Nucleus accumbens medium spiny neuron subtypes mediate depression-related outcomes to social defeat stress

Cholinergic modulation of dopamine pathways through nicotinic acetylcholine receptors

Nicotine addiction is highly prevalent in current society and is often comorbid with other diseases. In the central nervous system, nicotine acts as an agonist for nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) and its effects depend on location and receptor composition. Although nicotinic receptors are found in most brain regions, many studies on addiction have focused on the mesolimbic system and its reported behavioral correlates such as reward processing and reinforcement learning. Profound modulatory cholinergic input from the pedunculopontine and laterodorsal tegmentum to dopaminergic midbrain nuclei as well as local cholinergic interneuron projections to dopamine neuron axons in the striatum may play a major role in the effects of nicotine. Moreover, an indirect mesocorticolimbic feedback loop involving the medial prefrontal cortex may be involved in behavioral characteristics of nicotine addiction. Therefore, this review will highlight current understanding of the effects of nicotine on the function of mesolimbic and mesocortical dopamine projections in the mesocorticolimbic circuit.

Anhedonia and the brain reward circuitry in depression

Anhedonia, or the loss of pleasure in previously rewarding stimuli, is a core symptom of major depressive disorder that may reflect an underlying dysregulation in reward processing. The mesolimbic dopamine circuit, also known as the brain's reward circuit, is integral to processing the rewarding salience of stimuli to guide actions. Manifestation of anhedonia and associated depression symptoms like feelings of sadness, changes in appetite, and psychomotor effects, may reflect changes in the brain reward circuitry as a common underlying disease process. This review will synthesize the recent literature from human and rodent studies providing a circuit-level framework for understanding anhedonia in depression, with emphasis on the nucleus accumbens.

KCNN Genes that Encode Small-Conductance Ca2+-Activated K+ Channels Influence Alcohol and Drug Addiction

Small-conductance Ca(2+)-activated K(+) (KCa2) channels control neuronal excitability and synaptic plasticity, and have been implicated in substance abuse. However, it is unknown if genes that encode KCa2 channels (KCNN1-3) influence alcohol and drug addiction. In the present study, an integrative functional genomics approach shows that genetic datasets for alcohol, nicotine, and illicit drugs contain the family of KCNN genes. Alcohol preference and dependence QTLs contain KCNN2 and KCNN3, and Kcnn3 transcript levels in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) of genetically diverse BXD strains of mice predicted voluntary alcohol consumption. Transcript levels of Kcnn3 in the NAc negatively correlated with alcohol intake levels in BXD strains, and alcohol dependence enhanced the strength of this association. Microinjections of the KCa2 channel inhibitor apamin into the NAc increased alcohol intake in control C57BL/6J mice, while spontaneous seizures developed in alcohol-dependent mice following apamin injection. Consistent with this finding, alcohol dependence enhanced the intrinsic excitability of medium spiny neurons in the NAc core and reduced the function and protein expression of KCa2 channels in the NAc. Altogether, these data implicate the family of KCNN genes in alcohol, nicotine, and drug addiction, and identify KCNN3 as a mediator of voluntary and excessive alcohol consumption. KCa2.3 channels represent a promising novel target in the pharmacogenetic treatment of alcohol and drug addiction.

Mouse model of OPRM1 (A118G) polymorphism increases sociability and dominance and confers resilience to social defeat

A single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) in the human μ-opioid receptor gene (OPRM1 A118G) has been widely studied for its association in drug addiction, pain sensitivity, and, more recently, social behavior. The endogenous opioid system has been shown to regulate social distress and reward in a variety of animal models. However, mechanisms underlying the associations between the OPRM1 A118G SNP and these behaviors have not been clarified. We used a mouse model possessing the human equivalent nucleotide/amino acid substitution to study social affiliation and social defeat behaviors. In mice with the Oprm1 A112G SNP, we demonstrate that the G allele is associated with an increase in home-cage dominance and increased motivation for nonaggressive social interactions, similar to what is reported in human populations. When challenged by a resident aggressor, G-allele carriers expressed less submissive behavior and exhibited resilience to social defeat, demonstrated by a lack of subsequent social avoidance and reductions in anhedonia as measured by intracranial self-stimulation. Protection from social defeat in G-allele carriers was associated with a greater induction of c-fos in a resilience circuit comprising the nucleus accumbens and periaqueductal gray. These findings led us to test the role of endogenous opioids in the A112G mice. We demonstrate that the increase in social affiliation in G carriers is blocked by pretreatment with naloxone. Together, these data suggest a mechanism involving altered hedonic state and neural activation as well as altered endogenous opioid tone in the differential response to aversive and rewarding social stimuli in G-allele carriers.

Stress and the social brain: behavioural effects and neurobiological mechanisms

Stress often affects our social lives. When undergoing high-level or persistent stress, individuals frequently retract from social interactions and become irritable and hostile. Predisposition to antisocial behaviours - including social detachment and violence - is also modulated by early life adversity; however, the effects of early life stress depend on the timing of exposure and genetic factors. Research in animals and humans has revealed some of the structural, functional and molecular changes in the brain that underlie the effects of stress on social behaviour. Findings in this emerging field will have implications both for the clinic and for society.

Ventral hippocampal afferents to the nucleus accumbens regulate susceptibility to depression

Enhanced glutamatergic transmission in the nucleus accumbens (NAc), a region critical for reward and motivation, has been implicated in the pathophysiology of depression; however, the afferent source of this increased glutamate tone is not known. The NAc receives glutamatergic inputs from the medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC), ventral hippocampus (vHIP) and basolateral amygdala (AMY). Here, we demonstrate that glutamatergic vHIP afferents to NAc regulate susceptibility to chronic social defeat stress (CSDS). We observe reduced activity in vHIP in mice resilient to CSDS. Furthermore, attenuation of vHIP-NAc transmission by optogenetic induction of long-term depression is pro-resilient, whereas acute enhancement of this input is pro-susceptible. This effect is specific to vHIP afferents to the NAc, as optogenetic stimulation of either mPFC or AMY afferents to the NAc is pro-resilient. These data indicate that vHIP afferents to NAc uniquely regulate susceptibility to CSDS, highlighting an important, novel circuit-specific mechanism in depression.

An excitatory synapse hypothesis of depression

Depression is a common cause of mortality and morbidity, but the biological bases of the deficits in emotional and cognitive processing remain incompletely understood. Current antidepressant therapies are effective in only some patients and act slowly. Here, we propose an excitatory synapse hypothesis of depression in which chronic stress and genetic susceptibility cause changes in the strength of subsets of glutamatergic synapses at multiple locations, including the prefrontal cortex (PFC), hippocampus, and nucleus accumbens (NAc), leading to a dysfunction of corticomesolimbic reward circuitry that underlies many of the symptoms of depression. This hypothesis accounts for current depression treatments and suggests an updated framework for the development of better therapeutic compounds.

Cognition and mood-related behaviors in L3mbtl1 null mutant mice

Alterations in histone lysine methylation and epigenetic regulators of gene expression could play a role in the neurobiology and treatment of patients diagnosed with mood spectrum disorder, including depression and anxiety. Mutations and altered expression of various lysine methyltransferases (KMTs) and demethylases (KDMs) have been linked to changes in motivational and emotional behaviors in preclinical model systems. However, it is not known whether regulators operating downstream of histone lysine methylation could affect mood-related behavior. Malignant Brain Tumor (MBT) domain 'chromatin reader' proteins bind to methylated histone lysine residues and associate with chromatin remodeling complexes to facilitate or repress gene expression. MBT proteins, including the founding member, L3mbtl1, maintain high levels of expression in neurons of the mature brain. Here, we exposed L3mbtl1 null mutant mice to a wide range of tests exploring cognition and mood-relevant behaviors at baseline and in the context of social isolation, as a stressor to elicit depression-related behavior in susceptible mice. L3mbtl1 loss-of-function was associated with significant decreases in depression and and anxiety in some of the behavioral paradigms. This was not associated with a more generalized neurological dysfunction because cognition and memory remained unaltered in comparison to controls. These findings warrant further investigations on the role of MBT chromatin reader proteins in the context of emotional and affective behaviors.

Both food restriction and high-fat diet during gestation induce low birth weight and altered physical activity in adult rat offspring: the "Similarities in the Inequalities" model

We have previously described a theoretical model in humans, called "Similarities in the Inequalities", in which extremely unequal social backgrounds coexist in a complex scenario promoting similar health outcomes in adulthood. Based on the potential applicability of and to further explore the "similarities in the inequalities" phenomenon, this study used a rat model to investigate the effect of different nutritional backgrounds during gestation on the willingness of offspring to engage in physical activity in adulthood. Sprague-Dawley rats were time mated and randomly allocated to one of three dietary groups: Control (Adlib), receiving standard laboratory chow ad libitum; 50% food restricted (FR), receiving 50% of the ad libitum-fed dam's habitual intake; or high-fat diet (HF), receiving a diet containing 23% fat. The diets were provided from day 10 of pregnancy until weaning. Within 24 hours of birth, pups were cross-fostered to other dams, forming the following groups: Adlib_Adlib, FR_Adlib, and HF_Adlib. Maternal chow consumption and weight gain, and offspring birth weight, growth, physical activity (one week of free exercise in running wheels), abdominal adiposity and biochemical data were evaluated. Western blot was performed to assess D2 receptors in the dorsal striatum. The "similarities in the inequalities" effect was observed on birth weight (both FR and HF groups were smaller than the Adlib group at birth) and physical activity (both FR_Adlib and HF_Adlib groups were different from the Adlib_Adlib group, with less active males and more active females). Our findings contribute to the view that health inequalities in fetal life may program the health outcomes manifested in offspring adult life (such as altered physical activity and metabolic parameters), probably through different biological mechanisms.

Loss of dopamine D2 receptors increases parvalbumin-positive interneurons in the anterior cingulate cortex

Disruption to dopamine homeostasis during brain development has been implicated in a variety of neuropsychiatric disorders, including depression and schizophrenia. Inappropriate expression or activity of GABAergic interneurons are common features of many of these disorders. We discovered a persistent upregulation of GAD67+ and parvalbumin+ neurons within the anterior cingulate cortex of dopamine D2 receptor knockout mice, while other GABAergic interneuron markers were unaffected. Interneuron distribution and number were not altered in the striatum or in the dopamine-poor somatosensory cortex. The changes were already present by postnatal day 14, indicating a developmental etiology. D2eGFP BAC transgenic mice demonstrated the presence of D2 receptor expression within a subset of parvalbumin-expressing cortical interneurons, suggesting the possibility of a direct cellular mechanism through which D2 receptor stimulation regulates interneuron differentiation or survival. D2 receptor knockout mice also exhibited decreased depressive-like behavior compared with wild-type controls in the tail suspension test. These data indicate that dopamine signaling modulates interneuron number and emotional behavior and that developmental D2 receptor loss or blockade could reveal a potential mechanism for the prodromal basis of neuropsychiatric disorders.

Cytokine variations and mood disorders: influence of social stressors and social support

Stressful events have been implicated in the evolution of mood disorders. In addition to brain neurotransmitters and growth factors, the view has been offered that these disorders might be provoked by the activation of the inflammatory immune system as well as by de novo changes of inflammatory cytokines within the brain. The present review describes the impact of social stressors in animals and in humans on behavioral changes reminiscent of depressive states as well as on cytokine functioning. Social stressors increase pro-inflammatory cytokines in circulation as well as in brain regions that have been associated with depression, varying with the animal's social status and/or behavioral methods used to contend with social challenges. Likewise, in humans, social stressors that favor the development of depression are accompanied by elevated circulating cytokine levels and conversely, conditions that limit the cytokine elevations correlated with symptom attenuation or reversal. The implications of these findings are discussed in relation to the potentially powerful effects of social support, social identity, and connectedness in maintaining well-being and in diminishing symptoms of depression.

Striatal direct and indirect pathways control decision-making behavior

Despite our ever-changing environment, animals are remarkably adept at selecting courses of action that are predictive of optimal outcomes. While requiring the contribution of a number of brain regions, a vast body of evidence implicates striatal mechanisms of associative learning and action selection to be critical to this ability. While numerous models of striatal-based decision-making have been developed, it is only recently that we have begun to understand the precise contributions of specific subpopulations of striatal neurons. Studies utilizing contemporary cell-type-specific technologies indicate that striatal output pathways play distinct roles in controlling goal-directed and social behaviors. Here we review current models of striatal-based decision-making, discuss recent developments in defining the functional roles of striatal output pathways, and assess how striatal dysfunction may contribute to the etiology of various neuropathologies.