Biological Psychology Commons^™

Effects Of Development On Hpa Function Following Pubertal Stress, Brittany D. Elliott

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

For women, two of the greatest risk factors for affective disorders are adversity experienced during puberty and later becoming pregnant. We have created a translationally relevant mouse model where we address these complex risk factors. Previously, we discovered that pregnant mice (dams) that experienced chronic variable stress (CVS) during puberty display a blunted hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) response when exposed to an acute stressor. Interestingly, this alteration only first becomes apparent during pregnancy, which is a sensitive period for these effects due to normative neuroendocrine changes. Further investigation of the mechanisms underlying this dysfunction revealed altered gene expression in the paraventricular nucleus …

Age, Access, And Sweets-Motivation, Gehan Senthinathan

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Availability can have profound influence on the consumption of foods and drinks. The 2-phase intermittent-continuous protocol (ICP) examines sucrose solution intake in two groups of rats and finds intermittent access significantly increases intake. In Phase I, rats receive intermittent or continuous access to a 4% sucrose solution, and with adults this results in a long-term elevation (a doubling) in the intermittent group. In Phase II, when rats are shifted to common sucrose schedule, this difference is maintained. Adult rats given 16% sucrose in Phase I do not differ in consumption, but in Phase II with 4% sucrose, an unexpressed elevation …

First Thirty Days Of Life: Examining Calf Behavioral Development In Beluga Whales (Delphinapterus Leucas) And Pacific White-Sided Dolphins (Lagenorhyncus Obliquidens) At One Zoological Facility, Kendal Smith

Master's Theses

Cetacean development is important for general comparative understanding and the implementation of informed husbandry policies. Due to the inaccessibility of many of these species in the wild, researchers can study managed care populations to better understand basic developmental patterns of cetaceans, as well as to improve husbandry policies for facility animals. However, no previous studies have attempted to observe the behavioral development of Pacific white-sided dolphins (Lagenorhyncus obliquidens). Eight beluga whale calves and four Pacific white-sided dolphin calves were observed for the first 30 days of life to determine the developmental trajectory of several typically monitored behaviors. The …

The Role Of Progesterone Receptor In The Developing Medial Preoptic Nucleus, Diana Lalitsasivimol

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Numerous neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric diseases have a distinct sex bias in

Investigating Differing Degrees Of Foxo3a Expression In Adult Neural Stem Cells Between Age Groups In Zebrafish, Francis G. Bacik

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

One factor influencing organismal longevity is the activity of transcription factors of the “fork head domain” family, otherwise known as “Forkhead box” (Fox) proteins. Studies of the four isoforms of the “O” subclass of Fox proteins found in human genes have revealed a direct relationship between FoxO3a-dependent gene expression and the conservation of neural stem cell (NSC) in the adult brain, specifically in the subgranular zone of the dentate gyrus in the hippocampus and the subventricular zone of the cortex. This transcription factor has also been shown to regulate apoptosis in nervous tissue during embryonic development in zebrafish. The current …

Behavioral Deficits Across Development In A Novel Mouse Model Of Fetal Ethanol Effects, Andrew B. Hawkey

Theses and Dissertations--Psychology

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders (FASD) are a spectrum of anatomical, developmental and neurobehavioral impairments resulting from ethanol (ETOH) exposure during fetal development. Efforts to develop and screen novel pharmacotherapies against fetal ETOH effects depend heavily upon rodent models to provide indicators of the safety and efficacy of such compounds, in addition to helping better understand the underlying mechanisms to develop and test these pharmacotherapies. The following experiments describe the development of a novel mouse model of FASD using behavioral batteries to assess behavioral or cognitive deficits in juvenile and adolescent offspring (Experiment 1, Experiment 2) and whether deficits with this …

Observational Assessment Of Empathy In Parent-Child Verbal Exchanges And Their Influence On Child Behavior, Patty Carambot

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Empathy, the ability to both experientially share in and understand others’ thoughts, behaviors, and feelings, is vital for human adaptation. Deficits in empathy development have implications across the lifespan for the development of prosocial behavior, social functioning, mental health disorders, and risk for antisocial behavior (e.g., Guajardo, Snyder, & Petersen, 2009; Moreno, Klute & Robinson, 2008). In light of these societal and individual burdens, it is imperative to foster and strengthen the development of this ability early in life to prevent or ameliorate such negative outcomes. This type of prevention can take a variety of forms, but parent and child …

The Neurophysiology Of Intersensory Selective Attention And Task Switching, Jeremy W. Murphy

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Our ability to selectively attend to certain aspects of the world and ignore others is fundamental to our day-to-day lives. The need for selective attention stems from capacity limitations inherent in our perceptual and cognitive processing architecture. Because not every elemental piece of our environment can be fully processed in parallel, the nervous system must prioritize processing. This prioritization is generally referred to as selective attention. Meanwhile, we are faced with a world that is constantly in flux, such that we have to frequently shift our attention from one piece of the environment to another and from one task to …

Polychlorinated Biphenyl Exposure Alters Oxytocin Receptor Gene Expression And Maternal Behavior In Rat, Howard Cromwell

Howard Casey Cromwell

Polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) is a persistent organic pollutant known to induce diverse molecular and behavioral alterations. Effects of PCB exposure could be transmitted to future generations via changes in behavior and gene expression. Previous work has shown that PCB-exposure can alter social behavior. The present study extends this work by examining a possible molecular mechanism for these changes. Pregnant rats (Sprague-Dawley) were exposed through diet to a combination of non-coplanar (PCB 47 - 2,20,4,40-tetrachlorobiphenyl) and coplanar (PCB 77 - 3,30,4,40- tetrachlorobiphenyl) congeners. Maternal care behaviors were examined by evaluating the rate and quality of nest building on the last 4 …

The Development Of Sleep-Wake Rhythms And The Search For Elemental Circuits In The Infant Brain, Mark S. Blumberg, Andrew J. Gall, William D. Todd

Faculty Publications

Despite the predominance of sleep in early infancy, developmental science has yet to play a major role in shaping concepts and theories about sleep and its associated ultradian and circadian rhythms. Here we argue that developmental analyses help us to elucidate the relative contributions of the brainstem and forebrain to sleep-wake control and to dissect the neural components of sleep-wake rhythms. Developmental analysis also makes it clear that sleep-wake processes in infants are the foundation for those of adults. For example, the infant brainstem alone contains a fundamental sleep-wake circuit that is sufficient to produce transitions among wakefulness, quiet sleep, …

Fiber Pathways For Language In The Developing Brain: A Diffusion Tensor Imaging (Dti) Study, Iris J. Broce

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The present study characterized two fiber pathways important for language, the superior longitudinal fasciculus/arcuate fasciculus (SLF/AF) and the frontal aslant tract (FAT), and related these tracts to speech, language, and literacy skill in children five to eight years old. We used Diffusion Tensor Imaging (DTI) to characterize the fiber pathways and administered several language assessments. The FAT was identified for the first time in children. Results showed no age-related change in integrity of the FAT, but did show age-related change in the left (but not right) SLF/AF. Moreover, only the integrity of the right FAT was related to phonology but …

Effects Of Increased Levels Of Prenatal Mesotocin On Postnatal Individual Recognition And Stress Responsiveness In Northern Bobwhite Quail (Colinus Virginianus), Brittany Yusko

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Oxytocin (OT) plays a key role in the mediation of social and stress behaviors across many species; however, the mechanism is still unclear. The present study investigated the influence of prenatal levels of mesotocin (MT; avian homologue of OT) on postnatal social and stress behavior in Northern bobwhite quail. Experiment one determined endogenous levels of MT during prenatal development using an enzyme-linked immunoassay kit. Experiment two examined the influence of increased MT during prenatal development on chicks' individual recognition ability and stress response to a novel environment. Experiment one showed MT levels increased significantly throughout embryonic development. Experiment two showed …

Understanding The Role Of Nutritional Stress In The Adult And Developing Zebra Finch, Jessica Bayley Thompson

Wayne State University Dissertations

Songbirds are particularly susceptible to stress during the sensitive period for song learning. Thus the developmental stress hypothesis (DSH) proposes that adult song reflects a male's early life environment during this period. Nutritional stress (NS) has been shown to cause deficits in song learning and adult song output that are salient to females. Female song birds consistently prefer control males over those raised under NS, yet the effects NS on females are still unclear. The hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis (HPA) has been implicated in this process. However, evidence directly linking HPA functioning to the deficits due to NS have inconsistently shown elevations …

Selective Breeding For 50 Khz Ultrasonic Vocalization Emission Produces, Howard Cromwell

Howard Casey Cromwell

Ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) are emitted by rodents and can signal either negative or positive affective states in social and nonsocial contexts. Our recent work has utilized selective breeding based upon the emission of 50 kHz USVs in response to standard cross species hand play—namely experimenters ‘tickling’ rats. Previous work has shown that high-tickle responsive animals (i.e., rats emitting abundant 50 kHz USVs) are gregarious and express enhanced positive emotional behaviors relative to animals exhibiting low 50 kHz USVs. The present study extends this work by examining the developmental profile of play behavior and the suppression of play behavior by predator …

In Search Of The Neurobiological Substrates For Social Playfulness In Mammalian Brains, Stephen M. Siviy, Jaak Panksepp

Psychology Faculty Publications

Play behavior is a fundamental and intrinsic neurobehavioral process in the mammalian brain. Using rough-and-tumble play in the juvenile rat as a model system to study mammalian playfulness, some of the relevant neurobiological substrates for this behavior have been identified, and in this review this progress. A primary-process executive circuit for play in the rat that includes thalamic intralaminar nuclei, frontal cortex and striatum can be gleaned from these data. Other neural areas that may interact with this putative circuit include amygdala, ventral hypothalamus, periaqueductal gray (PAG), and deep tectum, as well as ascending dopamine systems which participate in all …

Rat Pup Social Motivation: A Critical Component Of Early Psychological Development, Howard C. Cromwell

Howard Casey Cromwell

Examining the role of the offspring in early social dynamics is especially difficult. Human developmental psychology has found infant behavior to be a vital part of the early environmental setting. In the rodent model, the different ways that a rodent neonate or pup can influence social dynamics are not well known. Typically, litters of neonates or pups offer complex social interactions dominated by behavior seemingly initiated and maintained by the primary caregiver (e.g., the dam). Despite this strong role for the caregiver, the young most likely influence the litter dynamics in many powerful ways including communication signals, discrimination abilities and …

Effects Of Chlordiazepoxide On Predator Odor-Induced Reductions Of Playfulness In Juvenile Rats, Stephen M. Siviy, Courtney L. Steets, Lauren M. Debrouse

Psychology Faculty Publications

The extent to which a non-sedative dose of chlordiazepoxide (CDP) is able to modify the behavioral responses toward a predator odor was assessed in juvenile rats. Play behavior was suppressed and defensive behaviors were enhanced in the presence of a collar previously worn by a cat, when tested 24 hours later in the same context as that where the exposure occurred, and when tested in a context different than that in which the exposure occurred for up to 3 hours after exposure. CDP had no effect on the ability of cat odor to suppress play when rats were tested in …

Developmental Emergence Of Power-Law Wake Behavior Depends Upon The Functional Integrity Of The Locus Coeruleus, Andrew J. Gall, Badal Joshi, Janet Best, Virginia R. Florang, Jonathan A. Doorn, Mark S. Blumberg

Faculty Publications

STUDY OBJECTIVES:

Daily amounts of sleep and wakefulness are accumulated in discrete bouts that exhibit distinct statistical properties. In adult mammals, sleep bout durations follow an exponential distribution whereas wake bout durations follow a power-law distribution. In infant Norway rats, however, wake bouts initially follow an exponential distribution and only transition to a power-law distribution beginning around postnatal day 15 (P15). Here we test the hypothesis that the locus coeruleus (LC), one of several wake-active nuclei in the brainstem, contributes to this developmental transition.

DESIGN:

At P7, rats were injected subcutaneously with saline or DSP-4, a neurotoxin that targets noradrenergic …

Characterization Of The Behavioral And Neurochemical Effects Of Nicotine Withdrawal In Adolescent And Adult Rats., Luis Alberto Natividad

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Previous studies have demonstrated that the behavioral effects of nicotine withdrawal are lower in adolescent versus adult rats. However, the neurochemical mechanisms that mediate these developmental differences are presently unclear. Much work has shown that nicotine reward is mediated via enhanced dopamine neurotransmission in the mesolimbic pathway which originates in the ventral tegmental area (VTA) and terminates in several forebrain structures including the nucleus accumbens (NAcc). More recently, studies have shown that nicotine withdrawal produces a decrease in NAcc dopamine transmission, an effect that is believed to serve as a neurochemical marker of withdrawal in adult rodents. The goal of …

The Development Of Day-Night Differences In Sleep And Wakefulness In Norway Rats And The Effect Of Bilateral Enucleation, Andrew J. Gall, William D. Todd, Baisali Ray, Cassandra M. Coleman, Mark S. Blumberg

Faculty Publications

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) exhibits circadian rhythmicity in fetal and infant rats, but little is known about the consequences of this rhythmicity for infant behavior. Here, in Experiment 1, we measured sleep and wakefulness in rats during the day and night in postnatal day (P)2, P8, P15 and P21 subjects. As early as P2, day-night differences in sleep-wake activity were detected. Nocturnal wakefulness began to emerge around P15 and was reliably expressed by P21. We hypothesized that the process of photic entrainment over the first postnatal week, which depends upon the development of connectivity between the retinohypothalamic tract (RHT) and …

Rats Selectively Bred For Low Levels Of 50 Khz Ultrasonic Vocalizations Exhibit Alterations In Early Social Motivation, Howard C. Cromwell

Howard Casey Cromwell

In rats, the rates of 50 kHz ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) can be used as a selective breeding phenotype and variations in this phenotype can be an indicator of affective states. The 50 kHz USV is elicited by rewarding stimuli (e.g., food, sexual behavior) and therefore can express a positive affective state. Conversely, the 22 kHz USV is elicited by aversive stimuli (e.g., presence of a predator, social defeat) indicating a negative affective state. In the present study, we tested the effect of selectively breeding for 50 kHz USVs on a variety of maternal social/emotional behaviors in young rat pups (PND …

Brainstem Cholinergic Modulation Of Muscle Tone In Infant Rats, Andrew J. Gall, Amy Poremba, Mark S. Blumberg

Faculty Publications

In week-old rats, lesions of the dorsolateral pontine tegmentum (DLPT) and nucleus pontis oralis (PnO) have opposing effects on nuchal muscle tone. Specifically, pups with DLPT lesions exhibit prolonged bouts of nuchal muscle atonia (indicative of sleep) and pups with PnO lesions exhibit prolonged bouts of high nuchal muscle tone (indicative of wakefulness). Here we test the hypothesis that nuchal muscle tone is modulated, at least in part, by cholinergically mediated interactions between these two regions. First, in unanesthetized pups, we found that chemical infusion of the cholinergic agonist carbachol (22 mM, 0.1 µL) within the DLPT produced high muscle …