Vulnerability to anergia in rodents: individual differences, genetic dopamine depletion and the role of the cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor

Abstract

Motivated behavior is characterized by a high degree of activity, vigor, or persistence. Nucleus Accumbens (NAcb) dopamine (DA) plays an important role in behavioral activation and effort-related decision-making. Anergia, fatigue, psychomotor slowing and effort-related choices is a dysfunctional motivational set of symptoms that appears in patients with major depressive disorders, Parkinson’s disease and other neuropsychiatric disorders. The study of individual differences in vulnerability to these symptoms is of key importance to establish therapeutic procedures and preventive strategies, as well as to study the role of the cerebral dopamine neurotrophic factor (CDNF) as a marker of neuroprotection in behavioral and effort-related decision making. We have employed different animal models, and different behavioral paradigms of effort-related decision-making with translational potential to characterize these symptoms. In conclusion, as a translational outcome of the current thesis is that could help to understand the vulnerability to surfer anergia or fatigue in different types of subjects.