title: The localization of brain sites of anxiogenic-like effects of urocortin-2.
abstract: The influence of intracerebroventricullary-administered urocortin-2, a selective corticotropin-releasing factor receptor 2 (CRF(2)) agonist, on rat anxiety-like behaviour, the expression of c-Fos and CRF, and plasma corticosterone levels was examined in the present study. When applied to animals exposed to the conditioned fear-induced context, urocortin-2 enhanced a conditioned freezing fear response. Urocortin-2 also significantly decreased rat exploratory activity in the open field test. Exogenous urocortin-2 increased the conditioned fear-induced expression of c-Fos in the central amygdala (CeA), and parvocellular neurons of the paraventricular hypothalamic nucleus (pPVN), and revealed the effect of conditioned fear in the medial amygdala (MeA). In the fear-conditioned animals, immunocytochemistry showed an increase in the density of CRF-related immunoreactive complexes in the lateral septum (LS), 35min after urocortin-2 administration and 10min after the conditioned fear test, compared with saline-pretreated fear-conditioned animals. These data suggest a role of urocortin-2 in the behavioural and immunocytochemical responses to stress, in which it strengthens the measures of anxiety-like responses.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neurochemistry, Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology, 9 Sobieskiego Street, 02-957 Warsaw, Poland. skorzews@ipin.edu.pl
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Skórzewska
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Bidziński
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Lehner
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Turzyńska
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Sobolewska
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Wisłowska-Stanek
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Maciejak
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Szyndler
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Płaźnik
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents / Q000494:pharmacology / Q000627:therapeutic use; D001007:Anxiety / Q000188:drug therapy*; D001921:Brain / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000187:drug effects*; D003214:Conditioning, Classical / Q000187:drug effects; D003345:Corticosterone / Q000097:blood; D003346:Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone / Q000378:metabolism; D005239:Fear / Q000187:drug effects; D057967:Infusions, Intraventricular; D008297:Male; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos / Q000378:metabolism; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D018019:Receptors, Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone / Q000819:agonists; D054832:Urocortins / Q000494:pharmacology* / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D014151:Anti-Anxiety Agents; C101531:CRF receptor type 2; D016760:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-fos; D018019:Receptors, Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone; D054832:Urocortins; D003346:Corticotropin-Releasing Hormone; D003345:Corticosterone