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Negative self-experiences shape responses to others’ emotional states

Mice react differently to others’ stress depending on their own past experience of the same (but not different) stress. Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) neuron activity in the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) specifically modulates the influence of affective past experience on emotional reactions to others, which was estrus-dependent in females and dominance-dependent in males.

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Fig. 1: Self-experience affects emotion recognition and is modulated by mPFC-CRF neurons.

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This is a summary of: Maltese, F. et al. Self-experience of a negative event alters responses to others in similar states through prefrontal cortex CRF mechanisms. Nat. Neurosci. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-024-01816-y (2024).

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Negative self-experiences shape responses to others’ emotional states. Nat Neurosci 28, 11–12 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41593-024-01817-x

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