Activation of the ventral medial prefrontal cortex during an uncontrollable stressor reproduces both the immediate and long-term protective effects of behavioral control

• Published in: Neuroscience Vol. 154; no. 4; pp. 1178 - 1186
• Main Authors: Amat, J., Paul, E., Watkins, L.R., Maier, S.F.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Oxford Elsevier Ltd 17.07.2008; Elsevier
• Subjects: 5-HT; Animals; Behavior, Animal - physiology; Biological and medical sciences; Conditioning, Operant; dorsal raphe nucleus; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; GABA Antagonists - pharmacology; learned helplessness; Learning - physiology; Male; Microdialysis; Microinjections; Neurology; picrotoxin; Picrotoxin - pharmacology; Prefrontal Cortex - drug effects; Prefrontal Cortex - physiology; Rats; Rats, Sprague-Dawley; Serotonin - metabolism; stress resilience; Stress, Psychological - metabolism; Vertebrates: nervous system and sense organs; DRN; PLSD; HCC; IS; PIC; ES; dorsal raphe nucleus; FR-1; vPFCm; microdialysis; stress resilience; picrotoxin; ANOVA; learned helplessness; VEH; 5-HT; PL/IL; escapable stress; fixed ratio-1; prelimbic/infralimbic; vehicle; analysis of variance; home cage controls; ventral medial prefrontal cortex; inescapable shock; protected least significant difference; Serotonin; Central nervous system; Prefrontal cortex; Long term; Stress; Encephalon; Learned helplessness; Microdialysis; Neurotransmitter; Raphe nucleus; Behavior; Picrotoxin

The degree of behavioral control that an organism has over a stressor determines the behavioral and neurochemical sequelae of the stressor, with the presence of control preventing the typical outcomes that occur when the stressor is uncontrollable (e.g. failure to learn, exaggerated fear, dorsal rap...