Neuroscience
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Rapid remodeling of neurons provides the brain with flexibility to adjust to environmental fluctuations. In Siberian hamsters, hippocampal dendritic morphology fluctuates across the day. To reveal the regulatory mechanism of diurnal remodeling of hippocampal neurons, we investigated the effects of light signals applied under different photoperiodic conditions on dendritic morphology. ⋯ Spine density of dentate gyrus (DG) dendrites was increased by a dark pulse in LD and spine density of CA1 basilar dendrites was decreased by a light pulse in SD. These results indicate that light signals induce rapid remodeling of dendritic morphology in a hippocampal subregion-specific manner. A light pulse in SD decreased hippocampal expression of fetal liver kinase 1 (Flk1), a receptor for vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), raising the possibility that VEGF-FLK1 signaling might be involved in the rapid decrease of branching or spine density of CA1 basilar dendrites by light.
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Glial cell line-derived neurotrophic factor (GDNF) exerts neuroprotective and neurorestorative effects on neurons and GDNF plays a significant role in maintenance of the dopamine neurons utilizing grafting to create a nigrostriatal microcircuit of Gdnf knockout (Gdnf(-/-)) tissue. To further evaluate the role of GDNF on organization of the nigrostriatal system, single or double grafts of ventral mesencephalon (VM) and lateral ganglionic eminence (LGE) with mismatches in Gdnf genotypes were performed. The survival of single grafts was monitored utilizing magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and cell survival and graft organization were evaluated with immunohistochemistry. ⋯ The TH-positive innervation of co-grafts was sparse when the striatal co-grafts were derived from the Gdnf(-/-) tissue while dense and patchy when innervating LGE producing GDNF. The TH-positive innervation overlapped with the organization of dopamine and cyclic AMP-regulated phosphoprotein-relative molecular mass 32,000 (DARPP-32)-positive neurons, that was disorganized in LGE lacking GDNF production. In conclusion, GDNF is important for a proper striatal organization and for survival of TH-positive neurons in the presence of the striatal tissue.
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Deep-brain stimulation at high frequencies (HFS) directed to the subthalamic nucleus (STN) is used increasingly to treat patients with Parkinson's disease. However, the mechanism of action by which HFS of the STN achieves its therapeutic effects remains unresolved. Insofar as lesions of the STN have similar therapeutic benefit, a favored hypothesis is that HFS acts by suppressing neural activity in the STN. ⋯ Finally, we demonstrated, in the absence of ether treatment, that HFS and chemical stimulation of the STN with local injections of kainic acid both induced c-fos expression in the globus pallidus, entopeduncular nucleus and substantia nigra. Together these results suggest that the principal action of STN stimulation at high frequencies is to excite rather than inhibit its efferent targets. Given that Parkinsonism has been associated with increased levels of inhibitory output activity from the basal ganglia, it is unlikely that excitation of output structures revealed in this study provides a basis for deep-brain stimulation's therapeutic action.
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We tested the hypothesis that the angiotensinergic neurotransmission, specifically in the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus (PVN), is involved in the cardiovascular modulation during acute restraint stress (RS) in rats. The intravenous pretreatment with the angiotensin AT1 receptor antagonist losartan (5mg/kg) inhibited the pressor response to RS, but did not affect the concomitant RS-evoked tachycardiac response. Because similar effects were observed after the PVN pretreatment with CoCl2, and considering the high density of angiotensin receptors reported in the PVN, we studied the effect of the pretreatment of the PVN with either losartan or the angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitor lisinopril on the RS-evoked cardiovascular response. ⋯ When animals were pretreated with such doses of either losartan or lisinopril, the cardiovascular RS-evoked response was not affected, thus indicating that even if there were a complete leakage of the drug to the periphery, it would not affect the cardiovascular response to RS. This observation favors the idea that the effect of the intravenous injection of 5mg/kg of losartan on the RS-related cardiovascular response would be explained by an action across the blood-brain barrier, possibly in the PVN. In conclusion, the results suggest that an angiotensinergic neurotransmission in the PVN acting on AT1-receptors modulates the vascular component of the RS-evoked cardiovascular response.
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We have shown that intravenous immunoglobulin (IVIG) contains anti-Aβ autoantibodies and IVIG could induce beta amyloid (Aβ) efflux from cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) to blood in both Multiple Sclerosis (MS) and Alzheimer disease (AD) patients. However, the molecular mechanism underlying IVIG-induced Aβ efflux remains unclear. In this study, we used amyloid precursor protein (AβPP) transgenic mice to investigate if the IVIG could induce efflux of Aβ from the brain and whether low-density lipoprotein receptor-related protein-1 (LRP1), a hypothetic Aβ transporter in blood-CSF barrier (BCB); could mediate this clearance process. ⋯ In the mechanistic study, IVIG could induce Aβ efflux through the in vitro BCB membrane formed by cultured BCB epithelial cells. Both receptor-associated protein (RAP; a functional inhibitor of LRP1), and LRP1 siRNA were able to significantly inhibit the Aβ efflux. Should Aβ prove to be the underlying cause of AD, our results strongly suggest that IVIG could be beneficial in the therapy for AD by inducing efflux of Aβ from the brain through the LRP1 in the BCB.