Corticosterone impairs contextual fear recall after reactivation in the ovariectomized rat model of menopause

Abstract Menopause affects most physiological processes, including cognitive functions, although, the extent to which these functions are affected is not clear. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of corticosterone (CORT) administration after reactivation on contextual fear recall in ovariectomized female rats. Adult female rats were ovariectomized and trained in a fear conditioning chamber (conditioned stimulus, CS) using electrical foot shock (unconditioned stimulus, US); with moderate or strong intensities. After reactivation 48 h later, rats were injected with CORT (0.3, 3 or 10 mg/kg) or vehicle. 2, 4 and 11 days after memory reactivation freezing behavior was scored. The results showed that CORT at the low dose of 0.3 mg/kg when injected after memory reactivation impaired memory recall in both moderate and strong shock on the third test (day 11). Because extinction process occurs after repeated presentation of CS without US (electrical shock during reactivation and recall days), memory impairment in our experiments is more likely to be due to increased memory extinction. Our findings suggest that CORT administration after reactivation of fear memory impairs recall in the rat model of menopause and more research is needed to find the exact mechanisms involved in this process which is of great value for treating cognitive problems during menopause.