Lab study, 2001
Does the antidepressant fluoxetine reduce aggressive behavior during low-hormone phases in female rats?
Yes. Fluoxetine at 10 mg/kg given for 4-5 days reduced aggressive behavior both during the naturally low-hormone phase and after hormone replacement in rats without ovaries.
What they did
Researchers watched female Wistar rats when an unfamiliar rat was introduced into their cage (a test of aggression). They measured aggression across different phases of the natural hormone cycle. They removed some rats' ovaries and then gave them estrogen and progesterone to mimic the natural cycle. They tested fluoxetine to see if it reduced aggression.
What they found
Aggressive behavior was higher during phases with low hormone levels than during high hormone phases. Removing the ovaries eliminated aggression. When ovariectomized rats were given estrogen and progesterone cyclically, aggression returned in animals that had been aggressive before surgery. Fluoxetine at 10 mg/kg for 4-5 days reduced aggressive behavior both in naturally cycling rats and in hormone-replaced rats.
What it means for you
Cycle-linked aggression in rats might model the irritability some women with PMDD experience, and antidepressants like fluoxetine work the same way in both. The main limits are that this is an animal study and only some rats showed cycle-linked aggression.
10 mg/kg
fluoxetine dose
4-5 days
fluoxetine duration
About the study
- Original title
- The serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine reduces sex steroid-related aggression in female rats: an animal model of premenstrual irritability?
- Authors
- Ho HP, Olsson M, Westberg L et al.
- Journal
- Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology
- Year
- 2001
- Study design
- Lab study
- What was tested
- Fluoxetine at 10 mg/kg for 4-5 days, and estrogen and progesterone in ovariectomized rats
- Read the paper
- doi.org/10.1016/s0893-133x(00)00219-0
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