Objective: Ultrasonic vocalisations (USVs) emitted by rats may reflect affective states. Specifically, 50 kHz calls emitted during juvenile playing are associated with positive affect. Given that depression is characterised by profound alterations in this domain, we proposed that USV calls may configure a suitable tool for assessing depressive-like states. Utilising the Flinders Sensitive Line (FSL), a well-established animal model of depression, we assessed USV calls emitted by rats during tickling, a procedure based on juvenile rats' rough-and-tumble play.
Methods: Juvenile FSL rats and their control counterparts, the Flinders Resistant Line (FRL) and Sprague Dawley, were submitted to tickling sessions to imitate rats playing behaviour. The rats were tickled daily for 6 weeks starting at PND21. Tickling sessions were recorded for further acoustic analysis of 50 kHz calls.
Results: Tickling increased 50 kHz calls in all the strains. FSL rats emitted more calls than control strains and exhibited a higher number of flat-trill combination calls.
Conclusion: Tickling is a robust method for inducing 50 kHz USV calls. Analysing USV calls emitted during tickling configurates a suitable method for studying affective states relevant to depression. FSL rats did not present anhedonia but rather higher reward sensitivity, which may underlie their stress vulnerability.
Keywords: Rats; anhedonia; depression; reward; vocalisation.