{Reference Type}: Journal Article
{Title}: Repeated stress triggers seeking of a starvation-like state in anxiety-prone female mice.
{Author}: Kucukdereli H;Amsalem O;Pottala T;Lim M;Potgieter L;Hasbrouck A;Lutas A;Andermann ML;
{Journal}: Neuron
{Volume}: 112
{Issue}: 13
{Year}: 2024 Jul 3
{Factor}: 18.688
{DOI}: 10.1016/j.neuron.2024.03.027
{Abstract}: Elevated anxiety often precedes anorexia nervosa and persists after weight restoration. Patients with anorexia nervosa often describe self-starvation as pleasant, potentially because food restriction can be anxiolytic. Here, we tested whether repeated stress can cause animals to prefer a starvation-like state. We developed a virtual reality place preference paradigm in which head-fixed mice can voluntarily seek a starvation-like state induced by optogenetic stimulation of hypothalamic agouti-related peptide (AgRP) neurons. Prior to stress exposure, males but not females showed a mild aversion to AgRP stimulation. Strikingly, following multiple days of stress, a subset of females developed a strong preference for AgRP stimulation that was predicted by high baseline anxiety. Such stress-induced changes in preference were reflected in changes in facial expressions during AgRP stimulation. Our study suggests that stress may cause females predisposed to anxiety to seek a starvation state and provides a powerful experimental framework for investigating the underlying neural mechanisms.