Pharmacological inhibition of FKBP51 mitigates early life adversity-induced social deficits

Early life adversity (ELA) is a major risk factor for psychiatric disorders, but targeted preventative strategies are lacking due to poor mechanistic insight. The FKBP51 protein, a co-chaperone of the glucocorticoid receptor, is a key mediator of stress vulnerability. We tested if pharmacological inhibition of FKBP51 with the selective inhibitor SAFit2 prevents the long-term consequences of ELA. Mice exposed to ELA exhibited persistent deficits in social behavior, manifesting as social subordination in adolescence and adulthood. Early-life SAFit2 treatment fully rescued these ELA-induced behavioral impairments. Transcriptional profiling across six stress-relevant brain regions revealed that SAFit2 normalized ELA-driven gene expression changes, particularly in the medial prefrontal cortex and nucleus accumbens. Functional analysis showed the rescue converged on immunoregulatory and neuroactive ligand-receptor signaling pathways. Our findings establish FKBP51 as a critical pharmacological target for reversing the lasting impact of early life adversity on brain function, offering a path toward preventative treatment for ELA-related psychopathology.