AUGUST 7,
2019
Fear can be
measured in the brain and fearful life-threatening events can leave
quantifiable long-lasting traces in the neural circuitry of the brain with
enduring effects on behaviour, as shown most clearly in post-traumatic stress
disorder (PTSD).
A new study
by Western University demonstrates that the fear predators inspire can leave
long-lasting traces in the neural circuitry of wild animals and induce
enduringly fearful behaviour, comparable to effects seen in PTSD research.
The findings
of this study, led by Western University's Liana Zanette, Scott
MacDougall-Shackleton and Michael Clinchy, were published today
in Scientific Reports.
For the
first time, Zanette, her students and collaborators experimentally demonstrated
that the effects predator exposure
has on the neural circuitry of fear in wild animals can
persist beyond the period of the immediate 'fight or flight' response and
instead can remain measurable more than a week later, in animals exposed in the
interim to natural environmental and social conditions.
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