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Epigenetic modulation of chronic anxiety and pain by histone deacetylation

Molecular Psychiatry volume 20, pages 1219–1231 (2015)Cite this article

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Abstract

Prolonged exposure of the central amygdala (CeA) to elevated corticosteroids (CORT) facilitates long-term anxiety and pain through activation of glucocorticoid receptors (GRs) and corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF). However, the mechanisms maintaining these responses are unknown. Since chronic phenotypes can be sustained by epigenetic mechanisms, including histone modifications such as deacetylation, we tested the hypothesis that histone deacetylation contributes to the maintenance of chronic anxiety and pain induced by prolonged exposure of the CeA to CORT. We found that bilateral infusions of a histone deacetylase inhibitor into the CeA attenuated anxiety-like behavior as well as somatic and visceral hypersensitivity resulting from elevated CORT exposure. Moreover, we delineated a novel pathway through which histone deacetylation could contribute to CORT regulation of GR and subsequent CRF expression in the CeA. Specifically, deacetylation of histone 3 at lysine 9 (H3K9), through the coordinated action of the NAD+-dependent protein deacetylase sirtuin-6 (SIRT6) and nuclear factor kappa B (NFκB), sequesters GR expression leading to disinhibition of CRF. Our results indicate that epigenetic programming in the amygdala, specifically histone modifications, is important in the maintenance of chronic anxiety and pain.

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Acknowledgements

BG-VM would like to acknowledge the generous funding support for her Research Career Scientist and Merit Review Awards from the Department of Veterans Affairs. We would also like to acknowledge the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation Imaging Core for their assistance and use of their confocal microscope.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Oklahoma Center for Neuroscience, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA,

    L Tran, C O Ligon & B Greenwood-Van Meerveld

  2. Department of Neuroscience, Georgetown University, Washington, DC, USA

    J Schulkin

  3. V.A. Medical Center, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA,

    B Greenwood-Van Meerveld

  4. Department of Physiology, University of Oklahoma Health Science Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA

    B Greenwood-Van Meerveld

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  1. L Tran
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Correspondence to B Greenwood-Van Meerveld.

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Tran, L., Schulkin, J., Ligon, C. et al. Epigenetic modulation of chronic anxiety and pain by histone deacetylation. Mol Psychiatry 20, 1219–1231 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1038/mp.2014.122

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