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Do sex-related differences in stress responsiveness account for the higher rates of depression and anxiety in women? Because corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) increases brain norepinephrine, CRF is thought to have a role in the enhanced arousal and agitation seen in mood and anxiety disorders. These researchers examined sex-related differences in CRF signaling in male and female rats.
In the unstressed state, females showed a greater effect from CRF than males on firing rates of the locus ceruleus, the major center for norepinephrine outflow in the brain. This effect was associated with greater coupling of the second messenger G protein to the CRF receptor. Following stress, females did not internalize their CRF receptors (i.e., “hide” th…