Impact of stress resilience and susceptibility on fear learning, anxiety, and alcohol intake

Sarah T. Gonzalez; Vincent Marty; Igor Spigelman; Steven P. Reise; Michael S. Fanselow

Neurobiology of Stress (Nov 2021)

Impact of stress resilience and susceptibility on fear learning, anxiety, and alcohol intake

Sarah T. Gonzalez,
Vincent Marty,
Igor Spigelman,
Steven P. Reise,
Michael S. Fanselow

Affiliations

Sarah T. Gonzalez: Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Staglin Center for Brain and Behavioral Health, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Vincent Marty: Division of Oral Biology & Medicine, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Igor Spigelman: Division of Oral Biology & Medicine, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Steven P. Reise: Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
Michael S. Fanselow: Department of Psychology, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Staglin Center for Brain and Behavioral Health, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Brain Research Institute, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Department of Psychiatry and Biobehavioral Sciences, University of California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Corresponding author. Department of Psychology, 8542, Pritzker Hall, Los Angeles, CA, 90095-1563, USA.

Journal volume & issue: Vol. 15
p. 100335

Abstract

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Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can develop after exposure to traumatic events and severely impacts the quality of life. PTSD is frequently comorbid with substance use disorders, with alcoholism being particularly common. However, not everyone who experiences trauma develops PTSD and the factors that render individuals susceptible or resilient to the effects of stress are unknown although gender appears to play an important role. Rodent models of stress exposure such as stress-enhanced fear learning (SEFL) recapitulate some aspects of PTSD symptomology, making them an invaluable tool for studying this disorder. This study examined whether exposure to a modified version of the SEFL procedure (4 footshocks instead of the standard 15 over 90 min) would reveal both susceptible and resilient subjects. Following stress exposure, distinct susceptible and resilient groups emerged that differed in fear learning and anxiety-related behavior as well as voluntary alcohol intake. Some aspects of stress susceptibility manifested differently in males compared to females, with susceptibility associated with increased alcohol intake in males and increased baseline anxiety in females.

Published in Neurobiology of Stress

ISSN: 2352-2895 (Online)
Publisher: Elsevier
Country of publisher: Netherlands
LCC subjects: Medicine: Internal medicine: Neurosciences. Biological psychiatry. Neuropsychiatry: Neurology. Diseases of the nervous system; Science: Physiology: Neurophysiology and neuropsychology
Website: http://www.journals.elsevier.com/neurobiology-of-stress/

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Abstract

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