Postpartum depression is a mood disorder with a distinct neurobiological and behavioural profile occurring during and after the postpartum period. Dopamine pathways in the limbic regions of the brain such as the nucleus accumbens (NAc) have been shown to be involved in the etiology of depressive disorders. Selective activation of the dopamine D1–D2 receptor heteromer has been demonsrated to cause depressive- and anxiogenic-like behaviours in rats. The maternal separation model involving three hour daily maternal separation (MS) from pups on PPD 2–15 on anxiety-, depression- and anhedonia-like behaviors in the dams was investigated, together with plasma corticosterone, oxytocin and D1–D2 heteromer expression in the NAc core and shell in non-MS and MS dams. Depression, anxiety and anhedonia-like behaviours were measured using the forced swim test, elevated plus maze and sucrose preference test, respectively. In comparison to non-MS controls, MS dams displayed slightly higher depressive and anxiety-like behaviours with no difference in anhedonia-like behaviours. The MS dams displayed significantly increased care of pups after their retrieval with higher bouts of nursing, lower latency to nurse, lower bouts of out nest behaviour and decreased self-care. There was no significant alteration in D1–D2 heteromer expression in NAc core and shell between mothers of either group (MS, non-MS) or between postpartum rats and nonpregnant female rats, remaining higher than in male rats. This data provides evidence for the maternal separation model in producing a postpartum depression-like profile, but with maternal resilience able to modify behaviours to counteract any potential deleterious consequences to the pups.

产后抑郁症是一种情绪障碍，在产后期间和之后都有明显的神经生物学和行为特征。已经显示出大脑边缘区域如伏伏核（NAc）的多巴胺途径与抑郁症的病因有关。多巴胺D1-D2受体异聚体的选择性激活已被破坏，从而引起大鼠的抑郁和焦虑症行为。研究了母体分离模型，该模型涉及母猪每天在PPD 2-15上与母犬在大坝中的焦虑，抑郁和类似性快感行为有关，每天三小时的母体分离，以及血浆皮质酮，催产素和D1-D2异聚体的表达。非MS和MS坝中的NAc核和壳。使用强迫游泳测试来测量抑郁，焦虑和类似快感的行为，高架迷宫和蔗糖偏好测试。与非MS对照相比，MS大坝表现出稍高的抑郁和焦虑样行为，而在类似快感障碍的行为上没有差异。MS大坝在取回后显示出对幼崽的护理显着增加，护理次数更多，护理延迟更短，巢行为减少，自理能力降低。两组母亲（MS，非MS）之间或产后大鼠与未怀孕雌性大鼠之间NAc核和壳中D1-D2异聚体表达没有显着变化，仍然高于雄性大鼠。这些数据为产妇分离模型产生产后抑郁样症状提供了证据，