Abstract
The evolution of the field of behavioral neuroscience is significantly dependent on innovative disruption triggered by our ability to model and phenotype animal models of neuropsychiatric disorders. The ability to adequately elicit and measure behavioral parameters are the fundaments on which the behavioral neuroscience community establishes the pathophysiological mechanisms of neuropsychiatric disorders as well as contributes to the development of treatment strategies for those conditions. Herein, we review how mood disorders, in particular depression, are currently modeled in rodents, focusing on the limitations of these models and particularly on the analyses of the data obtained with different behavioral tests. Finally, we propose the use of new paradigms to study behavior using multidimensional strategies that better encompasses the complexity of psychiatric conditions, namely depression; these paradigms provide holistic phenotyping that is applicable to other conditions, thus promoting the emergence of novel findings that will leverage this field.
Highlights
Mental health and mental health disorders are receiving progressively greater attention from the public. This important recognition is related to the effort of scientists and mental health providers to demonstrate its relevance, based on epidemiological data
There is no specific biomarker of depression and diagnosis is based on the guidelines defined in the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-5) or the International Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems (ICD-11); importantly, some of the core symptoms of depression are present in other psychiatric conditions (e.g., Schaub et al, 2021)
These models have different, but acceptable, degrees of face, construct, and predictive validity and have been instrumental to improve our mechanistic insights on the neurobiology and treatment of depression (Bessa et al, 2009; Duman, 2010; Nestler and Hyman, 2010; Mateus-Pinheiro et al, 2014)
Summary
Mental health and mental health disorders are receiving progressively greater attention from the public. Several experimental exposure protocols have been developed to model depression, including early life stress models (e.g., by maternal separation of young pups for 3 h/day for a period of approximately 2 weeks; Sanchez et al, 2001), social defeat models (Rygula et al, 2005; Krishnan et al, 2007) and chronic mild stress models (Willner et al, 1987, 1992; Willner, 1997, 2005) These models have different, but acceptable, degrees of face, construct, and predictive validity and have been instrumental to improve our mechanistic insights on the neurobiology and treatment of depression (Bessa et al, 2009; Duman, 2010; Nestler and Hyman, 2010; Mateus-Pinheiro et al, 2014). These tests are not immune to criticism, such as the fact that, in most cases, these tests require fooddeprivation which might interfere with the physiology and motivation of the animals
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
