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Coping Behavior Causes Asymmetric Changes in Neuronal Activation in the Prefrontal Cortex and Amygdala
Journal article   Open access   Peer reviewed

Coping Behavior Causes Asymmetric Changes in Neuronal Activation in the Prefrontal Cortex and Amygdala

Thomas A Stalnaker, Rodrigo A España and Craig W Berridge
Synapse (New York, N.Y.), v 63(1)
Jan 2009
PMID: 18932226
url
https://doi.org/10.1002/syn.20583View
Published, Version of Record (VoR) Open

Abstract

hemispheric asymmetry chewing behavior stress central nucleus of the amygdala dopamine
When faced with an inescapable stressor, animals may engage in ‘coping’ behaviors, such as chewing inedible objects, that attenuate some physiological responses to the stressor. Previous evidence indicates that dopamine neurotransmission in the right prefrontal cortex is modulated by coping processes. Here we tested whether medial prefrontal cortical (mPFC) neuronal activation, as measured by Fos-immunoreactivity (Fos-ir), was altered in rats chewing inedible objects during exposure to novelty stress. We found that chewing caused an increase in Fos-ir that was selective for the right hemisphere of the mPFC along with a decrease in Fos-ir that was selective for the right central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA), a region that may regulate dopamine neurotransmission in mPFC. These observations suggest that coping during stress engages mPFC and CeA neuronal activity asymmetrically.

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32 citations in Scopus

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Collaboration types
Domestic collaboration
Web of Science research areas
Neurosciences
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