ArticleBiology of sex differences2025
Sex differences in the microglial response to stress and chronic alcohol exposure in mice.
Article in Biology of sex differences, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
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Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed.
- Article
- Microglial Adaptations to Chronic Nicotine in the Cerebellum: Proteomic Evidence for Neuroimmune Vulnerability.Journal of proteome research · 2026Article
- Not just neurons: glial mechanisms driving sex-specific vulnerability to withdrawal and relapse in substance use disorder.Frontiers in neuroendocrinology · 2026Review
- Naltrexone treatment improves anxiety- and depression-like behavior in alcohol-exposed mice.Behavioural pharmacology · 2026Article
- Article
- Impact of impaired endogenous neurosteroidogenesis on outcomes following chronic alcohol exposure.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2026Article
- A common Iba1 antibody labels vasopressin neurons in mice.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
7 authors.
Funding
Abstract
backgroundWomen are more susceptible to stress-induced alcohol drinking, and preclinical data suggest that stress can increase alcohol intake in female rodents; however, a comprehensive understanding of the neurobiological processes underlying this sex difference is still emerging. Neuroimmune signaling, particularly by microglia, the brain's macrophages, is known to contribute to dysregulation of limbic circuits following stress and alcohol exposure. Females exhibit heightened immune reactivity, so we set out to characterize sex differences in the microglial response to stress and alcohol exposure.
methodsMale and female C57BL/6J mice were administered alcohol over 15 or 22 trials of a modified Drinking in the Dark paradigm, with repeated exposure to inescapable footshock stress and the stress-paired context. Mice were perfused immediately after drinking and we performed immunohistochemical analyses of microglial density, morphology, and protein expression in subregions of the amygdala and hippocampus.
resultsWe observed dynamic sex differences in microglial phenotypes at baseline and in response to stress and alcohol. Microglia in the hippocampus displayed more prominent sex differences and heightened reactivity to stress and alcohol. Chronic alcohol exposure decreased density of amygdala microglia and lysosomal expression.
conclusionWe analyzed multiple measures of microglial activation, resulting in a comprehensive assessment of microglial changes mediated by sex, stress, and alcohol. These findings highlight the complexity of microglial contributions to the development of AUD and comorbid mood and stress disorders in men and women.
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