Selective effects of citalopram in a mouse model of stress-induced anhedonia with a control for chronic stress.
A stress-induced decrease in sucrose preference in rodents is regarded as an analog of anhedonia, a key symptom of depression. We investigated the effects of citalopram, administrated via drinking water (15 mg/kg/day), in a mouse model of stress-induced anhedonia. In this model, chronic stress induces anhedonia in a subset of C57BL/6N mice, while the remaining animals do not show a hedonic deficit or other depressive-like behaviors, although they are exposed to the same stressors as the anhedonic mice. Pre-stress and post-stress treatment with citalopram counteracted the development and maintenance of anhedonia and rescued normal floating in the forced swim test, demonstrating an antidepressant-like action. During the post-stress treatment, citalopram selectively increased sucrose preference and intake on the fourth week of treatment in anhedonic mice without affecting non-anhedonic animals. Citalopram also decreased elevated water consumption in the anhedonic group. Citalopram, administered 1 week before and during a 4-week stress procedure, decreased the percentage of anhedonic mice and reduced the increase of water intake in stressed mice. This study suggests that our chronic stress paradigm can serve as a model of anhedonia, in which antidepressant treatment is selectively effective in animals with a hedonic deficit.
Strekalova
Tatyana
T
Central Institute of Mental Health, Mannheim, Germany. stre@zi-mannheim.de
Gorenkova
Natalia
N
Schunk
Edward
E
Dolgov
Oleg
O
Bartsch
Dusan
D
D000818:Animals; D001835:Body Weight / Q000187:drug effects; D002908:Chronic Disease; D015283:Citalopram / Q000494:pharmacology*; D003863:Depression / Q000523:psychology; D004326:Drinking / Q000187:drug effects; D019417:Hindlimb Suspension; D007101:Immersion; D051379:Mice; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D012149:Restraint, Physical; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors / Q000494:pharmacology*; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000523:psychology*; D013395:Sucrose; D013550:Swimming / Q000523:psychology
D015283:Citalopram; D017367:Selective Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitors; D013395:Sucrose