In a novel study on the contagion of depression, researchers found that a non-depressed mouse placed with depressed mice exhibited increased depressive behaviors after five weeks.
The research showed that depression spreads through physical contact, as non-depressed mice in separate cages experienced no contagion, indicating chemical or physical interaction may be essential.
Further experiments demonstrated that while some depressive behavior was observed in non-depressed mice exposed to bedding of depressed mice, it was much less pronounced than in direct contact.
Stress was tested as a possible factor in depression transmission; however, non-stressed mice placed with non-depressed, stressed mice showed no increase in depressive behaviors.
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