CXCL12 and Anxiety: Furthermore, chemokine CXCL12, which has been considered a standard pro-inflammatory molecule for a long time, may also contribute to inflammatory-related anxiety as supported by the evidence that an LPS challenge induced chemokine CXCL12 production in the amygdala through astrocyte activation, while microinjection of CXCL12 into the amygdala is sufficient to induce anxious-like behavior in mice.