Transient impact of chronic social stress on effort-based reward motivation in non-food restricted mice: Involvement of corticosterone

Chronic stress has been connected to a reduced effort and motivational deficits. To study effort-based motivation in rodents, operant conditioning is often employed. However, caloric restriction is typically imposed simultaneously. Since caloric restriction is a stressor in its own right, this proce...

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Main Authors: Danina Evertse, Pilar Alves-Martinez, Giulia Treccani, Marianne B. Müller, Frank J. Meye, Michael A. van der Kooij
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2024-11-01
Series:Neurobiology of Stress
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Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352289524000869
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author Danina Evertse
Pilar Alves-Martinez
Giulia Treccani
Marianne B. Müller
Frank J. Meye
Michael A. van der Kooij
author_facet Danina Evertse
Pilar Alves-Martinez
Giulia Treccani
Marianne B. Müller
Frank J. Meye
Michael A. van der Kooij
author_sort Danina Evertse
collection DOAJ
description Chronic stress has been connected to a reduced effort and motivational deficits. To study effort-based motivation in rodents, operant conditioning is often employed. However, caloric restriction is typically imposed simultaneously. Since caloric restriction is a stressor in its own right, this procedure interferes with data interpretation. Here, we investigate whether chronic social defeat stress (CSD), lasting 10 consecutive days, would alter effort-based reward motivation in mice trained under ad libitum food conditions. Utilizing operant FED3 boxes in home cages, mice were trained within eight days to nose poke for palatable food. After training completion, operant memory was retained for at least 16 days, and mice demonstrated sustained effort, as assessed with a progressive ratio schedule, to obtain reward pellets. Directly after CSD exposure (10th day), mice exhibited reduced effort for palatable food rewards, but also displayed reduced nose poking in general. The effects of CSD on effort were short-lived, with no lasting impact on effort-based reward motivation one week post-stress. As corticosterone (CORT) levels were increased at day 10 of CSD, but not at day 17, we hypothesized that CORT might mediate the acute effects of CSD on effort-based reward motivation. Indeed, CORT administration [100 μg/ml], supplied via the drinking water, mirrored the CSD-induced CORT spike and temporarily reduced reward motivation. Our findings emphasize that CSD does not result in long-term deficits in reward motivation, suggesting a resilient adaptive response in mice under unrestricted feeding conditions. This study underscores the necessity of considering temporal dynamics of stress impacts and highlights the modulating effects of CORT. These insights contribute to a deeper understanding of the resilience mechanisms in motivational impairments and pave the way for further research into factors facilitating this resilience.
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spelling doaj-art-daf3b863cb494bb983c3a7198cb837a62025-08-20T02:48:58ZengElsevierNeurobiology of Stress2352-28952024-11-013310069010.1016/j.ynstr.2024.100690Transient impact of chronic social stress on effort-based reward motivation in non-food restricted mice: Involvement of corticosteroneDanina Evertse0Pilar Alves-Martinez1Giulia Treccani2Marianne B. Müller3Frank J. Meye4Michael A. van der Kooij5Department for Developmental Origins of Disease, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the NetherlandsDepartment for Developmental Origins of Disease, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the NetherlandsLeibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany; Department for Systemic Neuroscience, Institute of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Marburg, Marburg, GermanyLeibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany; Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Translational Psychiatry, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University, Mainz, GermanyDepartment of Translational Neuroscience, Brain Center, UMC Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the NetherlandsLeibniz Institute for Resilience Research (LIR), Mainz, Germany; Corresponding author.Chronic stress has been connected to a reduced effort and motivational deficits. To study effort-based motivation in rodents, operant conditioning is often employed. However, caloric restriction is typically imposed simultaneously. Since caloric restriction is a stressor in its own right, this procedure interferes with data interpretation. Here, we investigate whether chronic social defeat stress (CSD), lasting 10 consecutive days, would alter effort-based reward motivation in mice trained under ad libitum food conditions. Utilizing operant FED3 boxes in home cages, mice were trained within eight days to nose poke for palatable food. After training completion, operant memory was retained for at least 16 days, and mice demonstrated sustained effort, as assessed with a progressive ratio schedule, to obtain reward pellets. Directly after CSD exposure (10th day), mice exhibited reduced effort for palatable food rewards, but also displayed reduced nose poking in general. The effects of CSD on effort were short-lived, with no lasting impact on effort-based reward motivation one week post-stress. As corticosterone (CORT) levels were increased at day 10 of CSD, but not at day 17, we hypothesized that CORT might mediate the acute effects of CSD on effort-based reward motivation. Indeed, CORT administration [100 μg/ml], supplied via the drinking water, mirrored the CSD-induced CORT spike and temporarily reduced reward motivation. Our findings emphasize that CSD does not result in long-term deficits in reward motivation, suggesting a resilient adaptive response in mice under unrestricted feeding conditions. This study underscores the necessity of considering temporal dynamics of stress impacts and highlights the modulating effects of CORT. These insights contribute to a deeper understanding of the resilience mechanisms in motivational impairments and pave the way for further research into factors facilitating this resilience.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352289524000869Social stressCorticosteroneMiceMotivation
spellingShingle Danina Evertse
Pilar Alves-Martinez
Giulia Treccani
Marianne B. Müller
Frank J. Meye
Michael A. van der Kooij
Transient impact of chronic social stress on effort-based reward motivation in non-food restricted mice: Involvement of corticosterone
Neurobiology of Stress
Social stress
Corticosterone
Mice
Motivation
title Transient impact of chronic social stress on effort-based reward motivation in non-food restricted mice: Involvement of corticosterone
title_full Transient impact of chronic social stress on effort-based reward motivation in non-food restricted mice: Involvement of corticosterone
title_fullStr Transient impact of chronic social stress on effort-based reward motivation in non-food restricted mice: Involvement of corticosterone
title_full_unstemmed Transient impact of chronic social stress on effort-based reward motivation in non-food restricted mice: Involvement of corticosterone
title_short Transient impact of chronic social stress on effort-based reward motivation in non-food restricted mice: Involvement of corticosterone
title_sort transient impact of chronic social stress on effort based reward motivation in non food restricted mice involvement of corticosterone
topic Social stress
Corticosterone
Mice
Motivation
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2352289524000869
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