ArticlePsychopharmacology2005
Escalated aggression as a reward: corticosterone and GABA(A) receptor positive modulators in mice.
Article in Psychopharmacology, 2005. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 48 papers.
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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Who cites it
48 citing papers in PubMed, 96 citations in OpenAlex.
- Allopregnanolone concentration and mood--a bimodal association in postmenopausal women treated with oral progesterone.Psychopharmacology · 2006Trial
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- Lateral hypothalamus to dorsal raphe nucleus projections modulate intraspecific attack behavior in male mice.iScience · 2026Article
- An integrative assay for measuring social aversion and motivation in freely behaving mice.Cell reports methods · 2025Article
- Operant social self-administration in male CD1 mice.Psychopharmacology · 2025Article
- Neural mechanisms underlying strain preference behaviour and plasticity in mice.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- An Aggressive Interaction Rapidly Increases Brain Androgens in a Male Songbird during the Non-breeding Season.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2024Article
- Activation of glucagon-like peptide-1 receptors reduces the acquisition of aggression-like behaviors in male mice.Translational psychiatry · 2022Article
- Sex differences in appetitive and reactive aggression.Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology · 2022Article
- Responses and functions of dopamine in nucleus accumbens core during social behaviors.Cell reports · 2022Article
- Neural circuit mechanisms that govern inter-male attack in mice.Cellular and molecular life sciences : CMLS · 2021Review
- The impact of social variables in preclinical models of cocaine abuse.Faculty reviews · 2021Review
- Rage Against the Machine: Advancing the study of aggression ethology via machine learning.Psychopharmacology · 2020Review
- The Brain Emotional Systems in Addictions: From Attachment to Dominance/Submission Systems.Frontiers in human neuroscience · 2020Article
- Effect of Aggressive Experience in Female Syrian Hamsters on Glutamate Receptor Expression in the Nucleus Accumbens.Frontiers in behavioral neuroscience · 2020Article
- Relevance of number and physiological status of conspecifics in preventing stress-induced decreases in newly proliferated cells and neuroblasts.Psychopharmacology · 2019Article
- Animal Models of (or for) Aggression Reward, Addiction, and Relapse: Behavior and Circuits.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2019Review
- Nucleus Accumbens Drd1-Expressing Neurons Control Aggression Self-Administration and Aggression Seeking in Mice.The Journal of neuroscience : the official journal of the Society for Neuroscience · 2019Article
- Translational models of adaptive and excessive fighting: an emerging role for neural circuits in pathological aggression.F1000Research · 2019Review
- Social defeat stress and escalation of cocaine and alcohol consumption: Focus on CRF.Neurobiology of stress · 2018Review
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
rationaleIndividuals seek out the opportunity to fight, but the mechanisms behind this positively reinforcing effect of aggression have yet to be understood.
objectivesThe aims of this study were to (1) describe behavioral and corticosterone elevations that occur in aggressive mice conditioned to respond for the opportunity to fight another mouse, (2) determine if corticosterone elevations are necessary for operant responding and escalated aggression, and (3) determine if corticosterone elevations alter the aggression-heightening effects of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)(A) receptor positive modulators. METHODS AND
resultsAggressive male CFW mice were conditioned to respond under the control of a fixed-interval 10-min (FI10) schedule that reinforced their operant behavior by the presentation of an intruder mouse into their home cage. After the FI10, aggressive behavior was ca. 75% higher than the species-typical levels of fighting and plasma corticosterone was more than twice as high after briefly fighting and/or responding on the FI10 schedule. Inhibition of corticosterone synthesis by metyrapone (30-100 mg/kg) reduced both conditioned responding as well as the aggressive behavior after the FI. Although the benzodiazepine midazolam (0.3-3 mg/kg) heightened species-typical aggressive behavior, it did not increase the high level of aggression engendered by the FI schedule. However, midazolam (0.3 mg/kg) and the neurosteroid allopregnanolone (17 mg/kg) both heightened aggression when given after corticosterone synthesis inhibition by metyrapone (56 mg/kg).
conclusionsThese data suggest that corticosterone elevations are required for responding that is motivated by aggressive behavior and for escalated aggression that follows this responding. Corticosterone elevations also appear to inhibit the aggression heightening effect of GABA(A) receptor positive modulators.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.