Escitalopram and lorazepam differentially affect nesting and open field behaviour in deer mice exposed to an anxiogenic environment

Abstract

Large nest building behaviour (LNB), as expressed by a subpopulation of laboratory housed deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus bairdii), is persistent and repetitive. However, the response of LNB to an anxiogenic environment has not yet been investigated. Here, we employed LNB and normal nesting (NNB) expressing mice, subdivided into three drug-exposed groups per cohort, i.e. water (28 days), escitalopram (50 mg/kg/day, 28 days) and lorazepam (2 mg/kg/day; 4 days) to investigate this theme. During the last 4 days of drug exposure, mice were placed inside anxiogenic open field arenas which contained a separate enclosed and dark area for 4 consecutive nights during which open field and/or nest building assessments were performed. We show that LNB behaviour in deer mice is stable, irrespective of the anxiety-related context in which it is assessed, and that LNB mice find an open field arena to be less aversive compared to NNB mice. Escitalopram and lorazepam differentially affected the nesting and open field behaviour of LNB expressing mice, confirming deer mouse LNB as a repetitive behavioural phenotype that is related to a compulsive-like process which is regulated by the serotonergic system.

Keywords: Anxiety; Compulsivity; Deer mouse; Nest building; Open field; escitalopram; lorazepam.