Microglial Over-Activation by Social Defeat Stress Contributes to Anxiety- and Depressive-Like Behaviors.

Hyper activation of the neuroimmune system is strongly related to the development of neuropsychiatric disorders. Psychosocial stress has been postulated to play an important role in triggering anxiety and major depression. In preclinical models, there is mounting evidence that social defeat stress activates microglial cells in the central nervous system. This type of stress could be one of the major factors in the development of these psychopathologies. Here, we reviewed the most recent literature on social defeat and the associated immunological reactions. We focused our attention on microglial cells and kept the effect of social defeat over microglia separate from the effect of this stressor on other immune cells and the influence of peripheral immune components in priming central immune reactions. Furthermore, we considered how social defeat stress affects microglial cells and the consequent development of anxiety- and depressive-like states in preclinical studies. We highlighted evidence for the negative impact of the over-activation of the neuroimmune system, especially by the overproduction of pro-inflammatory mediators and cytotoxins. Overproduction of these molecules may cause cellular damage and loss or decreased function of neuronal activity by excessively pruning synaptic connections that ultimately contribute to the development of anxiety- and depressive-like states.

It is pleasant and heavy: convergence of visual contents in tobacco, alcohol and food marketing in Brazil.

The tactical use of visuoperceptual content in marketing may encourage impulsive consumption of unhealthy products. In this study, the application of visuoperceptual content was compared in advertisements used by industries of tobacco, alcohol and food. The aim was to ascertain whether similarities exist in the strategies used as variables for the selection of commercial stimuli, such as color, position and size. Scion Image and Corel Draw Graphics Suite software were used to analyze the content of a non-probabilistic sample of advertising images (N = 150). Differences were identified in the use of the colors green (p = 0.04) and red (p = 0.01), but not in the use of the color blue (p = 0.64), suggesting that induction of feelings of pleasantness resulting from the use of the color blue may be associated with the advertising in the alcohol and tobacco industries. Regarding the position of the commercial stimuli, a predominance of the use of quadrants 'C' (p = 0.00) and 'D' (p = 0.01) was found in all three industries, indicating a similar use of areas perceived as being 'heavier'. As to the size, 78% of advertisements placed the commercial stimuli within a range of 0-25% of the total image. The results showed some similarities in the use of visuoperceptual content in advertisements for tobacco, alcohol and food, especially between tobacco and alcohol. The article offers a convergence analysis of these three industries altogether, providing additional subsidies for the formulation of protection policies.