Association between social dominance hierarchy and PACAP expression in the extended amygdala, corticosterone, and behavior in C57BL/6 male mice

The natural alignment of animals into social dominance hierarchies produces adaptive, and potentially maladaptive, changes in the brain that influence health and behavior. Aggressive and submissive behaviors assumed by animals through dominance interactions engage stress-dependent neural and hormonal systems that have been shown to correspond with social rank. Here, we examined the association between social dominance hierarchy status established within cages of group-housed mice and the expression of the stress peptide PACAP in the bed nucleus of the stria terminalis (BNST) and central nucleus of the amygdala (CeA). We also examined the relationship between social dominance rank and blood corticosterone (CORT) levels, body weight, motor coordination (rotorod) and acoustic startle. Male C57BL/6 mice were ranked as either Dominant, Submissive, or Intermediate based on counts of aggressive/submissive encounters assessed at 12 weeks-old following a change in homecage conditions. PACAP expression was significantly higher in the BNST, but not the CeA, of Submissive mice compared to the other groups. CORT levels were lowest in Submissive mice and appeared to reflect a blunted response following events where dominance status is recapitulated. Together, these data reveal changes in specific neural/neuroendocrine systems that are predominant in animals of lowest social dominance rank, and implicate PACAP in brain adaptations that occur through the development of social dominance hierarchies.