Effect of early maternal separation stress on attention, spatial learning and social interaction behaviour.

Effect of early maternal separation stress on attention, spatial learning and social interaction behaviour. Exp Brain Res. 2019 Jun 01;: Authors: Kambali MY, Anshu K, Kutty BM, Muddashetty RS, Laxmi TR Abstract Early life stress is known to influence affective and cognitive functions in later life but comprehensive explanation for the impact of early life stress on attentional functions, behavioural control and social behaviour is inadequate. The early life stress was induced by exposing rat pups to 6 h of maternal separation and isolation (MS) stress from postnatal days 4-14 i.e. during SHRP period. The long-term impact of MS in these rats was evaluated by assessing anxiety, sociability, social preference, spatial learning and memory along with a detailed evaluation of attentional functions during young adulthood period. Adult male MS rats showed increased anxiety-like behaviour, impaired flexibility in social interactions, and increased reward-seeking behaviour. MS rats also showed faster spatial learning in the partially baited radial arm maze and exhibited moderately enhanced sustained attention in the 5-choice serial reaction time task (5CSRTT). These results suggest that early MS has both positive and negative consequences in adulthood. Increased cognitive ability in MS rats, as evidenced by the improved sustained attention and spatial learning and memory, is usually advantageous and indicates positive influences of early stre...
Source: Experimental Brain Research - Category: Neuroscience Authors: Tags: Exp Brain Res Source Type: research