Frontiers in Behavioral Neuroscience (Dec 2021)

Interactions Between Experience, Genotype and Sex in the Development of Individual Coping Strategies

  • Rossella Ventura,
  • Rossella Ventura,
  • Simona Cabib,
  • Simona Cabib,
  • Lucy Babicola,
  • Lucy Babicola,
  • Diego Andolina,
  • Diego Andolina,
  • Matteo Di Segni,
  • Cristina Orsini

DOI
https://doi.org/10.3389/fnbeh.2021.785739
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 15

Abstract

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Coping strategies, the first line of defense against adversities, develop through experience. There is consistent evidence that both genotype and sex contribute to the development of dysfunctional coping, leading to maladaptive outcomes of adverse experiences or to adaptive coping that fosters rapid recovery even from severe stress. However, how these factors interact to influence the development of individual coping strategies is just starting to be investigated. In the following review, we will consider evidence that experience, sex, and genotype influence the brain circuits and neurobiological processes involved in coping with adversities and discuss recent results pointing to the specific effects of the interaction between early experiences, genotype, and stress in the development of functional and dysfunctional coping styles.

Keywords