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The effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model
Ngala, E. M. 2025. The Effects of Intergenerational Epigenetics of Traumatic Stress on a Sexual Defeat Rat Model. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/0afae107-97c9-4386-b004-33d5656c8922
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| Format: | Thesis |
| Language: | English |
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Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University
2025
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| _version_ | 1867613743842590720 |
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| access_status_str | Open Access |
| author | Ngala, Elvis Mbiydzenyuy |
| author2 | Qulu-Appiah, Lihle |
| author_browse | Ngala, Elvis Mbiydzenyuy Qulu-Appiah, Lihle |
| author_facet | Qulu-Appiah, Lihle Ngala, Elvis Mbiydzenyuy |
| author_sort | Ngala, Elvis Mbiydzenyuy |
| collection | Thesis |
| dc_rights_str_mv | Stellenbosch University |
| description | Ngala, E. M. 2025. The Effects of Intergenerational Epigenetics of Traumatic Stress on a Sexual Defeat Rat Model. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/0afae107-97c9-4386-b004-33d5656c8922 |
| format | Thesis |
| id | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/132549 |
| institution | Stellenbosch University (South Africa) |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2026-06-10T12:41:00.180Z |
| license_str | Other — see source repository |
| provenance_str_mv | Harvested via OAI-PMH from SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| publishDateRange | 2025 |
| publishDateSort | 2025 |
| publisher | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| publisherStr | Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| record_format | dspace |
| source_str | SUNScholar — Stellenbosch University Repository |
| spelling | oai:scholar.sun.ac.za:10019.1/132549 The effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model Ngala, Elvis Mbiydzenyuy Qulu-Appiah, Lihle Hemmings, Sian Megan Joanna Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences. Dept. of Biomedical Sciences. Division of Medical Physiology. Epigenetics Aggressiveness -- Genetic aspects Sex offenders -- Psychology Sexual abuse victims -- Psychology Stress (Psychology) -- Animal models UCTD Ngala, E. M. 2025. The Effects of Intergenerational Epigenetics of Traumatic Stress on a Sexual Defeat Rat Model. Unpublished doctoral dissertation. Stellenbosch: Stellenbosch University [online]. Available: https://scholar.sun.ac.za/items/0afae107-97c9-4386-b004-33d5656c8922 Thesis (PhD)--Stellenbosch University, 2025. ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Sexual violence is a global issue with profound societal, psychological, and economic consequences. While much research focuses on survivors, limited attention has been paid to the physiological and genetic mechanisms underlying perpetrator behaviour. This study addresses this critical gap by utilizing a modified Sexual Aggression Test (SxAT) in male Wistar rats to investigate the intergenerational effects of traumatic stress on aggression and sexually aggressive behaviours. The study examines the interplay between social isolation, stressinduced neurochemical changes, epigenetic modifications, and aggression-linked gene expression. Social isolation significantly increased aggressive behaviours, including forced mounting and offensive grooming, observed both prior to sexual aggression (Resident-Intruder Test, pre-SxAT) and during the SxAT. Neurochemical analyses revealed that serotonin and oxytocin levels were inversely associated with aggressive behaviours, while corticosterone and vasopressin levels were positively associated, highlighting the role of HPA axis dysregulation in aggression. Epigenetic analyses explored the effects of housing conditions in F0 males and the combined influence of F0 male housing and prenatal stress on DNA methylation (DNAm) patterns in F1 males. In F0 males, social isolation was associated with region-specific changes in DNAm across aggression-linked genes (AR, CRHR1, OXTR, 5-HTR1A), reflecting the impact of chronic stress. In F1 males, the interplay of F0 male housing conditions and prenatal stress resulted in distinct DNAm patterns, with significant region- and gene-specific variations. The study also examined maternal care behaviours and their influence on F1 offspring. Reduced maternal care, influenced by prenatal stress and paternal social isolation, exacerbated aggression and anxiety-like behaviours in F1 males, while higher maternal care mitigated these effects. Maternal care emerged as a critical protective factor against the adverse behavioural and neurobiological outcomes associated with prenatal and postnatal stressors. This study provides novel insights into the biological and epigenetic mechanisms underlying sexual aggression, emphasizing the complex interplay between environmental stressors, neurochemical changes, and epigenetic regulation across generations. The findings underscore the potential for targeted interventions addressing stress and its epigenetic consequences to mitigate aggressive behaviours and prevent the perpetuation of sexual violence. AFRIKAANSE OPSOMMING: Geen opsomming beskikbaar. Doctoral 2025-06-11T07:05:52Z 2025-06-11T07:05:52Z 2025-03 Thesis https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/132549 en Stellenbosch University xxvii, 452 pages : illustrations application/pdf Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University |
| spellingShingle | Epigenetics Aggressiveness -- Genetic aspects Sex offenders -- Psychology Sexual abuse victims -- Psychology Stress (Psychology) -- Animal models UCTD Ngala, Elvis Mbiydzenyuy The effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model |
| title | The effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model |
| title_full | The effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model |
| title_fullStr | The effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model |
| title_full_unstemmed | The effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model |
| title_short | The effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model |
| title_sort | effects of intergenerational epigenetics of traumatic stress on a sexual defeat rat model |
| topic | Epigenetics Aggressiveness -- Genetic aspects Sex offenders -- Psychology Sexual abuse victims -- Psychology Stress (Psychology) -- Animal models UCTD |
| url | https://scholar.sun.ac.za/handle/10019.1/132549 |
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