars
University of Gothenburg
Eriksson, Elias
University of Gothenburg
Data from: Serotonin depletion-induced maladaptive aggression requires the
presence of androgens
Dryad
dataset
2015
2015-08-06T18:58:38Z
2015-08-06T18:58:38Z
en
https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0126462
16488 bytes
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CC0 1.0 Universal (CC0 1.0) Public Domain Dedication
The sex hormone testosterone and the neurotransmitter serotonin exert
opposite effects on several aspects of behavior including territorial
aggression. It is however not settled if testosterone exerts its
pro-aggressive effects by reducing serotonin transmission and/or if the
anti-aggressive effect of serotonin requires the presence of the androgen.
Using the resident intruder test, we now show that administration of the
serotonin synthesis inhibitor para-chlorophenylalanine (300 mg/kg x 3
days) increases the total time of attack as well as the percentage amount
of social behavior spent on attack but not that spent on threat – i.e.
that it induces a pattern of unrestricted, maladaptive aggression – in
gonadectomized C57Bl/6 male mice receiving testosterone replacement; in
contrast, it failed to reinstate aggression in those not given
testosterone. Whereas these results suggest the pro-aggressive effect of
testosterone to be independent of serotonin, and not caused by an
inhibition of serotonergic activity, the pCPA-induced induction of
maladaptive aggression appears to require the presence of the hormone. In
line with these findings, pCPA enhanced the total time of attack as well
the relative time spent on attacks but not threats also in wild-type
gonadally intact male C57Bl/6 mice, but failed to reinstate aggression in
mice rendered hypo-aggressive by early knock-out of androgen receptors in
the brain (ARNesDel mice). We conclude that androgenic deficiency does not
dampen aggression by unleashing an anti-aggressive serotonergic influence;
instead serotonin seems to modulate aggressive behavior by exerting a
parallel-coupled inhibitory role on androgen-driven aggression, which is
irrelevant in the absence of the hormone, and the arresting of which leads
to enhanced maladaptive aggression.
Behavioral dataThe .xlsx file contains raw data of behavioral parameters
for individual mice as well as treatment and
genotypes.T-pCPA_Dryad_dataset.xlsx