Fucich Elizabeth A, Morilak David A
Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, Texas, USA.
Bio Protoc. 2018 Sep 5;8(17). doi: 10.21769/BioProtoc.2998.
Maladaptive avoidance behaviors are seen in many stress-related psychiatric illnesses. Patients with these illnesses favor passive, avoidant coping strategies rather than adaptive, active coping strategies. Preclinically, coping strategy can be measured in rats using the shock-probe defensive burying test, wherein rats receive a shock from an electrified probe inserted into a test cage that mimics their home cage environment, and behavioral output (immobility or burying) is recorded for 15 min following the shock. Immobility in response to the perceived threat of the shock-probe, associated with elevated stress hormone levels, is regarded as a passive, maladaptive coping strategy. In opposition, burying the probe is associated with lower stress hormone levels and is considered an active, adaptive coping style. In rats, chronic stress induces a shift from active to passive coping in this test (., proportionally less burying and more immobility), modeling the avoidant symptoms presented across many stress-related psychiatric illnesses. The stress-induced shifts in coping style and overall behavioral reactivity to the shock-probe provide a unique and well-validated measure of not only an anxiety-like behavioral response but also coping strategy selection in rat models of psychiatric illness.
适应不良的回避行为在许多与应激相关的精神疾病中都有出现。患有这些疾病的患者倾向于采用被动、回避的应对策略，而非适应性的、积极的应对策略。在临床前研究中，可以使用电击探针防御性埋埋测试在大鼠中测量应对策略，在此测试中，大鼠会受到插入模拟其家笼环境的测试笼中的带电探针的电击，电击后15分钟记录行为输出（不动或埋埋）。对电击探针感知到的威胁做出的不动反应，与应激激素水平升高相关，被视为一种被动、适应不良的应对策略。相反，掩埋探针与较低的应激激素水平相关，被认为是一种积极、适应性的应对方式。在大鼠中，慢性应激会导致该测试中从积极应对转变为被动应对（即，埋埋行为比例减少，不动行为增多），模拟了许多与应激相关的精神疾病中出现的回避症状。应激引起的应对方式转变以及对电击探针的整体行为反应性，不仅为焦虑样行为反应，也为精神疾病大鼠模型中的应对策略选择提供了一种独特且经过充分验证的测量方法。
