The effect of antidepressants on rat aggressive behavior in the electric footshock and apomorphine-induced aggressiveness paradigms

The Serotonin Reuptake Inhibitor Fluoxetine Reduces Sex Steroid-Related Aggression in Female Rats An Animal Model of Premenstrual Irritability?

“…The observation that fluoxetine reduces aggressive behavior in female rats is in line with previous studies suggesting that serotonin depletion may increase aggression in rodents (see Eriksson and Humble 1990), and that serotonin reuptake inhibitors reduce aggressive behavior in some (but not all) animal models of aggression (Molina et al 1987;Olivier and Mos 1992;Fuller 1996;Mitchell and Redfern 1997;Sanchez and Meier 1997;Matto et al 1998). That the effect of fluoxetine in the present experiments was due to a specific effect on aggressive behavior rather than to a reduction in locomotor activity gains support from the experiment in which locomotion in fluoxetine-treated animals was tested and found to be no different from that of controls.…”

The effect of increased serotonergic neurotransmission on aggression: a critical meta-analytical review of preclinical studies

“…To date, however, there is no clear consensus regarding the specific role that the serotonergic system plays in the modulation of aggression; while some studies have provided evidence supporting an inhibitory role of 5-HT on aggression, other studies have shown that increased 5-HT activity results in heightened aggression levels (Carlini and Lindsey 1982;Coccaro et al 1990;Heiligenstein et al 1993;Matto et al 1998;Perreault et al 2003;Teicher et al 1990). In animal studies, the significant amount of variability in both treatment and behavioral paradigms and animal models used to investigate the role of 5-HT in aggression are possible sources for the lack of consistency in the results.…”

“…During the past few decades, selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) have been widely used as pharmacological tools to investigate the link between the serotonergic system and aggression (Datla et al 1991;Delville et al 1996a; Grimes and Melloni 2002;Kostowski et al 1984;Matto et al 1998). SSRIs (i.e., fluoxetine, fluvoxamine, sertraline, zimelidine, paroxetine, citalopram, and escitalopram) bind to the presynaptic 5-HT transporter and block 5-HT reuptake from the synaptic cleft resulting in increased 5-HT extracellular availability and neurotransmission (Schloss and Williams 1998).…”

“…Nonetheless, the role of the serotonergic system on aggression is still inconclusive. Results from different studies are inconsistent; there is evidence supporting an inhibitory Kostowski et al 1984;Lynn et al 2007;Perreault et al 2003;Pinna et al 2003;Rogoz et al 2001;TaravoshLahn et al 2006), facilitatory (Carlini and Lindsey 1982;Johns et al 2005;Mitchell and Redfern 1997;Ossowska et al 2002;Taravosh-Lahn et al 2006), and/or null (Matto et al 1998) effect of SSRIs on aggression. For example, treatment with SSRIs shows both reduced and facilitated maternal-, stress-, social isolation (SI)-, and pharmacologicalinduced (i.e., clonidine) aggression.…”

Animal Models of Depression: A Diathesis/Stress Approach

“…False negatives in these tests include the SSRIs (e.g. Matto et al, 1998a), while false positives include examples of 5-HT antagonists and neuroleptics (Maj, 1984;Maj et al, 1982). The aggressive behaviour induced by daily administration of apomorphine was attenuated by acute treatment with trazodone at non-sedative doses, which had little or no effects on forced swim behaviour or on levels of anxiety, while chronic treatment with trazodone slowed the development of apomorphine-induced aggression (Rudissaar et al, 2001).…”