Female dominance hierarchies influence responses to psychosocial stressors

Lydia Smith-Osborne; Anh Duong; Alexis Resendez; Rupert Palme; Jonathan P Fadok

doi:10.1016/j.cub.2023.03.020

Female dominance hierarchies influence responses to psychosocial stressors

Curr Biol. 2023 Apr 24;33(8):1535-1549.e5. doi: 10.1016/j.cub.2023.03.020. Epub 2023 Mar 31.

Authors

Lydia Smith-Osborne¹, Anh Duong², Alexis Resendez³, Rupert Palme⁴, Jonathan P Fadok⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA; Tulane National Primate Research Center, Covington, LA 70433, USA. Electronic address: lsmithosborne@tulane.edu.
² Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA; Neuroscience Program, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA.
³ Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA; Tulane Brain Institute, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA.
⁴ Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Veterinary Medicine, Veterinärplatz 1, 1210 Vienna, Austria.
⁵ Department of Psychology, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA; Tulane Brain Institute, Tulane University, New Orleans, LA 70118, USA. Electronic address: jfadok@tulane.edu.

Abstract

Social species form dominance hierarchies to ensure survival and promote reproductive success. Traditionally studied in males, rodent hierarchies are considered despotic, and dominant social rank results from a history of winning agonistic encounters. By contrast, female hierarchies are thought to be less despotic, and rank is conferred by intrinsic traits. Both social buffering and elevated social status confer resilience to depression, anxiety, and other consequences of chronic stress. Here, we investigate whether female social hierarchies and individual traits related to social rank likewise influence stress resilience. We observe the formation of dyadic female hierarchies under varying conditions of ambient light and circadian phase and subject mice to two forms of chronic psychosocial stress: social isolation or social instability. We find that stable female hierarchies emerge rapidly in dyads. Individual behavioral and endocrinological traits are characteristic of rank, some of which are circadian phase dependent. Further, female social rank is predicted by behavior and stress status prior to social introduction. Other behavioral characteristics suggest that rank is motivation-based, indicating that female rank identity serves an evolutionarily relevant purpose. Rank is associated with alterations in behavior in response to social instability stress and prolonged social isolation, but the different forms of stress produce disparate rank responses in endocrine status. Histological examination of c-Fos protein expression identified brain regions that respond to social novelty or social reunion following chronic isolation in a rank-specific manner. Collectively, female rank is linked to neurobiology, and hierarchies exert context-specific influence upon stress outcomes.

Keywords: corticosterone; dominance hierarchy; elevated plus maze; female; open field test; paraventricular thalamus; psychosocial stress; rearing; social instability; social isolation.

Publication types

Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural

MeSH terms

Animals
Anxiety
Female
Hierarchy, Social
Male
Mice
Phenotype
Social Dominance*
Social Isolation*

Abstract

Publication types

MeSH terms

Grants and funding