Individual variability in behavior and functional networks predicts vulnerability using an animal model of PTSD

David Dopfel, Pablo D. Perez, Alexander Verbitsky, Hector Bravo-Rivera, Yuncong Ma, Gregory J. Quirk and Nanyin Zhang ()
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David Dopfel: Pennsylvania State University
Pablo D. Perez: Pennsylvania State University
Alexander Verbitsky: Pennsylvania State University
Hector Bravo-Rivera: University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine
Yuncong Ma: Pennsylvania State University
Gregory J. Quirk: University of Puerto Rico School of Medicine
Nanyin Zhang: Pennsylvania State University

Nature Communications, 2019, vol. 10, issue 1, 1-12

Abstract: Abstract Only a minority of individuals experiencing trauma subsequently develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, whether differences in vulnerability to PTSD result from a predisposition or trauma exposure remains unclear. A major challenge in differentiating these possibilities is that clinical studies focus on individuals already exposed to trauma without pre-trauma conditions. Here, using the predator scent model of PTSD in rats and a longitudinal design, we measure pre-trauma brain-wide neural circuit functional connectivity, behavioral and corticosterone responses to trauma exposure, and post-trauma anxiety. Freezing during predator scent exposure correlates with functional connectivity in a set of neural circuits, indicating pre-existing circuit function can predispose animals to differential fearful responses to threats. Counterintuitively, rats with lower freezing show more avoidance of the predator scent, a prolonged corticosterone response, and higher anxiety long after exposure. This study provides a framework of pre-existing circuit function that determines threat responses, which might directly relate to PTSD-like behaviors.

Date: 2019
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-09926-z

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