Abstract
The aim of this study was to analyse the effects of different timings of stress exposure on humoral immune response in mice previously distinguished by their own psychological profile. The Swiss mice were submitted to two different protocols of social confrontation, based on the timing of stress exposure in relation to an immune challenge: animals socially confronted daily for 2 weeks (SINT) and another group confronted daily for 3 weeks (LINT). Control groups were individually housed in a different room. All groups were intraperitoneally injected with sheep red blood cells (SRBC). The SINT group was challenged on the 1st and 7th days of confrontation, whereas the LINT group was challenged on the 7th and 14th days. Two days prior to the period of social conflict, the animals were tested in the elevated plus-maze (PM). The SINT protocol caused a more depressed primary immune response in the submissive mice than that observed in the dominants. The LINT protocol induced a marked increase in the primary immune response, which was more evident in the dominant mice, whilst no changes were observed in the secondary immune response. In the control and dominant groups, the correlation analysis attributed a higher anti-SRBC titre to the more anxious animals; by contrast, higher anti-SRBC titres were found in the less anxious submissive mice. These studies show that different physiological and behavioural adaptations to environmental demands over time, as well as different psychological profiles, constitute important factors to a better understanding of neuro-immune interactions.
Published Version
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