Social instability and immunity in rhesus monkeys: the role of the sympathetic nervous system.
Title | Social instability and immunity in rhesus monkeys: the role of the sympathetic nervous system. |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2015 |
Authors | Capitanio JP, Cole SW |
Journal | Philos Trans R Soc Lond B Biol Sci |
Volume | 370 |
Issue | 1669 |
Date Published | 2015 May 26 |
ISSN | 1471-2970 |
Keywords | Animals, Antibodies, Viral, Behavior, Animal, Catecholamines, Cytokines, Killer Cells, Natural, Lymph Nodes, Macaca mulatta, Male, Methamphetamine, RNA, Messenger, Simian Immunodeficiency Virus, Social Behavior, Stress, Psychological, Sympathetic Nervous System, Sympathomimetics |
Abstract | Social instability can adversely affect endocrine, immune and health outcomes, and recent evidence suggests that the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) might mediate these effects. We conducted two studies with adult male rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) to understand how social conditions affect measures of SNS activity and immune function. In Experiment 1, animals were socialized in stable social conditions, then were switched to unstable (stressful) social conditions, then were returned to stable conditions. Analysis revealed quadratic effects for measures of behaviour, urinary metabolites of epinephrine and norepinephrine, and expression of immune response genes: as expected, social instability adversely impacted most measures, and the effects remediated upon re-imposition of stable conditions. Cortisol levels were unaffected. In Experiment 2, we used the sympathomimetic drug methamphetamine to challenge the SNS; animals also underwent socialization in stable or unstable groups. Surprisingly, while methamphetamine elevated plasma catecholamines, responses in lymph nodes tracked the social, and not the drug, condition: social instability upregulated the density of SNS fibres in lymph nodes and downregulated Type I interferon gene expression. Together, these results indicate that the SNS is extremely sensitive to social conditions; full understanding of the adverse effects of social instability on health should therefore incorporate measures of this health-relevant system. |
DOI | 10.1098/rstb.2014.0104 |
Alternate Journal | Philos. Trans. R. Soc. Lond., B, Biol. Sci. |
PubMed ID | 25870391 |
PubMed Central ID | PMC4410371 |
Grant List | AI52737 / AI / NIAID NIH HHS / United States DA024441 / DA / NIDA NIH HHS / United States MH049033 / MH / NIMH NIH HHS / United States OD011107 / OD / NIH HHS / United States P51 OD011107 / OD / NIH HHS / United States P51 RR000169 / RR / NCRR NIH HHS / United States R01 AI052737 / AI / NIAID NIH HHS / United States R01 DA024441 / DA / NIDA NIH HHS / United States R01 MH049033 / MH / NIMH NIH HHS / United States |