Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34346493›Full record

ArticleThe international journal of neuropsychopharmacology2021

Chronic Stress Alters Astrocyte Morphology in Mouse Prefrontal Cortex.

Sierra A Codeluppi, Dipashree Chatterjee, Thomas D Prevot, Yashika Bansal, Keith A Misquitta, Etienne Sibille, Mounira Banasr

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in The international journal of neuropsychopharmacology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 51 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
51citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
6.6field-weighted citation impact, top 2% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

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.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

51 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 84 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Article
  3. AiScience · 2026
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  7. Article
  8. Article
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  10. Cerebellar astrocytic alterations in depression.Translational psychiatry · 2026
    Article
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  12. Review
  13. Article
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.

Sierra A CodeluppiCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada.
Dipashree ChatterjeeCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada.
Thomas D PrevotCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada.ORCID 0000-0002-6774-603X
Yashika BansalCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada.
Keith A MisquittaCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada.
Etienne SibilleCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada.
Mounira BanasrCampbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH), Toronto, Canada.
Centre for Addiction and Mental Health · CA

Funding

CIHR PGT165852
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundNeuromorphological changes are consistently reported in the prefrontal cortex of patients with stress-related disorders and in rodent stress models, but the effects of stress on astrocyte morphology and the potential link to behavioral deficits are relatively unknown.

methodsTo answer these questions, transgenic mice expressing green fluorescent protein (GFP) under the glial fibrillary acid protein (GFAP) promotor were subjected to 7, 21, or 35 days of chronic restraint stress (CRS). CRS-induced behavioral effects on anhedonia- and anxiety-like behaviors were measured using the sucrose intake and the PhenoTyper tests, respectively. Prefrontal cortex GFP+ or GFAP+ cell morphology was assessed using Sholl analysis, and associations with behavior were determined using correlation analysis.

resultsCRS-exposed male and female mice displayed anxiety-like behavior at 7, 21, and 35 days and anhedonia-like behavior at 35 days. Analysis of GFAP+ cell morphology revealed significant atrophy of distal processes following 21 and 35 days of CRS. CRS induced similar decreases in intersections at distal radii for GFP+ cells accompanied by increased proximal processes. In males, the number of intersections at the most distal radius step significantly correlated with anhedonia-like behavior (r = 0.622, P < .05) for GFP+ cells and with behavioral emotionality calculated by z-scoring all behavioral measured deficits (r = -0.667, P < .05). Similar but not significant correlations were observed in females. No correlation between GFP+ cell atrophy with anxiety-like behavior was found.

conclusionChronic stress exposure induces a progressive atrophy of cortical astroglial cells, potentially contributing to maladaptive neuroplastic and behavioral changes associated with stress-related disorders.

Indexed as

AnimalsAnxietyAstrocytesDepressionFemaleGlial Fibrillary Acidic ProteinMaleMiceMice, TransgenicNeuronal PlasticityPrefrontal CortexRestraint, PhysicalStress, PsychologicalGlial Fibrillary Acidic ProteinAstrogliacell morphologychronic stressprefrontal cortexsholl analysis

Identifiers

PMID34346493
PMCPMC8538896
OpenAlexW3188757894

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY-NC
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

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.