Female rats are more responsive than are males to the protective effects of voluntary physical activity against the behavioral consequences of inescapable stress

Stress. 2023 Aug 7:1-14. doi: 10.1080/10253890.2023.2245492. Online ahead of print.ABSTRACTCommon stress-related mental health disorders affect women more than men. Physical activity can provide protection against the development of future stress-related mental health disorders (i.e., stress resistance) in both sexes, but whether there are sex differences in exercise-induced stress resistance is unknown. We have previously observed that voluntary wheel running (VWR) protects both female and male rats against the anxiety- and exaggerated fear-like behavioral effects of inescapable stress, but the time-course and magnitude of VWR-induced stress resilience has not been compared between sexes. The goal of the current study was to determine whether there are sex differences in the time-course and magnitude of exercise-induced stress resistance. In adult female and male Sprague Dawley rats, 6 weeks of VWR produced robust protection against stress-induced social avoidance and exaggerated fear. The magnitude of stress protection was similar between sexes and was independent of reactivity to shock, general locomotor activity, and circulating corticosterone. Interestingly, 3 weeks of VWR prevented both stress-induced social avoidance and exaggerated fear in females, but only prevented stress-induced social avoidance in males. Ovariectomy altered wheel running behavior in females such that it resembled that of males, however; 3 weeks of VWR still protected females against behavioral con...
Source: Stress - Category: Research Authors: Source Type: research