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McCoy AM, Prevot TD, Mian MY, Sharmin D, Ahmad AN, Cook JM, Sibille EL, Lodge DJ. Extrasynaptic localization is essential for α5GABA A receptor modulation of dopamine system function. eNeuro 2024; 11:ENEURO.0344-23.2023. [PMID: 38413199 PMCID: PMC10972738 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0344-23.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/06/2023] [Accepted: 09/07/2023] [Indexed: 02/29/2024] Open
Abstract
Dopamine system dysfunction, observed in animal models with psychosis-like symptomatology, can be restored by targeting Gamma-Aminobutyric Acid type A receptors (GABAAR) containing the α5, but not α1, subunit in the ventral hippocampus (vHipp). The reason for this discrepancy in efficacy remains elusive; however, one key difference is that α1GABAARs are primarily located in the synapse, whereas α5GABAARs are mostly extrasynaptic. To test whether receptor location is responsible for this difference in efficacy, we injected a small interfering ribonucleic acid (siRNA) into the vHipp to knock down radixin, a scaffolding protein that holds α5GABAARs in the extrasynaptic space. We then administered GL-II-73, a positive allosteric modulator of α5GABAARs (α5-PAM) known to reverse shock-induced deficits in dopamine system function, to determine if shifting α5GABAARs from the extrasynaptic space to the synapse would prevent the effects of α5-PAM on dopamine system function. As expected, knockdown of radixin significantly decreased radixin-associated α5GABAARs and increased the proportion of synaptic α5GABAARs, without changing the overall expression of α5GABAARs. Importantly, GL-II-73 was no longer able to modulate dopamine neuron activity in radixin-knockdown rats, indicating that the extrasynaptic localization of α5GABAARs is critical for hippocampal modulation of the dopamine system. These results may have important implications for clinical use of GL-II-73, as periods of high hippocampal activity appear to favor synaptic α5GABAARs, thus efficacy may be diminished in conditions where aberrant hippocampal activity is present.Significance Statement Currently available treatments for psychosis, a debilitating symptom linked with several brain disorders, are inadequate. While they can help manage symptoms in some patients, they do so imperfectly. They are also associated with severe side effects that can cause discontinuation of medication. This study provides preclinical evidence that the drug, GL-II-73, possesses the ability to modulate dopamine activity, a key player in psychosis symptoms, and further provides some mechanistic details regarding these effects. Overall, this work contributes to the growing body of literature suggesting that GL-II-73 and similar compounds may possess antipsychotic efficacy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra M. McCoy
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas 78229
- South Texas Veterans Health Care System, Audie L. Murphy Division, San Antonio, Texas 78229
| | - Thomas D. Prevot
- Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute of CAMH, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2C1, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A1, Canada
| | - Md Yeunus Mian
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53211
| | - Dishary Sharmin
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53211
| | - Adeeba N. Ahmad
- University of Texas, Rio Grande Valley, Edinburg, Texas 78539
| | - James M. Cook
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin 53211
| | - Etienne L. Sibille
- Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute of CAMH, Toronto, Ontario M5G 2C1, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A1, Canada
- Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario M5S 1A1, Canada
| | - Daniel J. Lodge
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas 78229
- South Texas Veterans Health Care System, Audie L. Murphy Division, San Antonio, Texas 78229
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Zhang XQ, Xu L, Zhu XY, Tang ZH, Dong YB, Yu ZP, Shang Q, Wang ZC, Shen HW. D-serine reconstitutes synaptic and intrinsic inhibitory control of pyramidal neurons in a neurodevelopmental mouse model for schizophrenia. Nat Commun 2023; 14:8255. [PMID: 38086803 PMCID: PMC10716516 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-43930-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2022] [Accepted: 11/24/2023] [Indexed: 12/18/2023] Open
Abstract
The hypothesis of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) dysfunction for cognitive impairment in schizophrenia constitutes the theoretical basis for the translational application of NMDAR co-agonist D-serine or its analogs. However, the cellular mechanism underlying the therapeutic effect of D-serine remains unclear. In this study, we utilize a mouse neurodevelopmental model for schizophrenia that mimics prenatal pathogenesis and exhibits hypoexcitability of parvalbumin-positive (PV) neurons, as well as PV-preferential NMDAR dysfunction. We find that D-serine restores excitation/inhibition balance by reconstituting both synaptic and intrinsic inhibitory control of cingulate pyramidal neurons through facilitating PV excitability and activating small-conductance Ca2+-activated K+ (SK) channels in pyramidal neurons, respectively. Either amplifying inhibitory drive via directly strengthening PV neuron activity or inhibiting pyramidal excitability via activating SK channels is sufficient to improve cognitive function in this model. These findings unveil a dual mechanism for how D-serine improves cognitive function in this model.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiao-Qin Zhang
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, 818 Fenghua Rd, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China
| | - Le Xu
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, 818 Fenghua Rd, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China
| | - Xin-Yi Zhu
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, 818 Fenghua Rd, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China
| | - Zi-Hang Tang
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, 818 Fenghua Rd, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China
| | - Yi-Bei Dong
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, 818 Fenghua Rd, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China
| | - Zhi-Peng Yu
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, 818 Fenghua Rd, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China
| | - Qing Shang
- Department of Neurology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Ningbo University, 59 Liuting Street, Haishu District, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China
| | - Zheng-Chun Wang
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, 818 Fenghua Rd, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China
| | - Hao-Wei Shen
- Department of Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Ningbo University, 818 Fenghua Rd, Ningbo, Zhejiang, 315211, China.
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Elam HB, Donegan JJ, Hsieh J, Lodge DJ. Gestational buprenorphine exposure disrupts dopamine neuron activity and related behaviors in adulthood. eNeuro 2022; 9:ENEURO.0499-21.2022. [PMID: 35851301 PMCID: PMC9337603 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0499-21.2022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2021] [Revised: 05/13/2022] [Accepted: 05/20/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Opioid misuse among pregnant women is rapidly increasing in the United States. The number of maternal opioid-related diagnoses increased by 131% in the last ten years, resulting in an increased number of infants exposed to opioids in utero and a subsequent increase in infants developing neonatal abstinence syndrome (NAS). The most prescribed treatment to combat maternal opioid use disorder is buprenorphine, a partial μ-opioid receptor agonist and κ-opioid receptor antagonist. Buprenorphine treatment effectively reduces NAS but has been associated with disrupted cortical development and neurodevelopmental consequences in childhood. Less is known about the long-term neurodevelopmental consequences following buprenorphine exposure in utero Previous research has shown that gestational buprenorphine exposure can induce anxiety- and depressive-like phenotypes in adult rats, suggesting that exposure to buprenorphine in utero may render individuals more susceptible to psychiatric illness in adulthood. A common pathology observed across multiple psychiatric illnesses is dopamine system dysfunction. Here, we administered the highly-abused opioid, oxycodone (10 mg/kg, i.p.) or a therapeutic used to treat opioid use disorder, buprenorphine (1 mg/kg, i.p) to pregnant Sprague Dawley rats from gestational day 11 through 21, then examined neurophysiological alterations in the mesolimbic dopamine system and dopamine-dependent behaviors in adult offspring. We found that gestational exposure to buprenorphine or oxycodone increases dopamine neuron activity in adulthood. Moreover, prenatal buprenorphine exposure disrupts the afferent regulation of dopamine neuron activity in the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Taken together, we posit that gestational buprenorphine or oxycodone exposure can have profound effects on the mesolimbic dopamine system in adulthood.Significance StatementThe opioid epidemic in the United States is a growing problem that affects people from all demographics, including pregnant women. In 2017, nearly 21,000 pregnant women reported misusing opioids during pregnancy, which can lead to many physiological and neurodevelopmental complications in infants. To combat illicit opioid use during pregnancy, buprenorphine is the priority treatment option, as it reduces illicit opioid use and alleviates symptoms of neonatal abstinence syndrome in infants. However, less is known about the long-term neurophysiological consequences of in utero opioid or buprenorphine exposure. Here, we demonstrate that both oxycodone and buprenorphine exposure, in utero, can result in aberrant dopamine system function in adult rats. These results provide evidence of potential long-lasting effects of opioid exposure during development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah B Elam
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
| | - Jennifer J Donegan
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
- Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Dell Medical School at UT Austin, Austin, TX, USA
| | - Jenny Hsieh
- Department of Neuroscience, Developmental and Regenerative Biology, University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, 78249, USA
- Brain Health Consortium, University of Texas at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, 78249, USA
| | - Daniel J Lodge
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
- South Texas Veterans Health Care System, Audie L. Murphy Division, San Antonio, USA
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Białoń M, Wąsik A. Advantages and Limitations of Animal Schizophrenia Models. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:5968. [PMID: 35682647 PMCID: PMC9181262 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23115968] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 18.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2022] [Revised: 05/17/2022] [Accepted: 05/23/2022] [Indexed: 12/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Mental illness modeling is still a major challenge for scientists. Animal models of schizophrenia are essential to gain a better understanding of the disease etiopathology and mechanism of action of currently used antipsychotic drugs and help in the search for new and more effective therapies. We can distinguish among pharmacological, genetic, and neurodevelopmental models offering various neuroanatomical disorders and a different spectrum of symptoms of schizophrenia. Modeling schizophrenia is based on inducing damage or changes in the activity of relevant regions in the rodent brain (mainly the prefrontal cortex and hippocampus). Such artificially induced dysfunctions approximately correspond to the lesions found in patients with schizophrenia. However, notably, animal models of mental illness have numerous limitations and never fully reflect the disease state observed in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Agnieszka Wąsik
- Department of Neurochemistry, Maj Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Sciences, 31-343 Cracow, Poland;
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Structural and Functional Deviations of the Hippocampus in Schizophrenia and Schizophrenia Animal Models. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23105482. [PMID: 35628292 PMCID: PMC9143100 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23105482] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Revised: 05/09/2022] [Accepted: 05/11/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
Schizophrenia is a grave neuropsychiatric disease which frequently onsets between the end of adolescence and the beginning of adulthood. It is characterized by a variety of neuropsychiatric abnormalities which are categorized into positive, negative and cognitive symptoms. Most therapeutical strategies address the positive symptoms by antagonizing D2-dopamine-receptors (DR). However, negative and cognitive symptoms persist and highly impair the life quality of patients due to their disabling effects. Interestingly, hippocampal deviations are a hallmark of schizophrenia and can be observed in early as well as advanced phases of the disease progression. These alterations are commonly accompanied by a rise in neuronal activity. Therefore, hippocampal formation plays an important role in the manifestation of schizophrenia. Furthermore, studies with animal models revealed a link between environmental risk factors and morphological as well as electrophysiological abnormalities in the hippocampus. Here, we review recent findings on structural and functional hippocampal abnormalities in schizophrenic patients and in schizophrenia animal models, and we give an overview on current experimental approaches that especially target the hippocampus. A better understanding of hippocampal aberrations in schizophrenia might clarify their impact on the manifestation and on the outcome of this severe disease.
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Kiemes A, Gomes FV, Cash D, Uliana DL, Simmons C, Singh N, Vernon AC, Turkheimer F, Davies C, Stone JM, Grace AA, Modinos G. GABA A and NMDA receptor density alterations and their behavioral correlates in the gestational methylazoxymethanol acetate model for schizophrenia. Neuropsychopharmacology 2022; 47:687-695. [PMID: 34743200 PMCID: PMC8782908 DOI: 10.1038/s41386-021-01213-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/22/2021] [Revised: 10/09/2021] [Accepted: 10/13/2021] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Hippocampal hyperactivity driven by GABAergic interneuron deficits and NMDA receptor hypofunction is associated with the hyperdopaminergic state often observed in schizophrenia. Furthermore, previous research in the methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) rat model has demonstrated that repeated peripubertal diazepam administration can prevent the emergence of adult hippocampal hyperactivity, dopamine-system hyperactivity, and associated psychosis-relevant behaviors. Here, we sought to characterize hippocampal GABAA and NMDA receptors in MAM-treated rats and to elucidate the receptor mechanisms underlying the promising effects of peripubertal diazepam exposure. Quantitative receptor autoradiography was used to measure receptor density in the dorsal hippocampus CA1, ventral hippocampus CA1, and ventral subiculum. Specifically, [3H]-Ro15-4513 was used to quantify the density of α5GABAA receptors (α5GABAAR), [3H]-flumazenil to quantify α1-3;5GABAAR, and [3H]-MK801 to quantify NMDA receptors. MAM rats exhibited anxiety and schizophrenia-relevant behaviors as measured by elevated plus maze and amphetamine-induced hyperlocomotion (AIH), although diazepam only partially rescued these behaviors. α5GABAAR density was reduced in MAM-treated rats in all hippocampal sub-regions, and negatively correlated with AIH. Ventral hippocampus CA1 α5GABAAR density was positively correlated with anxiety-like behavior. Dorsal hippocampus CA1 NMDA receptor density was increased in MAM-treated rats, and positively correlated with AIH. [3H]-flumazenil revealed no significant effects. Finally, we found no significant effect of diazepam treatment on receptor densities, potentially related to the only partial rescue of schizophrenia-relevant phenotypes. Overall, our findings provide first evidence of α5GABAAR and NMDA receptor abnormalities in the MAM model, suggesting that more selective pharmacological agents may become a novel therapeutic mechanism in schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Kiemes
- Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK.
| | - Felipe V Gomes
- Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Diana Cash
- Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Daniela L Uliana
- Departments of Neuroscience, Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Camilla Simmons
- Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Nisha Singh
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Warneford Hospital, Oxford, UK
| | - Anthony C Vernon
- Department of Basic and Clinical Neuroscience, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
- MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Federico Turkheimer
- Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Cathy Davies
- Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
| | - James M Stone
- Brighton and Sussex Medical School, University of Sussex, Brighton, UK
| | - Anthony A Grace
- Departments of Neuroscience, Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA, USA
| | - Gemma Modinos
- Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
- Department of Neuroimaging, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, UK
- MRC Centre for Neurodevelopmental Disorders, King's College London, London, UK
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Perez SM, McCoy AM, Prevot TD, Mian MY, Carreno FR, Frazer A, Cook JM, Sibille E, Lodge DJ. Hippocampal α5-GABA A Receptors Modulate Dopamine Neuron Activity in the Rat Ventral Tegmental Area. BIOLOGICAL PSYCHIATRY GLOBAL OPEN SCIENCE 2022; 3:78-86. [PMID: 36712569 PMCID: PMC9874136 DOI: 10.1016/j.bpsgos.2021.12.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/08/2021] [Revised: 11/22/2021] [Accepted: 12/16/2021] [Indexed: 02/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Aberrant dopamine neuron activity is attributable to hyperactivity in hippocampal subfields driving a pathological increase in dopamine neuron activity, which is positively correlated with psychosis in humans. Evidence indicates that hippocampal hyperactivity is due to loss of intrinsic GABAergic (gamma-aminobutyric acidergic) inhibition. We have previously demonstrated that hippocampal GABAergic neurotransmission can be modulated by targeting α5-GABAA receptors, which are preferentially expressed in hippocampal regions. Positive and negative allosteric modulators of α5-GABAA receptors (α5-PAMs and α5-NAMs) elicit effects on hippocampal-dependent behaviors. We posited that the selective manipulation of hippocampal inhibition, using α5-PAMs or α5-NAMs, would modulate dopamine activity in control rats. Further, α5-PAMs would reverse aberrant dopamine neuron activity in a rodent model with schizophrenia-related pathophysiologies (methylazoxymethanol acetate [MAM] model). Methods We performed in vivo extracellular recordings of ventral tegmental area dopamine neurons in anesthetized rats to compare the effects of two novel, selective α5-PAMs (GL-II-73, MP-III-022), a nonselective α-PAM (midazolam), and two selective α5-NAMs (L-655,708, TB 21007) in control and MAM-treated male Sprague Dawley rats (n = 5-9). Results Systemic or intracranial administration of selective α5-GABAA receptor modulators regulated dopamine activity. Specifically, both α5-NAMs increased dopamine neuron activity in control rats, whereas GL-II-73, MP-III-022, and L-655,708 attenuated aberrant dopamine neuron activity in MAM-treated rats, an effect mediated by the ventral hippocampus. Conclusions This study demonstrated that α5-GABAA receptor modulation can regulate dopamine neuron activity under control or abnormal activity, providing additional evidence that α5-PAMs and α5-NAMs may have therapeutic applications in psychosis and other psychiatric diseases where aberrant hippocampal activity is present.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie M. Perez
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas,Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital, South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, Texas,Address correspondence to Stephanie M. Perez, Ph.D.
| | - Alexandra M. McCoy
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas,Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital, South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, Texas
| | - Thomas D. Prevot
- Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Md Yeunus Mian
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
| | - Flavia R. Carreno
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas
| | - Alan Frazer
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas,Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital, South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, Texas
| | - James M. Cook
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, Wisconsin
| | - Etienne Sibille
- Campbell Family Mental Health Research Institute, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health, Toronto, Ontario, Canada,Department of Psychiatry, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada,Department of Pharmacology and Toxicology, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Daniel J. Lodge
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, Texas,Audie L. Murphy Memorial Veterans Hospital, South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, Texas
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Perez SM, Elam HB, Lodge DJ. Increased Presynaptic Dopamine Synthesis Capacity Is Associated With Aberrant Dopamine Neuron Activity in the Methylazoxymethanol Acetate Rodent Model Used to Study Schizophrenia-Related Pathologies. SCHIZOPHRENIA BULLETIN OPEN 2022; 3:sgac067. [PMID: 36387971 PMCID: PMC9642313 DOI: 10.1093/schizbullopen/sgac067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/16/2023]
Abstract
Aberrant dopamine system function is thought to contribute to the positive symptoms of schizophrenia. Clinical imaging studies have demonstrated that the largest dopamine abnormality in patients appears to be an increase in presynaptic dopamine activity. Indeed, studies utilizing [ 18 F]DOPA positive emission tomography reliably report increases in presynaptic dopamine bioavailability in patients and may serve as a biomarker for treatment response. The mechanisms contributing to this increased presynaptic activity in human patients is not yet fully understood, which necessitates the use of preclinical models. Dopamine system function can be directly examined in experimental animals using in vivo electrophysiology. One consistent finding from preclinical studies in rodent models used to study schizophrenia-like neuropathology is a 2-fold increase in the number of spontaneously active dopamine neurons in the ventral tegmental area (VTA), termed population activity. We posit that increased striatal dopamine synthesis capacity is attributed to an augmented VTA dopamine neuron population activity. Here, we directly test this hypothesis using [3H]DOPA ex vivo autoradiography, to quantify striatal dopamine synthesis capacity, in the methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) model, a validated rodent model displaying neurophysiological and behavioral alterations consistent with schizophrenia-like symptomatologies. Consistent with human imaging studies, dopamine synthesis capacity was significantly increased in dorsal and ventral striatal subregionis, including the caudate putamen and nucleus accumbens, of MAM-treated rats and associated with specific increases in dopamine neuron population activity. Taken together, these data provide a link between mechanistic studies in rodent models and clinical studies of increased presynaptic dopamine function in human subjects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie M Perez
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
- South Texas Veterans Health Care System, Audie L. Murphy Division, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Hannah B Elam
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
- South Texas Veterans Health Care System, Audie L. Murphy Division, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Daniel J Lodge
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, UT Health San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
- South Texas Veterans Health Care System, Audie L. Murphy Division, San Antonio, TX, USA
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Kisby GE, Spencer PS. Genotoxic Damage During Brain Development Presages Prototypical Neurodegenerative Disease. Front Neurosci 2021; 15:752153. [PMID: 34924930 PMCID: PMC8675606 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2021.752153] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/02/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Western Pacific Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Parkinsonism-Dementia Complex (ALS/PDC) is a disappearing prototypical neurodegenerative disorder (tau-dominated polyproteinopathy) linked with prior exposure to phytogenotoxins in cycad seed used for medicine and/or food. The principal cycad genotoxin, methylazoxymethanol (MAM), forms reactive carbon-centered ions that alkylate nucleic acids in fetal rodent brain and, depending on the timing of systemic administration, induces persistent developmental abnormalities of the cortex, hippocampus, cerebellum, and retina. Whereas administration of MAM prenatally or postnatally can produce animal models of epilepsy, schizophrenia or ataxia, administration to adult animals produces little effect on brain structure or function. The neurotoxic effects of MAM administered to rats during cortical brain development (specifically, gestation day 17) are used to model the histological, neurophysiological and behavioral deficits of human schizophrenia, a condition that may precede or follow clinical onset of motor neuron disease in subjects with sporadic ALS and ALS/PDC. While studies of migrants to and from communities impacted by ALS/PDC indicate the degenerative brain disorder may be acquired in juvenile and adult life, a proportion of indigenous cases shows neurodevelopmental aberrations in the cerebellum and retina consistent with MAM exposure in utero. MAM induces specific patterns of DNA damage and repair that associate with increased tau expression in primary rat neuronal cultures and with brain transcriptional changes that parallel those associated with human ALS and Alzheimer's disease. We examine MAM in relation to neurodevelopment, epigenetic modification, DNA damage/replicative stress, genomic instability, somatic mutation, cell-cycle reentry and cellular senescence. Since the majority of neurodegenerative disease lacks a solely inherited genetic basis, research is needed to explore the hypothesis that early-life exposure to genotoxic agents may trigger or promote molecular events that culminate in neurodegeneration.
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Affiliation(s)
- Glen E. Kisby
- College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific, Western University of Health Sciences, Lebanon, OR, United States
| | - Peter S. Spencer
- School of Medicine (Neurology), Oregon Institute of Occupational Health Sciences, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, United States
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Thalamic reticular nucleus impairments and abnormal prefrontal control of dopamine system in a developmental model of schizophrenia: prevention by N-acetylcysteine. Mol Psychiatry 2021; 26:7679-7689. [PMID: 34193975 PMCID: PMC8716611 DOI: 10.1038/s41380-021-01198-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/08/2020] [Accepted: 06/10/2021] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Recent evidence showed thalamic abnormalities in schizophrenia involving disruptions to the parvalbumin neurons in the thalamic reticular nucleus (TRN). However, their functional consequences, as well as a potential linkage to oxidative stress, are unclear. The TRN is posited to gate prefrontal control of dopamine neuron activity in the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Thus, we hypothesized that schizophrenia-related TRN abnormalities might contribute to dopamine dysregulation, a well-known feature of the disorder. To test this, in adult rats exposed prenatally to methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM rats), oxidative impairments to the parvalbumin neurons in the anterior TRN were assessed by immunohistochemistry. Using in vivo electrophysiology, we investigated whether inactivation of the prefrontal cortex would produce differential effects on VTA dopamine neurons in MAM rats. We show that MAM rats displayed reduced markers of parvalbumin and wisteria floribunda agglutinin-labeled perineuronal nets, correlating with increased markers of oxidative stress (8-oxo-7, 8-dihydro-20-deoxyguanosine, and 3-nitrotyrosine). Moreover, MAM rats displayed heightened baseline and abnormal prefrontal control of VTA dopamine neuron activity, as tetrodotoxin-induced inactivation of the infralimbic prefrontal cortex decreased the dopamine population activity, contrary to the normal increase in controls. Such dopamine neuron dysregulation was recapitulated by enzymatic perineuronal net digestion in the TRN of normal rats. Furthermore, juvenile (postnatal day 11-25) antioxidant treatment (N-acetyl-cysteine, 900 mg/L drinking water) prevented all these impairments in MAM rats. Our findings suggest that early accumulation of oxidative stress in the TRN may shape the later onset of schizophrenia pathophysiology, highlighting redox regulation as a potential target for early intervention.
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Weeks JJ, Grace AA, Sved AF. Nicotine Administration Normalizes Behavioral and Neurophysiological Perturbations in the MAM Rodent Model of Schizophrenia. Int J Neuropsychopharmacol 2021; 24:979-987. [PMID: 34622270 PMCID: PMC8653870 DOI: 10.1093/ijnp/pyab064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/27/2021] [Revised: 09/10/2021] [Accepted: 10/04/2021] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The present study utilized the methylazoxymethanol (MAM) neurodevelopmental rodent model of schizophrenia (SCZ) to evaluate the hypothesis that individuals with SCZ smoke in an attempt to "self-medicate" their symptoms through nicotine (NIC) intake. METHODS To explore this question, we examined the effects of acute and chronic administration of NIC in 2 established behavioral tests known to be disrupted in the MAM model: prepulse inhibition of startle and novel object recognition. Additionally, we assessed the effects of acute and chronic NIC on 2 indices of the pathophysiology of SCZ modeled by MAM, elevated dopamine neuron population activity in the ventral tegmental area and neuronal activity in the ventral hippocampus, using in vivo electrophysiological recordings. RESULTS Our findings demonstrated that both acute and chronic administration of NIC significantly improved deficits in prepulse inhibition of startle and novel object recognition among MAM rats and normalized elevated ventral tegmental area and ventral hippocampal neuronal activity in these animals. CONCLUSION Together, these findings of NIC-induced improvement of deficits lend support for a "self-medication" hypothesis behind increased cigarette smoking in SCZ and illustrate the potential utility of nicotinic modulation in future pharmacotherapies for certain SCZ symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Anthony A Grace
- Center for Neuroscience,Departments of Neuroscience, Psychiatry, and Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Alan F Sved
- Center for Neuroscience,Departments of Neuroscience, Psychiatry, and Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA,Correspondence: Alan F. Sved, PhD, 210 Langley Hall, Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA 15260, USA ()
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Zhu X, Grace AA. Prepubertal Environmental Enrichment Prevents Dopamine Dysregulation and Hippocampal Hyperactivity in MAM Schizophrenia Model Rats. Biol Psychiatry 2021; 89:298-307. [PMID: 33357630 PMCID: PMC7927755 DOI: 10.1016/j.biopsych.2020.09.023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2020] [Revised: 09/07/2020] [Accepted: 09/20/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Schizophrenia (SCZ) is a neurodevelopmental disorder with a progressive, prolonged course. Early prevention for SCZ is promising but overall lacks support from preclinical evidence. Previous studies have tested environmental enrichment (EE) in certain models of SCZ and discovered a broadly beneficial effect in preventing behavioral abnormalities relevant, yet not specific, to the disorder. Nonetheless, whether EE can prevent dopamine (DA) dysregulation, a hallmark of psychosis and SCZ, had not been tested. METHODS Using the MAM (methylazoxymethanol acetate) rat model of schizophrenia and saline-treated control animals, we investigated the long-term electrophysiological effects of prepubertal (postnatal day 21-40) EE on DA neurons, pyramidal neurons in the ventral hippocampus, and projection neurons in the basolateral amygdala. Anxiety-related behaviors in the elevated plus maze and locomotor responses to amphetamine were also analyzed. RESULTS Prepubertal EE prevented the increased population activity of DA neurons and the associated increase in locomotor response to amphetamine. Prepubertal EE also prevented hyperactivity in the ventral hippocampus but did not prevent hyperactivity in the basolateral amygdala. Anxiety-like behaviors in MAM rats were not ameliorated by prepubertal exposure to EE. CONCLUSIONS Twenty-day prepubertal EE is sufficient to prevent DA hyperresponsivity in the MAM model, measured by electrophysiological recordings and locomotor response to amphetamine. This effect is potentially mediated by normalizing excessive firing in the ventral hippocampus without affecting anxiety-like behaviors and basolateral amygdala firing. This study identified EE as a useful preventative approach that may protect against the pathophysiological development of SCZ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiyu Zhu
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
| | - Anthony A Grace
- Department of Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Department of Psychiatry, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania; Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
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Western Pacific ALS-PDC: Evidence implicating cycad genotoxins. J Neurol Sci 2020; 419:117185. [PMID: 33190068 DOI: 10.1016/j.jns.2020.117185] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/19/2020] [Revised: 09/20/2020] [Accepted: 09/29/2020] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis and Parkinsonism-Dementia Complex (ALS-PDC) is a disappearing neurodegenerative disorder of apparent environmental origin formerly hyperendemic among Chamorros of Guam-USA, Japanese residents of the Kii Peninsula, Honshu Island, Japan and Auyu-Jakai linguistic groups of Papua-Indonesia on the island of New Guinea. The most plausible etiology is exposure to genotoxins in seed of neurotoxic cycad plants formerly used for food and/or medicine. Primary suspicion falls on methylazoxymethanol (MAM), the aglycone of cycasin and on the non-protein amino acid β-N-methylamino-L-alanine, both of which are metabolized to formaldehyde. Human and animal studies suggest: (a) exposures occurred early in life and sometimes during late fetal brain development, (b) clinical expression of neurodegenerative disease appeared years or decades later, and (c) pathological changes in various tissues indicate the disease was not confined to the CNS. Experimental evidence points to toxic molecular mechanisms involving DNA damage, epigenetic changes, transcriptional mutagenesis, neuronal cell-cycle reactivation and perturbation of the ubiquitin-proteasome system that led to polyproteinopathy and culminated in neuronal degeneration. Lessons learned from research on ALS-PDC include: (a) familial disease may reflect common toxic exposures across generations, (b) primary disease prevention follows cessation of exposure to culpable environmental triggers; and (c) disease latency provides a prolonged period during which to intervene therapeutically. Exposure to genotoxic chemicals ("slow toxins") in the early stages of life should be considered in the search for the etiology of ALS-PDC-related neurodegenerative disorders, including sporadic forms of ALS, progressive supranuclear palsy and Alzheimer's disease.
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Horska K, Kotolova H, Karpisek M, Babinska Z, Hammer T, Prochazka J, Stark T, Micale V, Ruda-Kucerova J. Metabolic profile of methylazoxymethanol model of schizophrenia in rats and effects of three antipsychotics in long-acting formulation. Toxicol Appl Pharmacol 2020; 406:115214. [PMID: 32866524 DOI: 10.1016/j.taap.2020.115214] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2020] [Revised: 08/20/2020] [Accepted: 08/22/2020] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Mortality in psychiatric patients with severe mental illnesses reaches a 2-3 times higher mortality rate compared to the general population, primarily due to somatic comorbidities. A high prevalence of cardiovascular morbidity can be attributed to the adverse metabolic effects of atypical antipsychotics (atypical APs), but also to metabolic dysregulation present in drug-naïve patients. The metabolic aspects of neurodevelopmental schizophrenia-like models are understudied. This study evaluated the metabolic phenotype of a methylazoxymethanol (MAM) schizophrenia-like model together with the metabolic effects of three APs [olanzapine (OLA), risperidone (RIS) and haloperidol (HAL)] administered via long-acting formulations for 8 weeks in female rats. Body weight, feed efficiency, serum lipid profile, gastrointestinal and adipose tissue-derived hormones (leptin, ghrelin, glucagon and glucagon-like peptide 1) were determined. The lipid profile was assessed in APs-naïve MAM and control cohorts of both sexes. Body weight was not altered by the MAM model, though cumulative food intake and feed efficiency was lowered in the MAM compared to CTR animals. The effect of the APs was also present; body weight gain was increased by OLA and RIS, while OLA induced lower weight gain in the MAM rats. Further, the MAM model showed lower abdominal adiposity, while OLA increased it. Serum lipid profile revealed MAM model-induced alterations in both sexes; total, HDL and LDL cholesterol levels were increased. The MAM model did not exert significant alterations in hormonal parameters except for elevation in leptin level. The results support intrinsic metabolic dysregulation in the MAM model in both sexes, but the MAM model did not manifest higher sensitivity to metabolic effects induced by antipsychotic treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katerina Horska
- Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Masaryk University, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Hana Kotolova
- Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Masaryk University, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Michal Karpisek
- Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Masaryk University, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic; R&D Department, Biovendor - Laboratorni Medicina, Karasek 1, 621 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Zuzana Babinska
- Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 62500 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Tomas Hammer
- Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Masaryk University, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Jiri Prochazka
- Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, University of Veterinary and Pharmaceutical Sciences, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Human Pharmacology and Toxicology, Faculty of Pharmacy, Masaryk University, Palackeho trida 1946/1, 612 00 Brno, Czech Republic
| | - Tibor Stark
- Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 62500 Brno, Czech Republic; Department of Stress Neurobiology and Neurogenetics, Neuronal Plasticity Group, Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry, Kraepelinstrasse 2-10, 80804 Munich, Germany
| | - Vincenzo Micale
- Department of Biomedical and Biotechnological Sciences, Section of Pharmacology, University of Catania, Via Santa Sofia 97, I-95123 Catania, Italy; National Institute of Mental Health, Topolova 748, 250 67 Klecany, Czech Republic
| | - Jana Ruda-Kucerova
- Department of Pharmacology, Faculty of Medicine, Masaryk University, Kamenice 5, 62500 Brno, Czech Republic.
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Bakker G, Vingerhoets C, Bloemen OJN, Sahakian BJ, Booij J, Caan MWA, van Amelsvoort TAMJ. The muscarinic M 1 receptor modulates associative learning and memory in psychotic disorders. NEUROIMAGE-CLINICAL 2020; 27:102278. [PMID: 32563036 PMCID: PMC7305431 DOI: 10.1016/j.nicl.2020.102278] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/22/2019] [Revised: 04/22/2020] [Accepted: 04/22/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Psychosis characterised by different M1 sensitivity in learning and memory. Greater limbic-temporal hyperactivity in response to biperiden in psychosis. Hippocampal M1 binding predicted limbic-temporal hyperactivation underlying learning. M1 agonist may normalise functional response underlying learning & memory in psychosis.
Background Psychotic disorders are characterized by prominent deficits in associative learning and memory for which there are currently no effective treatments. Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) studies in psychotic disorders have identified deficits in fronto-temporal activation during associative learning and memory. The underlying pathology of these findings remains unclear. Postmortem data have suggested these deficits may be related to loss of muscarinic M1 receptor mediated signaling. This is supported by an in-vivo study showing improvements in these symptoms after treatment with the experimental M1/4 receptor agonist xanomeline. The current study tests whether reported deficits in fronto-temporal activation could be mediated by loss of M1 receptor signaling in psychotic disorders. Methods Twenty-six medication-free subjects diagnosed with a psychotic disorder and 29 age-, gender-, and IQ-matched healthy controls underwent two functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) sessions, one under placebo and one under selective M1 antagonist biperiden, while performing the paired associated learning task. M1 binding potentials (BPND) were measured in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex (DLPFC) and hippocampus using 123I-IDEX single photon emission computed tomography. Results In the subjects with psychotic disorders DLPFC hypoactivation was only found in the memory phase of the task. In both learning and memory phases of the task, M1 antagonism by biperiden elicited significantly greater hyperactivation of the parahippocampal gyrus and superior temporal gyrus in subjects with a psychotic disorders compared to controls. Greater hyperactivation of these areas after biperiden was associated with greater hippocampal M1 receptor binding during learning, with no association found with M1 receptor binding in the DLPFC. M1 receptor binding in the DLPFC was related to greater functional sensitivity to biperiden of the cingulate gyrus during the memory phase. Conclusion The current study is the first to show differences in M1 receptor mediated functional sensitivity between subjects with a psychotic disorder and controls during a paired associate learning and memory task. Results point to subjects with psychotic disorders having a loss of M1 receptor reserve in temporal-limbic areas.
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Affiliation(s)
- Geor Bakker
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands; Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Location AMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
| | - Claudia Vingerhoets
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands; Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Location AMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Oswald J N Bloemen
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, University of Maastricht, Maastricht, The Netherlands; GGZ Centraal, Center for Mental Health Care Innova, Amersfoort, The Netherlands
| | - Barbara J Sahakian
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Cambridge, Cambridgeshire, United Kingdom
| | - Jan Booij
- Department of Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Location AMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
| | - Matthan W A Caan
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam University Medical Centres, Location AMC, University of Amsterdam, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Gardea-Resendez M, Kucuker MU, Blacker CJ, Ho AMC, Croarkin PE, Frye MA, Veldic M. Dissecting the Epigenetic Changes Induced by Non-Antipsychotic Mood Stabilizers on Schizophrenia and Affective Disorders: A Systematic Review. Front Pharmacol 2020; 11:467. [PMID: 32390836 PMCID: PMC7189731 DOI: 10.3389/fphar.2020.00467] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/03/2020] [Accepted: 03/25/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Epimutations secondary to gene-environment interactions have a key role in the pathophysiology of major psychiatric disorders. In vivo and in vitro evidence suggest that mood stabilizers can potentially reverse epigenetic deregulations found in patients with schizophrenia or mood disorders through mechanisms that are not yet fully understood. However, their activity on epigenetic processes has made them a research target for therapeutic approaches. METHODS We conducted a comprehensive literature search of PubMed and EMBASE for studies investigating the specific epigenetic changes induced by non-antipsychotic mood stabilizers (valproate, lithium, lamotrigine, and carbamazepine) in animal models, human cell lines, or patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or major depressive disorder. Each paper was reviewed for the nature of research, the species and tissue examined, sample size, mood stabilizer, targeted gene, epigenetic changes found, and associated psychiatric disorder. Every article was appraised for quality using a modified published process and those who met a quality score of moderate or high were included. RESULTS A total of 2,429 records were identified; 1,956 records remained after duplicates were removed and were screened via title, abstract and keywords; 129 records were selected for full-text screening and a remaining of 38 articles were included in the qualitative synthesis. Valproate and lithium were found to induce broader epigenetic changes through different mechanisms, mainly DNA demethylation and histones acetylation. There was less literature and hence smaller effects attributable to lamotrigine and carbamazepine could be associated overall with the small number of studies on these agents. Findings were congruent across sample types. CONCLUSIONS An advanced understanding of the specific epigenetic changes induced by classic mood stabilizers in patients with major psychiatric disorders will facilitate personalized interventions. Further related drug discovery should target the induction of selective chromatin remodeling and gene-specific expression effects.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Mehmet Utku Kucuker
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic Depression Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States
| | - Caren J. Blacker
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic Depression Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States
| | - Ada M.-C. Ho
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic Depression Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States
| | - Paul E. Croarkin
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic Depression Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States
| | - Mark A. Frye
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic Depression Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States
| | - Marin Veldic
- Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Mayo Clinic Depression Center, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN, United States
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Daniju Y, Bossong MG, Brandt K, Allen P. Do the effects of cannabis on the hippocampus and striatum increase risk for psychosis? Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2020; 112:324-335. [PMID: 32057817 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2020.02.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2019] [Revised: 01/17/2020] [Accepted: 02/10/2020] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
Abstract
Cannabis use is associated with increased risk of psychotic symptoms and in a small number of cases it can lead to psychoses. This review examines the neurobiological mechanisms that mediate the link between cannabis use and psychosis risk. We use an established preclinical model of psychosis, the methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) rodent model, as a framework to examine if psychosis risk in some cannabis users is mediated by the effects of cannabis on the hippocampus, and this region's role in the regulation of mesolimbic dopamine. We also examine how cannabis affects excitatory neurotransmission known to regulate hippocampal neural activity and output. Whilst there is clear evidence that cannabis/cannabinoids can affect hippocampal and medial temporal lobe function and structure, the evidence that cannabis/cannabinoids increase striatal dopamine function is less robust. There is limited evidence that cannabis use affects cortical and striatal glutamate levels, but there are currently too few studies to draw firm conclusions. Future work is needed to test the MAM model in relation to cannabis using multimodal neuroimaging approaches.
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Affiliation(s)
- Y Daniju
- Department of Psychology, University of Roehampton, London, UK
| | - M G Bossong
- Department of Psychiatry, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Medical Center Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - K Brandt
- Department of Psychology, University of Roehampton, London, UK
| | - P Allen
- Department of Psychology, University of Roehampton, London, UK; Department of Psychosis Studies, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, UK; Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, USA.
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Weeks JJ, Rupprecht LE, Grace AA, Donny EC, Sved AF. Nicotine Self-administration Is Not Increased in the Methylazoxymethanol Acetate Rodent Model of Schizophrenia. Nicotine Tob Res 2020; 22:204-212. [PMID: 30899959 PMCID: PMC7297085 DOI: 10.1093/ntr/ntz048] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2018] [Accepted: 03/20/2019] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Patients with schizophrenia (SCZ) smoke at a rate of 4-5 times higher than the general population, contributing to negative health consequences in this group. One possible explanation for this increased smoking is that individuals with SCZ find nicotine (NIC) more reinforcing. However, data supporting this possibility are limited. METHODS The present experiments examined self-administration of NIC, alone or in combination with other reinforcers, across a range of doses in the methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) rodent model of SCZ. RESULTS MAM and control animals did not differ in NIC self-administration across a range of doses and schedules of reinforcement, in both standard 1-hour self-administration sessions and 23-hour extended access sessions. However, MAM animals responded less for sucrose or reinforcing visual stimuli alone or when paired with NIC. CONCLUSIONS To the extent that MAM-treated rats are a valid model of SCZ, these results suggest that increased NIC reinforcement does not account for increased smoking in SCZ patients. IMPLICATIONS This study is the first to utilize nicotine self-administration, the gold standard for studying nicotine reinforcement, in the methylazoxymethanol acetate model of schizophrenia, which is arguably the most comprehensive animal model of the disease currently available. Our assessment found no evidence of increased nicotine reinforcement in methylazoxymethanol acetate animals, suggesting that increased reinforcement may not perpetuate increased smoking in schizophrenia patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jillian J Weeks
- Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | | | - Anthony A Grace
- Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
- Department of Neuroscience, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
| | - Eric C Donny
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, School of Medicine, Wake Forest University, Winston-Salem, NC
| | - Alan F Sved
- Center for Neuroscience, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
- Department of Neuroscience, School of Arts and Sciences, University of Pittsburgh, Pittsburgh, PA
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Kállai V, Lénárd L, Péczely L, Gálosi R, Dusa D, Tóth A, László K, Kertes E, Kovács A, Zagoracz O, Berta B, Karádi Z, Ollmann T. Cognitive performance of the MAM-E17 schizophrenia model rats in different age-periods. Behav Brain Res 2020; 379:112345. [PMID: 31704232 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2019.112345] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2019] [Revised: 10/03/2019] [Accepted: 11/04/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Cognitive disturbances are among the most important features of schizophrenia, and have a significant role in the outcome of the disease. However, the treatment of cognitive symptoms is poorly effective. In order to develop new therapeutic opportunities, the MAM-E17 rat model of schizophrenia can be an appropriate implement. In the present study we investigated several cognitive capabilities of MAM-treated rats using radial arm maze (RAM) task, which corresponds to the recent research directives. Because of the diachronic appearance of schizophrenia symptoms and the early appearance of cognitive deficiencies, we carried out our experiments in three different age-periods of rats, i.e. in prepuberty, late puberty and adulthood. The performance of MAM-E17 rats was similar to control rats in the acquisition phase of RAM task, except for puberty. However, after rearrangement of reward positions (in the reverse paradigm) the number of errors of MAM-treated rats was higher in each age-period. In the reverse paradigm MAM-treated groups visited more frequently those non-rewarding arms, which were previously rewarding. Our results suggest that working memory of MAM-E17 rats is impaired. This deficit depends on the difficulty of the task and on the age-period. MAM-E17 rats seem to be more sensitive in puberty in comparison to controls. Diminished behavioral flexibility was shown as well. These behavioral results observed in MAM-E17 rats were similar to those of cognitive deficiencies in schizophrenia patients. Therefore, MAM-E17 model can be a useful implement for further research aiming to improve cognition in schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Veronika Kállai
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - László Lénárd
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Molecular Neuroendocrinology and Neurophysiology Research Group, Szentágothai Research Centre, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary.
| | - László Péczely
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Rita Gálosi
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Daniella Dusa
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Attila Tóth
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Kristóf László
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Erika Kertes
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Anita Kovács
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Olga Zagoracz
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Beáta Berta
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Zoltán Karádi
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Molecular Neuroendocrinology and Neurophysiology Research Group, Szentágothai Research Centre, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
| | - Tamás Ollmann
- Institute of Physiology, Medical School, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary; Centre for Neuroscience, Pécs University, Pécs, Hungary
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Perez SM, Lodge DJ. Adolescent stress contributes to aberrant dopamine signaling in a heritable rodent model of susceptibility. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2019; 95:109701. [PMID: 31299274 PMCID: PMC6708463 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2019.109701] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/25/2019] [Revised: 06/17/2019] [Accepted: 07/09/2019] [Indexed: 11/17/2022]
Abstract
Evidence suggests that both genetic and environmental factors contribute to the development of schizophrenia. Rodent models of the disorder have been developed that model either genetic or environment factors to recapitulate various aspects of the disease; however, the examination of gene by environment interactions requires a model of susceptibility. We have previously demonstrated that a proportion of the F2 generation of MAM-treated rats display a schizophrenia-like phenotype, defined as an increase in ventral tegmental area (VTA) dopamine neuron population activity. Here we use this model to examine the consequence of adolescent stress (AS), a known risk factor for psychiatric disease, on dopamine neuron activity in the VTA. Specifically, F2 MAM rats were exposed to predator odor, a stressor of high ethological relevance, intermittently over 10 days throughout the adolescent period and VTA dopamine neuron activity was evaluated in adulthood. Both saline and MAM F2 rats exposed to AS displayed significant increases in population activity; however, the proportion of F2 MAM rats exhibiting this increase was significantly greater (approximately 70%) compared to their respective controls. Given that we have previously demonstrated that the augmented dopamine neuron activity in rodent models of psychosis is directly attributable to aberrant activity in the ventral hippocampus (vHipp), we examined whether AS altered activity within the vHipp. Indeed, there was a positive correlation between dopamine neuron activity and hippocampal firing rates, such that those rats that displayed increases in population activity also had increases in the firing rates of vHipp putative pyramidal neurons. Taken together, these data further demonstrate a role for AS as a risk factor for psychosis, particularly in those with a heritable predisposition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie M. Perez
- UT Health San Antonio, Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, MC 7764, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA,Corresponding author at: 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, MC 7764, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA.
| | - Daniel J. Lodge
- UT Health San Antonio, Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, MC 7764, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
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Donegan JJ, Boley AM, Yamaguchi J, Toney GM, Lodge DJ. Modulation of extrasynaptic GABA A alpha 5 receptors in the ventral hippocampus normalizes physiological and behavioral deficits in a circuit specific manner. Nat Commun 2019; 10:2819. [PMID: 31249307 PMCID: PMC6597724 DOI: 10.1038/s41467-019-10800-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/04/2018] [Accepted: 05/29/2019] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
Hippocampal hyperactivity is correlated with psychosis in schizophrenia patients and likely attributable to deficits in GABAergic signaling. Here we attempt to reverse this deficit by overexpression of the α5-GABAA receptor within the ventral hippocampus (vHipp). Indeed, this is sufficient to normalize vHipp activity and downstream alterations in dopamine neuron function in the MAM rodent model. This approach also attenuated behavioral deficits in cognitive flexibility. To understand the specific pathways that mediate these effects, we used chemogenetics to manipulate discrete projections from the vHipp to the nucleus accumbens (NAc) or prefrontal cortex (mPFC). We found that inhibition of the vHipp-NAc, but not the vHipp-mPFC pathway, normalized aberrant dopamine neuron activity. Conversely, inhibition of the vHipp-mPFC improved cognitive function. Taken together, these results demonstrate that restoring GABAergic signaling in the vHipp improves schizophrenia-like deficits and that distinct behavioral alterations are mediated by discrete projections from the vHipp to the NAc and mPFC.
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Affiliation(s)
- J J Donegan
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA.
| | - A M Boley
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
| | - J Yamaguchi
- Department of Cellular and Integrative Physiology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
| | - G M Toney
- Department of Cellular and Integrative Physiology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
| | - D J Lodge
- Department of Pharmacology and Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center, San Antonio, TX, 78229, USA
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O'Reilly KC, Levy ERJ, Patino AV, Perica MI, Fenton AA. Sub-circuit alterations in dorsal hippocampus structure and function after global neurodevelopmental insult. Brain Struct Funct 2018; 223:3543-3556. [PMID: 29951917 PMCID: PMC6278823 DOI: 10.1007/s00429-018-1704-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2017] [Accepted: 06/20/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Patients with neuropsychiatric and neurological disorders often express limbic circuit abnormalities and deficits in information processing. While these disorders appear to have diverse etiologies, their common features suggest neurodevelopmental origins. Neurodevelopment is a prolonged process of diverse events including neurogenesis/apoptosis, axon pathfinding, synaptogenesis, and pruning, to name a few. The precise timing of the neurodevelopmental insult to these processes likely determines the resulting functional outcome. We used the epilepsy and schizophrenia-related gestational day 17 methylazoxymethanol acetate model to examine the impact of this timed neurodevelopmental insult on principal cell morphology and synaptic network function of the dorsal hippocampus (dHPC) circuit. Our observed structural and functional alterations in dHPC are compartment specific, indicating that adverse global exposure during gestation can produce specific alterations and distort information processing in neural circuits that underlie cognitive abilities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kally C O'Reilly
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA.
- Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, New York State Psychiatric Institute, 1051 Riverside Dr, New York, NY, 10032, USA.
| | - Eliott R J Levy
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA
| | - Alejandra V Patino
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA
| | - Maria I Perica
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA
| | - André A Fenton
- Center for Neural Science, New York University, 4 Washington Place, New York, NY, 10003, USA.
- Neuroscience Institute at the New York University Langone Medical Center, New York, NY, 10016, USA.
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Robert F. Furchgott Center for Neuroscience, State University of New York, Downstate Medical Center, Brooklyn, NY, USA.
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Huo C, Liu X, Zhao J, Zhao T, Huang H, Ye H. Abnormalities in behaviour, histology and prefrontal cortical gene expression profiles relevant to schizophrenia in embryonic day 17 MAM-Exposed C57BL/6 mice. Neuropharmacology 2018; 140:287-301. [PMID: 30056124 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuropharm.2018.07.030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2018] [Revised: 06/20/2018] [Accepted: 07/25/2018] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
Abstract
Gestational and perinatal disruption of neural development increases the risk of developing schizophrenia (SCZ) later in life. Embryonic day 17 (E17) methylazoxymethanol (MAM) treatment leads to histological, physiological and behavioural abnormalities in post-puberty rats that model the neuropathological and cognitive deficits reported in SCZ patients. However, the validity of E17 MAM-exposed mice to model SCZ has not been explored. Here we treated E17 C57BL/6 mouse dams with various dosages of MAM. We found that this mouse strain was more vulnerable to MAM treatment than rats and there were gender differences in behavioural abnormalities, histological changes and prefrontal cortical gene expression profiles in MAM (7.5 mg/kg)-exposed mice. Both male and female MAM-exposed mice had deficits in prepulse inhibition. Female MAM-exposed mice exhibited mildly increased spontaneous locomotion activity and social recognition deficits, while male mice were normal. Consistently, only female MAM-exposed mice exhibited reduced brain weight, decreased size of prefrontal cortex (PFC) and enlarged lateral ventricles. Transcriptome analysis of the PFC revealed that there were more differentially expressed genes in female MAM-exposed mice than those in male mice. Moreover, expression of Pvalb, Arc and genes in their association networks were downregulated in the PFC of female MAM-exposed mice. These results indicate that E17 MAM-exposure in C57BL/6 mice leads to behavioural changes that model certain deficits reported in SCZ patients. MAM-exposed female mice may be used to study gene expression changes, inhibitory neural circuit dysfunction and glutamatergic synaptic plasticity deficits with a possible relation to those in the brains of SCZ patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chunyue Huo
- Department of Medical Genetics and Developmental Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China; Yanjing Medical College, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China
| | - Xu Liu
- Department of Medical Genetics and Developmental Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China; Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Center of Schizophrenia, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China
| | - Jialu Zhao
- Department of Medical Genetics and Developmental Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China; Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Center of Schizophrenia, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China
| | - Tian Zhao
- Department of Medical Genetics and Developmental Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China; Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Center of Schizophrenia, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China
| | - Huiling Huang
- Department of Medical Genetics and Developmental Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China; Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Center of Schizophrenia, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China
| | - Haihong Ye
- Department of Medical Genetics and Developmental Biology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China; Beijing Institute for Brain Disorders, Center of Schizophrenia, Capital Medical University, Beijing 100069, China.
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Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is prevalent. Although standards antidepressants are more effective than placebo, up to 35% of patients do not respond to 4 or more conventional treatments and are considered to have treatment-resistant depression (TRD). Considerable effort has been devoted to trying to find effective treatments for TRD. This review focuses on vagus nerve stimulation (VNS), approved for TRD in 2005 by the Food and Drugs Administration. Stimulation is carried by bipolar electrodes on the left cervical vagus nerve, which are attached to an implanted stimulator generator. The vagus bundle contains about 80% of afferent fibers terminating in the medulla, from which there are projections to many areas of brain, including the limbic forebrain. Various types of brain imaging studies reveal widespread functional effects in brain after either acute or chronic VNS. Although more randomized control trials of VNS need to be carried out before a definitive conclusion can be reached about its efficacy, the results of open studies, carried out over period of 1 to 2 years, show much more efficacy when compared with results from treatment as usual studies. There is an increase in clinical response to VNS between 3 and 12 months, which is quite different from that seen with standard antidepressant treatment of MDD. Preclinically, VNS affects many of the same brain areas, neurotransmitters (serotonin, norepinephrine) and signal transduction mechanisms (brain-derived neurotrophic factor-tropomyosin receptor kinase B) as those found with traditional antidepressants. Nevertheless, the mechanisms by which VNS benefits patients nonresponsive to conventional antidepressants is unclear, with further research needed to clarify this.
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Affiliation(s)
- Flavia R Carreno
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA.
- Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA.
| | - Alan Frazer
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
- Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
- South Texas Veterans Health Care System, San Antonio, TX, USA
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25
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Neary JL, Perez SM, Peterson K, Lodge DJ, Carless MA. Comparative analysis of MBD-seq and MeDIP-seq and estimation of gene expression changes in a rodent model of schizophrenia. Genomics 2017; 109:204-213. [PMID: 28365388 PMCID: PMC5526217 DOI: 10.1016/j.ygeno.2017.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2016] [Revised: 03/14/2017] [Accepted: 03/26/2017] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
We conducted a comparative study of multiplexed affinity enrichment sequence methodologies (MBD-seq and MeDIP-seq) in a rodent model of schizophrenia, induced by in utero methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) exposure. We also examined related gene expression changes using a pooled sample approach. MBD-seq and MeDIP-seq identified 769 and 1771 differentially methylated regions (DMRs) between F2 offspring of MAM-exposed rats and saline control rats, respectively. The assays showed good concordance, with ~56% of MBD-seq-detected DMRs being identified by or proximal to MeDIP-seq DMRs. There was no significant overlap between DMRs and differentially expressed genes, suggesting that DNA methylation regulatory effects may act upon more distal genes, or are too subtle to detect using our approach. Methylation and gene expression gene ontology enrichment analyses identified biological processes important to schizophrenia pathophysiology, including neuron differentiation, prepulse inhibition, amphetamine response, and glutamatergic synaptic transmission regulation, reinforcing the utility of the MAM rodent model for schizophrenia research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer L Neary
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, 7620 NW Loop 410, San Antonio, TX 78227, USA.
| | - Stephanie M Perez
- Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA.
| | - Kara Peterson
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, 7620 NW Loop 410, San Antonio, TX 78227, USA.
| | - Daniel J Lodge
- Department of Pharmacology, Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, 7703 Floyd Curl Drive, San Antonio, TX 78229, USA.
| | - Melanie A Carless
- Department of Genetics, Texas Biomedical Research Institute, 7620 NW Loop 410, San Antonio, TX 78227, USA.
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26
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Brady AM. The Neonatal Ventral Hippocampal Lesion (NVHL) Rodent Model of Schizophrenia. CURRENT PROTOCOLS IN NEUROSCIENCE 2016; 77:9.55.1-9.55.17. [PMID: 27696361 PMCID: PMC5113298 DOI: 10.1002/cpns.15] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/11/2022]
Abstract
Animal models are crucial to the study of the neurobiological bases of psychiatric disorders, but schizophrenia is a particularly challenging disorder to model given the complexity and heavily verbal nature of its symptoms. This unit describes a developmental surgical rodent model of schizophrenia, the neonatal ventral hippocampal lesion (NVHL) model. This widely used model produces reliable behavioral abnormalities that are comparable to those observed in patients, as well as anatomical and neurophysiological disruptions in forebrain areas that are also implicated in schizophrenia. A brief background of the development and validity of the NVHL model is discussed here, along with detailed procedures for producing the model in rats. Critical issues particular to neonatal surgery are discussed, and representative histological and behavioral results are presented. © 2016 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anne Marie Brady
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience Program, St. Mary's College of Maryland, St. Mary's City, Maryland, 240-895-2103,
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27
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Converging models of schizophrenia--Network alterations of prefrontal cortex underlying cognitive impairments. Prog Neurobiol 2015; 134:178-201. [PMID: 26408506 DOI: 10.1016/j.pneurobio.2015.09.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 62] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/04/2015] [Revised: 09/10/2015] [Accepted: 09/17/2015] [Indexed: 02/08/2023]
Abstract
The prefrontal cortex (PFC) and its connections with other brain areas are crucial for cognitive function. Cognitive impairments are one of the core symptoms associated with schizophrenia, and manifest even before the onset of the disorder. Altered neural networks involving PFC contribute to cognitive impairments in schizophrenia. Both genetic and environmental risk factors affect the development of the local circuitry within PFC as well as development of broader brain networks, and make the system vulnerable to further insults during adolescence, leading to the onset of the disorder in young adulthood. Since spared cognitive functions correlate with functional outcome and prognosis, a better understanding of the mechanisms underlying cognitive impairments will have important implications for novel therapeutics for schizophrenia focusing on cognitive functions. Multidisciplinary approaches, from basic neuroscience to clinical studies, are required to link molecules, circuitry, networks, and behavioral phenotypes. Close interactions among such fields by sharing a common language on connectomes, behavioral readouts, and other concepts are crucial for this goal.
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28
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Goda SA, Olszewski M, Piasecka J, Rejniak K, Whittington MA, Kasicki S, Hunt MJ. Aberrant high frequency oscillations recorded in the rat nucleus accumbens in the methylazoxymethanol acetate neurodevelopmental model of schizophrenia. Prog Neuropsychopharmacol Biol Psychiatry 2015; 61:44-51. [PMID: 25862088 DOI: 10.1016/j.pnpbp.2015.03.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/08/2015] [Revised: 03/30/2015] [Accepted: 03/30/2015] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Altered activity of the nucleus accumbens (NAc) is thought to be a core feature of schizophrenia and animal models of the disease. Abnormal high frequency oscillations (HFO) in the rat NAc have been associated with pharmacological models of schizophrenia, in particular the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) hypofunction model. Here, we tested the hypothesis that abnormal HFO are also associated with a neurodevelopmental rat model. METHODS Using prenatal administration of the mitotoxin methylazoxymethanol acetate (MAM) we obtained the offspring MAM rats. Adult MAM and Sham rats were implanted with electrodes, for local field potential recordings, in the NAc. RESULTS Spontaneous HFO (spHFO) in MAM rats were characterized by increased power and frequency relative to Sham rats. MK801 dose-dependently increased the power of HFO in both groups. However, the dose-dependent increase in HFO frequency found in Sham rats was occluded in MAM rats. The antipsychotic compound, clozapine reduced the frequency of HFO which was similar in both MAM and Sham rats. Further, HFO were modulated in a similar manner by delta oscillations in both MAM and Sham rats. CONCLUSION Together these findings suggest that increased HFO frequency represents an important feature in certain animal models of schizophrenia. These findings support the hypothesis that altered functioning of the NAc is a core feature in animal models of schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sailaja A Goda
- Laboratory of the Limbic System, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, 3 Pasteur Street, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Maciej Olszewski
- Laboratory of the Limbic System, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, 3 Pasteur Street, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Joanna Piasecka
- Laboratory of the Limbic System, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, 3 Pasteur Street, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Karolina Rejniak
- Laboratory of the Limbic System, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, 3 Pasteur Street, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Miles A Whittington
- The Hull York Medical School, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK
| | - Stefan Kasicki
- Laboratory of the Limbic System, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, 3 Pasteur Street, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland
| | - Mark J Hunt
- Laboratory of the Limbic System, Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, 3 Pasteur Street, 02-093 Warsaw, Poland; The Hull York Medical School, University of York, Heslington, York YO10 5DD, UK
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29
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Kucerova J, Babinska Z, Horska K, Kotolova H. The common pathophysiology underlying the metabolic syndrome, schizophrenia and depression. A review. Biomed Pap Med Fac Univ Palacky Olomouc Czech Repub 2015; 159:208-14. [DOI: 10.5507/bp.2014.060] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/13/2014] [Accepted: 11/12/2014] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
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Vagal nerve stimulation reverses aberrant dopamine system function in the methylazoxymethanol acetate rodent model of schizophrenia. J Neurosci 2014; 34:9261-7. [PMID: 25009259 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.0588-14.2014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Vagal nerve stimulation (VNS) is an alternative therapy for epilepsy and treatment refractory depression. Here we examine VNS as a potential therapy for the treatment of schizophrenia in the methylozoxymethanol acetate (MAM) rodent model of the disease. We have previously demonstrated that hyperactivity within ventral regions of the hippocampus (vHipp) drives the dopamine system dysregulation in this model. Moreover, by targeting the vHipp directly, we can reverse aberrant dopamine system function and associated behaviors in the MAM model. Although the central effects of VNS have not been completely delineated, positron emission topographic measurements of cerebral blood flow in humans have consistently reported that VNS stimulation induces bilateral decreases in hippocampal activity. Based on our previous observations, we performed in vivo extracellular electrophysiological recordings in MAM- and saline-treated rats to evaluate the effect of chronic (2 week) VNS treatment on the activity of putative vHipp pyramidal neurons, as well as downstream dopamine neuron activity in the ventral tegmental area. Here we demonstrate that chronic VNS was able to reverse both vHipp hyperactivity and aberrant mesolimbic dopamine neuron function in the MAM model of schizophrenia. Additionally, VNS reversed a behavioral correlate of the positive symptoms of schizophrenia. Because current therapies for schizophrenia are far from adequate, with a large number of patients discontinuing treatment due to low efficacy or intolerable side effects, it is important to explore alternative nonpharmacological treatments. These data provide the first preclinical evidence that VNS may be a possible alternative therapeutic approach for the treatment of schizophrenia.
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Perez SM, Chen L, Lodge DJ. Alterations in dopamine system function across the estrous cycle of the MAM rodent model of schizophrenia. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2014; 47:88-97. [PMID: 25001958 PMCID: PMC4106681 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2014.05.005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2014] [Revised: 04/16/2014] [Accepted: 05/05/2014] [Indexed: 02/09/2023]
Abstract
Clinical studies have reported differences in the incidence and severity of schizophrenia symptoms between male and female schizophrenia patients. Unfortunately, the cause of these differences is not currently known due, in part, to the fact that preclinical studies largely focus on male subjects. Dopamine neuron activity has been previously demonstrated to change across the estrous cycle, and may therefore be of relevance, as aberrant dopamine signaling is thought to underlie the positive symptoms of schizophrenia. Here we examine dopamine neuron activity across the estrous cycle in the MAM rodent model of schizophrenia. We demonstrate that the elevation in dopamine neuron activity, consistently observed in male MAM-treated rats, is most prominent during estrus and attenuated in met-estrus. Furthermore, this appears to be mediated, in part, by progesterone in the ventral hippocampus, as increases in dopamine neuron population activity (observed in estrus) were normalized by the intra-hippocampal administration of the progesterone receptor antagonist, mifepristone (but not the estrogen receptor antagonists, fulvestrant). Taken together, these data suggest that changes in dopamine system function occur across the estrous cycle in MAM-treated rats and may contribute to the differences in symptomatology between male and female schizophrenia patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie M. Perez
- Department of Pharmacology & Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA
| | - Li Chen
- Department of Pharmacology & Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA,Departments of Physiology and Pathophysiology, Medical School of Xi’an Jiaotong University, Xi’an, Shaanxi, China
| | - Daniel J Lodge
- Department of Pharmacology & Center for Biomedical Neuroscience, University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, San Antonio, TX, USA.
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Tyson JA, Anderson SA. GABAergic interneuron transplants to study development and treat disease. Trends Neurosci 2014; 37:169-77. [PMID: 24508416 PMCID: PMC4396846 DOI: 10.1016/j.tins.2014.01.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/13/2013] [Revised: 01/06/2014] [Accepted: 01/06/2014] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Advances in stem cell technology have engendered keen interest in cell-based therapies for neurological disorders. Postnatal engraftments of most neuronal precursors result in little cellular migration, a crucial prerequisite for transplants to integrate within the host circuitry. This may occur because most neurons migrate along substrates, such as radial glial processes, that are not abundant in adults. However, cortical GABAergic interneurons migrate tangentially from the subcortical forebrain into the cerebral cortex. Accordingly, transplants of cortical interneuron precursors migrate extensively after engraftment into a variety of CNS tissues, where they can become synaptically connected with host circuitry. We review how this remarkable ability to integrate post-transplant is being applied to the development of cell-based therapies for a variety of CNS disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer A Tyson
- Department of Psychiatry, Weill Medical College of Cornell University, New York, NY 10021, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA
| | - Stewart A Anderson
- Department of Psychiatry, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia, PA 19104, USA.
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33
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Kisby GE, Moore H, Spencer PS. Animal models of brain maldevelopment induced by cycad plant genotoxins. BIRTH DEFECTS RESEARCH. PART C, EMBRYO TODAY : REVIEWS 2013; 99:247-55. [PMID: 24339036 PMCID: PMC4183057 DOI: 10.1002/bdrc.21052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2013] [Accepted: 10/24/2013] [Indexed: 01/12/2023]
Abstract
Cycads are long-lived tropical and subtropical plants that contain azoxyglycosides (e.g., cycasin, macrozamin) and neurotoxic amino acids (notably β-N-methylamino-l-alanine l-BMAA), toxins that have been implicated in the etiology of a disappearing neurodegenerative disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and parkinsonism-dementia complex that has been present in high incidence among three genetically distinct populations in the western Pacific. The neuropathology of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis/parkinsonism-dementia complex includes features suggestive of brain maldevelopment, an experimentally proven property of cycasin attributable to the genotoxic action of its aglycone methylazoxymethanol (MAM). This property of MAM has been exploited by neurobiologists as a tool to study perturbations of brain development. Depending on the neurodevelopmental stage, MAM can induce features in laboratory animals that model certain characteristics of epilepsy, schizophrenia, or ataxia. Studies in DNA repair-deficient mice show that MAM perturbs brain development through a DNA damage-mediated mechanism. The brain DNA lesions produced by systemic MAM appear to modulate the expression of genes that regulate neurodevelopment and contribute to neurodegeneration. Epigenetic changes (histone lysine methylation) have also been detected in the underdeveloped brain after MAM administration. The DNA damage and epigenetic changes produced by MAM and, perhaps by chemically related substances (e.g., nitrosamines, nitrosoureas, hydrazines), might be an important mechanism by which early-life exposure to genotoxicants can induce long-term brain dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Glen E. Kisby
- Department of Basic Medical Sciences, Western University of Health Sciences, College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific Northwest, Lebanon, Oregon, 97355
| | - Holly Moore
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University and Department of Integrative Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY
| | - Peter S. Spencer
- Department of Neurology, School of Medicine, Center for Research on Occupational and Environmental Toxciology; and Global Health Center, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland, Oregon, 97201
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