Researchers at the University of California San Francisco (UCSF) have discovered a brain circuit involving the amygdala and hippocampus that predicts stress resilience in mice. The study, published in Nature, found that mice with disrupted neural communication in this circuit struggled to seek rewards, but activating the neurons restored resilience and improved decision-making.
The team used chemogenetics to stimulate brain activity in less resilient mice, which then displayed normal behavior and sought sweetened water. This breakthrough suggests potential new, non-invasive treatments for chronic stress and depression in humans.
The researchers observed that stress changes activity in a brain circuit in mice, distinguishing those that will recover from those that won’t. They found that stimulating the neurons in the less resilient mice made them stop ruminating and seek pleasure in sugar-sweetened water.
The study’s lead author, Mazen Kheirbek, said that seeing the brain signals set back on course in mice suggests that doing the same in humans could act as an antidepressant. The team plans to explore different ways of changing these brain patterns to develop a new, non-invasive treatment for depression.
The findings have significant implications for understanding how the brain creates divergent experiences and finding treatments for stress disorders.
Source: https://neurosciencenews.com/amygdala-hippocampus-resilience-stress-28178