Topic: learned suppression of escape

Animal survival depends on effective predator avoidance mechanisms. However, an innately threatening stimulus may prove non-threatening, allowing the animal to ignore it over time. Such adaptation is exemplified by the learned suppression of escape (LSE) paradigm, in which animals adapt to repeated threatening stimuli. Neuromodulation, and more specifically serotonin modulation has been implicated in the expression and modulation of defensive responses. However, its role in the LSE remains unknown. Recently, we observed an upregulation of the serotonin biosynthesis pathway in the dorsal periaq