| First Author | Lewejohann L | Year | 2010 |
| Journal | Behav Brain Res | Volume | 211 |
| Issue | 2 | Pages | 220-8 |
| PubMed ID | 20347882 | Mgi Jnum | J:159672 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:4452259 | Doi | 10.1016/j.bbr.2010.03.035 |
| Citation | Lewejohann L, et al. (2010) Social status and day-to-day behaviour of male serotonin transporter knockout mice. Behav Brain Res 211(2):220-8 |
| abstractText | Humans differing in the amount of serotonin transporter (5-HTT) are known to be differentially prone to neuropsychiatric disorders. Genetically modified mice eliciting abrogated transporter function display a number of corresponding phenotypic changes in behavioural tests. However, a characterisation of the effects of serotonergic malfunction on the day-to-day life is still missing. Yet, this is precisely what an animal model is needed for in order to be meaningful for translation into human anxiety disorders. Homozygous 5-HTT knockout mice, heterozygous 5-HTT mice, and wild-type controls were housed in groups of males of the same genotype in spacious and richly structured cages. This enriched environment allowed the animals to show a wide variety of spontaneous behavioural patterns quantified by a trained experimenter. Additionally the mice could emigrate from the cages through a tunnel and a water basin. The results revealed unaltered daily behaviour in heterozygous mice. In knockouts, however, reduced locomotion, increased socio-positive behaviour, and reduced aggressive behaviour were observed. Nevertheless, all groups showed a significant amount of aggressive behaviour and there were no differences regarding the establishment of dominance relationships, emigration, and the number of animals remaining in their groups. In a second step, pairs of heterozygous and wild-type males and pairs of knockout and wild-type males were brought together in order to assess their ability to obtain a dominant social position in a direct encounter. Heterozygous mice did not differ from wild-type mice but knockout mice were significantly inferior in obtaining the dominant position. In addition to confirming multiple effects of abolished 5-HTT function in a real life situation, this study supports the central role of the 5-HTT in the control of social interactions. |
