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Santos-Silva T, Lopes CFB, Hazar Ülgen D, Guimarães DA, Guimarães FS, Alberici LC, Sandi C, Gomes FV. Adolescent Stress-Induced Ventral Hippocampus Redox Dysregulation Underlies Behavioral Deficits and Excitatory/Inhibitory Imbalance Related to Schizophrenia. Schizophr Bull 2024:sbae033. [PMID: 38525594 DOI: 10.1093/schbul/sbae033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/26/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND AND HYPOTHESIS Redox dysregulation has been proposed as a convergent point of childhood trauma and the emergence of psychiatric disorders, such as schizophrenia (SCZ). A critical region particularly vulnerable to environmental insults during adolescence is the ventral hippocampus (vHip). However, the impact of severe stress on vHip redox states and their functional consequences, including behavioral and electrophysiological changes related to SCZ, are not entirely understood. STUDY DESIGN After exposing adolescent animals to physical stress (postnatal day, PND31-40), we explored social and cognitive behaviors (PND47-49), the basal activity of pyramidal glutamate neurons, the number of parvalbumin (PV) interneurons, and the transcriptomic signature of the vHip (PND51). We also evaluated the impact of stress on the redox system, including mitochondrial respiratory function, reactive oxygen species (ROS) production, and glutathione (GSH) levels in the vHip and serum. STUDY RESULTS Adolescent-stressed animals exhibited loss of sociability, cognitive impairment, and vHip excitatory/inhibitory (E/I) imbalance. Genome-wide transcriptional profiling unveiled the impact of stress on redox system- and synaptic-related genes. Stress impacted mitochondrial respiratory function and changes in ROS levels in the vHip. GSH and glutathione disulfide (GSSG) levels were elevated in the serum of stressed animals, while GSSG was also increased in the vHip and negatively correlated with sociability. Additionally, PV interneuron deficits in the vHip caused by adolescent stress were associated with oxidative stress. CONCLUSIONS Our results highlight the negative impact of adolescent stress on vHip redox regulation and mitochondrial function, which are partially associated with E/I imbalance and behavioral abnormalities related to SCZ.
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Affiliation(s)
- Thamyris Santos-Silva
- Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Caio Fábio Baeta Lopes
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Pharmaceutical Sciences School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Doğukan Hazar Ülgen
- Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Danielle A Guimarães
- Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Francisco S Guimarães
- Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Luciane Carla Alberici
- Department of Biomolecular Sciences, Ribeirão Preto Pharmaceutical Sciences School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
| | - Carmen Sandi
- Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Felipe V Gomes
- Department of Pharmacology, Ribeirão Preto Medical School, University of São Paulo, Ribeirão Preto, Brazil
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Zühlsdorff K, López-Cruz L, Dutcher EG, Jones JA, Pama C, Sawiak S, Khan S, Milton AL, Robbins TW, Bullmore ET, Dalley JW. Sex-dependent effects of early life stress on reinforcement learning and limbic cortico-striatal functional connectivity. Neurobiol Stress 2023; 22:100507. [PMID: 36505960 PMCID: PMC9731893 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2022.100507] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/07/2022] [Revised: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 11/30/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a stress-related condition hypothesized to involve aberrant reinforcement learning (RL) with positive and negative stimuli. The present study investigated whether repeated early maternal separation (REMS) stress, a procedure widely recognized to cause depression-like behaviour, affects how subjects learn from positive and negative feedback. The REMS procedure was implemented by separating male and female rats from their dam for 6 h each day from post-natal day 5-19. Control rat offspring were left undisturbed during this period. Rats were tested as adults for behavioral flexibility and feedback sensitivity on a probabilistic reversal learning task. A computational approach based on RL theory was used to derive latent behavioral variables related to reward learning and flexibility. To assess underlying brain substrates, a seed-based functional MRI connectivity analysis was applied both before and after an additional adulthood stressor in control and REMS rats. Female but not male rats exposed to REMS stress showed increased response 'stickiness' (repeated responses regardless of reward outcome). Following repeated adulthood stress, reduced functional connectivity from the basolateral amygdala (BLA) to the dorsolateral striatum (DLS), cingulate cortex (Cg), and anterior insula (AI) cortex was observed in females. By contrast, control male rats exposed to the second stressor showed impaired learning from negative feedback (i.e., non-reward) and reduced functional connectivity from the BLA to the DLS and AI compared to maternally separated males. RL in male rats exposed to REMS was unaffected. The fMRI data further revealed that connectivity between the mOFC and other prefrontal cortical and subcortical structures was positively correlated with response 'stickiness'. These findings reveal differences in how females and males respond to early life adversity and subsequent stress. These effects may be mediated by functional divergence in resting-state connectivity between the basolateral amygdala and fronto-striatal brain regions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Zühlsdorff
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Laura López-Cruz
- Faculty of Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics, The Open University, Walton Hall, Kents Hill, Milton Keynes, MK7 6AA, UK
| | - Ethan G. Dutcher
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Jolyon A. Jones
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Claudia Pama
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Stephen Sawiak
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Wolfson Brain Imaging Centre, Department of Clinical Neurosciences, University of Cambridge, Cambridge Biomedical Campus, Box 65, Cambridge, CB2 0QQ, UK
| | - Shahid Khan
- GlaxoSmithKline Research & Development, Stevenage, UK
| | - Amy L. Milton
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Trevor W. Robbins
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
| | - Edward T. Bullmore
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Department of Psychiatry, Herchel Smith Building for Brain and Mind Sciences, Forvie Site, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ, UK
| | - Jeffrey W. Dalley
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Downing Site, Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Behavioural and Clinical Neuroscience Institute, University of Cambridge, CB2 3EB, UK
- Department of Psychiatry, Herchel Smith Building for Brain and Mind Sciences, Forvie Site, Cambridge, CB2 0SZ, UK
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Pardo GVE, Alfaro Saca EE, Becerra Flores CT, Delgado Casós WF, Pacheco-Otalora LF. Limited bedding nesting paradigm alters maternal behavior and pup's early developmental milestones but did not induce anxiety- or depressive-like behavior in two different inbred mice. Dev Psychobiol 2023; 65:e22357. [PMID: 36567650 DOI: 10.1002/dev.22357] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2022] [Revised: 11/03/2022] [Accepted: 11/07/2022] [Indexed: 12/24/2022]
Abstract
Animal models are crucial to understanding the mechanisms underlying the deleterious consequences of early-life stress. Here, we aimed to examine the effect of the limited bedding nesting (LBN) paradigm on early life development milestones and anxiety- and/or depression-like behavior in adolescent and adult mice from two inbred mice of both sexes. C57BL/6NCrl and BALB/c litters were exposed to the LBN paradigm postnatal day (PND) 2-9. Maternal behavior recording occurred on PND 3-9, and pups were weighed daily and examined to verify the eye-opening on PND 10-22. The male and female offspring underwent evaluation in the open field test, elevated plus-maze, and the forced swimming test during adolescence (PND 45-49) and adulthood (PND 75-79). We found that LBN impaired the maternal behavior patterns of both strain dams, mainly on C57BL/6NCrl strain. Also, LBN delayed the pup's eye-opening time and reduced body weight gain, impacting C57BL/6NCrl pups more. We also found that LBN decreased anxiety-related indices in adolescent and adult male but not female mice of both strains. Furthermore, LBN decreased depression-related indices only adolescent female and male BALB/c and female but not male C57BL/6NCrl mice. These findings reinforce the evidence that the LBN paradigm impairs the maternal behavior pattern and pup's early developmental milestones but does not induce anxiety- or depressive-like behavior outcomes during later life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Grace V E Pardo
- Laboratorio de Investigación en Neurociencia, Instituto Científico de Investigación, Universidad Andina del Cusco, Cuzco, Peru
| | - Eros Emanuel Alfaro Saca
- Laboratorio de Investigación en Neurociencia, Instituto Científico de Investigación, Universidad Andina del Cusco, Cuzco, Peru
| | | | - Walter Fares Delgado Casós
- Laboratorio de Investigación en Neurociencia, Instituto Científico de Investigación, Universidad Andina del Cusco, Cuzco, Peru
| | - Luis F Pacheco-Otalora
- Laboratorio de Investigación en Neurociencia, Instituto Científico de Investigación, Universidad Andina del Cusco, Cuzco, Peru
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Duque-Quintero M, Hooijmans CR, Hurowitz A, Ahmed A, Barris B, Homberg JR, Hen R, Harris AZ, Balsam P, Atsak P. Enduring effects of early-life adversity on reward processes: A systematic review and meta-analysis of animal studies. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2022; 142:104849. [PMID: 36116576 PMCID: PMC10729999 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2022.104849] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/21/2022] [Revised: 08/23/2022] [Accepted: 08/26/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Abstract
Two-thirds of individuals experience adversity during childhood such as neglect, abuse or highly-stressful events. Early-life adversity (ELA) increases the life-long risk of developing mood and substance use disorders. Reward-related deficits has emerged as a key endophenotype of such psychiatric disorders. Animal models are invaluable for studying how ELA leads to reward deficits. However, the existing literature is heterogenous with difficult to reconcile findings. To create an overview, we conducted a systematic review containing multiple meta-analyses regarding the effects of ELA on reward processes overall and on specific aspects of reward processing in animal models. A comprehensive search identified 120 studies. Most studies omitted key details resulting in unclear risk of bias. Overall meta-analysis showed that ELA significantly reduced reward behaviors (SMD: -0.42 [-0.60; -0.24]). The magnitude of ELA effects significantly increased with longer exposure. When reward domains were analyzed separately, ELA only significantly dampened reward responsiveness (SMD: -0.525[-0.786; -0.264]) and social reward processing (SMD: -0.374 [-0.663; -0.084]), suggesting that ELA might lead to deficits in specific reward domains.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mariana Duque-Quintero
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, 6525 EN Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Carlijn R Hooijmans
- Systematic Review Centre for Laboratory animal Experimentation (SYRCLE), Department for Health Evidence, Radboud Institute for Health Sciences, Radboud university medical center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Department of Anesthesiology, Pain and Palliative Medicine, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Alexander Hurowitz
- Integrative Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York 10032, USA
| | - Afsana Ahmed
- Integrative Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York 10032, USA
| | - Ben Barris
- Integrative Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York 10032, USA
| | - Judith R Homberg
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, 6525 EN Nijmegen, The Netherlands
| | - Rene Hen
- Integrative Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York 10032, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Alexander Z Harris
- Integrative Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York 10032, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Peter Balsam
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA
| | - Piray Atsak
- Department of Cognitive Neuroscience, Radboud University Medical Center, 6500 HB Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour, Radboud University, 6525 EN Nijmegen, The Netherlands; Integrative Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York 10032, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University, New York, NY 10032, USA.
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5
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Waters RC, Gould E. Early Life Adversity and Neuropsychiatric Disease: Differential Outcomes and Translational Relevance of Rodent Models. Front Syst Neurosci 2022; 16:860847. [PMID: 35813268 PMCID: PMC9259886 DOI: 10.3389/fnsys.2022.860847] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/23/2022] [Accepted: 04/19/2022] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
It is now well-established that early life adversity (ELA) predisposes individuals to develop several neuropsychiatric conditions, including anxiety disorders, and major depressive disorder. However, ELA is a very broad term, encompassing multiple types of negative childhood experiences, including physical, sexual and emotional abuse, physical and emotional neglect, as well as trauma associated with chronic illness, family separation, natural disasters, accidents, and witnessing a violent crime. Emerging literature suggests that in humans, different types of adverse experiences are more or less likely to produce susceptibilities to certain conditions that involve affective dysfunction. To investigate the driving mechanisms underlying the connection between experience and subsequent disease, neuroscientists have developed several rodent models of ELA, including pain exposure, maternal deprivation, and limited resources. These studies have also shown that different types of ELA paradigms produce different but somewhat overlapping behavioral phenotypes. In this review, we first investigate the types of ELA that may be driving different neuropsychiatric outcomes and brain changes in humans. We next evaluate whether rodent models of ELA can provide translationally relevant information regarding links between specific types of experience and changes in neural circuits underlying dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Elizabeth Gould
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
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6
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Touchant M, Labonté B. Sex-Specific Brain Transcriptional Signatures in Human MDD and Their Correlates in Mouse Models of Depression. Front Behav Neurosci 2022; 16:845491. [PMID: 35592639 PMCID: PMC9110970 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2022.845491] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/29/2021] [Accepted: 04/05/2022] [Indexed: 01/13/2023] Open
Abstract
Major depressive disorder (MDD) is amongst the most devastating psychiatric conditions affecting several millions of people worldwide every year. Despite the importance of this disease and its impact on modern societies, still very little is known about the etiological mechanisms. Treatment strategies have stagnated over the last decades and very little progress has been made to improve the efficiency of current therapeutic approaches. In order to better understand the disease, it is necessary for researchers to use appropriate animal models that reproduce specific aspects of the complex clinical manifestations at the behavioral and molecular levels. Here, we review the current literature describing the use of mouse models to reproduce specific aspects of MDD and anxiety in males and females. We first describe some of the most commonly used mouse models and their capacity to display unique but also shared features relevant to MDD. We then transition toward an integral description, combined with genome-wide transcriptional strategies. The use of these models reveals crucial insights into the molecular programs underlying the expression of stress susceptibility and resilience in a sex-specific fashion. These studies performed on human and mouse tissues establish correlates into the mechanisms mediating the impact of stress and the extent to which different mouse models of chronic stress recapitulate the molecular changes observed in depressed humans. The focus of this review is specifically to highlight the sex differences revealed from different stress paradigms and transcriptional analyses both in human and animal models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maureen Touchant
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Québec, QC, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
| | - Benoit Labonté
- CERVO Brain Research Centre, Québec, QC, Canada
- Department of Psychiatry and Neuroscience, Faculty of Medicine, Université Laval, Québec, QC, Canada
- *Correspondence: Benoit Labonté
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Disrupted presynaptic nectin1-based neuronal adhesion in the entorhinal-hippocampal circuit contributes to early-life stress-induced memory deficits. Transl Psychiatry 2022; 12:141. [PMID: 35379771 PMCID: PMC8980071 DOI: 10.1038/s41398-022-01908-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/02/2021] [Revised: 03/17/2022] [Accepted: 03/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/06/2023] Open
Abstract
The cell adhesion molecule nectin3 and its presynaptic partner nectin1 have been linked to early-life stress-related cognitive disorders, but how the nectin1-nectin3 system contributes to stress-induced neuronal, circuit, and cognitive abnormalities remains to be studied. Here we show that in neonatally stressed male mice, temporal order and spatial working memories, which require the medial entorhinal cortex (MEC)-CA1 pathway, as well as the structural integrity of CA1 pyramidal neurons were markedly impaired in adulthood. These cognitive and structural abnormalities in stressed mice were associated with decreased nectin levels in entorhinal and hippocampal subregions, especially reduced nectin1 level in the MEC and nectin3 level in the CA1. Postnatal suppression of nectin1 but not nectin3 level in the MEC impaired spatial memory, whereas conditional inactivation of nectin1 from MEC excitatory neurons reproduced the adverse effects of early-life stress on MEC-dependent memories and neuronal plasticity in CA1. Our data suggest that early-life stress disrupts presynaptic nectin1-mediated interneuronal adhesion in the MEC-CA1 pathway, which may in turn contribute to stress-induced synaptic and cognitive deficits.
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8
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Waters RC, Worth HM, Vasquez B, Gould E. Inhibition of adult neurogenesis reduces avoidance behavior in male, but not female, mice subjected to early life adversity. Neurobiol Stress 2022; 17:100436. [PMID: 35146080 PMCID: PMC8819473 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2022.100436] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2021] [Revised: 01/08/2022] [Accepted: 01/24/2022] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Early life adversity (ELA) increases the risk of developing neuropsychiatric illnesses such as anxiety disorders. However, the mechanisms connecting these negative early life experiences to illness later in life remain unclear. In rodents, plasticity mechanisms, specifically adult neurogenesis in the ventral hippocampus, have been shown to be altered by ELA and important for buffering against detrimental stress-induced outcomes. The current study sought to explore whether adult neurogenesis contributes to ELA-induced changes in avoidance behavior. Using the GFAP-TK transgenic model, which allows for the inhibition of adult neurogenesis, and CD1 littermate controls, we subjected mice to an ELA paradigm of maternal separation and early weaning (MSEW) or control rearing. We found that mice with intact adult neurogenesis showed no behavioral changes in response to MSEW. After reducing adult neurogenesis, however, male mice previously subjected to MSEW had an unexpected decrease in avoidance behavior. This finding was not observed in female mice, suggesting that a sex difference exists in the role of adult-born neurons in buffering against ELA-induced changes in behavior. Taken together with the existing literature on ELA and avoidance behavior, this work suggests that strain differences exist in susceptibility to ELA and that adult-born neurons may play a role in regulating adaptive behavior.
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Sturman O, von Ziegler L, Privitera M, Waag R, Duss S, Vermeiren Y, Giovagnoli L, de Deyn P, Bohacek J. Chronic adolescent stress increases exploratory behavior but does not appear to change the acute stress response in adult male C57BL/6 mice. Neurobiol Stress 2021; 15:100388. [PMID: 34527792 PMCID: PMC8430388 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2021.100388] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2021] [Revised: 08/26/2021] [Accepted: 08/31/2021] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic stress exposure in adolescence can lead to a lasting change in stress responsiveness later in life and is associated with increased mental health issues in adulthood. Here we investigate whether the Chronic Social Instability (CSI) paradigm influences the behavioral and molecular responses to novel acute stressors in mice, and whether it alters physiological responses influenced by the noradrenergic system. Using large cohorts of mice, we show that CSI mice display a persistent increase in exploratory behaviors in the open field test alongside small but widespread transcriptional changes in the ventral hippocampus. However, both the transcriptomic and behavioral responses to novel acute stressors are indistinguishable between groups. In addition, the pupillometric response to a tail shock, known to be mediated by the noradrenergic system, remains unaltered in CSI mice. Ultra-high performance liquid chromatography analysis of monoaminergic neurotransmitter levels in the ventral hippocampus also shows no differences between control or CSI mice at baseline or in response to acute stress. We conclude that CSI exposure during adolescence leads to persistent changes in exploratory behavior and gene expression in the hippocampus, but it does not alter the response to acute stress in adulthood and is unlikely to alter the function of the noradrenergic system.
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Affiliation(s)
- Oliver Sturman
- Laboratory of Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Lukas von Ziegler
- Laboratory of Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Mattia Privitera
- Laboratory of Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Rebecca Waag
- Laboratory of Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Sian Duss
- Laboratory of Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Yannick Vermeiren
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Laboratory of Neurochemistry and Behavior, Institute Born-Bunge, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium
- Division of Human Nutrition and Health, Chair Group of Nutritional Biology, Wageningen University & Research, Wageningen, Netherlands
- Faculty of Medicine & Health Sciences, Translational Neurosciences, University of Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Letizia Giovagnoli
- Laboratory of Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Switzerland
| | - Peter de Deyn
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Laboratory of Neurochemistry and Behavior, Institute Born-Bunge, University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Antwerp, Belgium
- Department of Neurology and Alzheimer Center, University of Groningen and University Medical Center Groningen (UMCG), Groningen, Netherlands
- Department of Neurology, Memory Clinic of Hospital Network Antwerp (ZNA) Middelheim and Hoge Beuken, Antwerp, Belgium
| | - Johannes Bohacek
- Laboratory of Molecular and Behavioral Neuroscience, Institute for Neuroscience, Department of Health Sciences and Technology, ETH, Zurich, Switzerland
- Neuroscience Center Zurich, ETH Zurich and University of Zurich, Switzerland
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Maternal separation leads to regional hippocampal microglial activation and alters the behavior in the adolescence in a sex-specific manner. Brain Behav Immun Health 2021; 9:100142. [PMID: 34589889 PMCID: PMC8474514 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbih.2020.100142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/26/2020] [Revised: 09/04/2020] [Accepted: 09/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Early life adversities during childhood (such as maltreatment, abuse, neglect, or parental deprivation) may increase the vulnerability to cognitive disturbances and emotional disorders in both, adolescence and adulthood. Maternal separation (MS) is a widely used model to study stress-related changes in brain and behavior in rodents. In this study, we investigated the effect of MS (postnatal day 2–14, 3 h/day) in both, female and male adolescent mice. Specifically, we evaluated (i) the spatial working memory, anxiety and depressive-like behavior, (ii) the hippocampal synaptic gene expression, and (iii) the hippocampal neuroinflammatory response. Our results show that MS significantly increased depressive-like behavior in adolescent female mice and altered the spatial memory in adolescent male mice. In addition, MS led to decreased expression of genes related to synaptic function (5ht6r, Synaptophysin, and Cox-2) and induced an exacerbated microglial activation in dentate gyrus (DG), CA1, and CA3. However, while the levels of hippocampal inflammatory cytokines were not modified by MS, they did follow a sex-specific expression in adolescent mice. Taken together, our results suggest that MS induces long-term changes in hippocampal microglia and synaptic gene expression, alters the spatial memory, and induces depressive-like behavior in the adolescent mice, in a sex-specific manner. In wildtype adolescent mice (6 weeks of age):Maternal separation alters spatial working memory in males and induces depressive-like behavior in females. Maternal separation changes hippocampal synaptic gene expression. Maternal separation activates microglia in dentate gyrus, CA1, and CA3 but does not affect hippocampal cytokine levels. However, males present higher levels of cytokines compared to females.
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Early Life Stress and Metabolic Plasticity of Brain Cells: Impact on Neurogenesis and Angiogenesis. Biomedicines 2021; 9:biomedicines9091092. [PMID: 34572278 PMCID: PMC8470044 DOI: 10.3390/biomedicines9091092] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/09/2021] [Revised: 08/15/2021] [Accepted: 08/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/15/2022] Open
Abstract
Early life stress (ELS) causes long-lasting changes in brain plasticity induced by the exposure to stress factors acting prenatally or in the early postnatal ontogenesis due to hyperactivation of hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis and sympathetic nervous system, development of neuroinflammation, aberrant neurogenesis and angiogenesis, and significant alterations in brain metabolism that lead to neurological deficits and higher susceptibility to development of brain disorders later in the life. As a key component of complex pathogenesis, ELS-mediated changes in brain metabolism associate with development of mitochondrial dysfunction, loss of appropriate mitochondria quality control and mitochondrial dynamics, deregulation of metabolic reprogramming. These mechanisms are particularly critical for maintaining the pool and development of brain cells within neurogenic and angiogenic niches. In this review, we focus on brain mitochondria and energy metabolism related to tightly coupled neurogenic and angiogenic events in healthy and ELS-affected brain, and new opportunities to develop efficient therapeutic strategies aimed to restore brain metabolism and reduce ELS-induced impairments of brain plasticity.
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Early life adversity targets the transcriptional signature of hippocampal NG2+ glia and affects voltage gated sodium (Na v) channels properties. Neurobiol Stress 2021; 15:100338. [PMID: 34095364 PMCID: PMC8164094 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2021.100338] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/29/2020] [Revised: 05/07/2021] [Accepted: 05/08/2021] [Indexed: 12/27/2022] Open
Abstract
The precise mechanisms underlying the detrimental effects of early life adversity (ELA) on adult mental health remain still elusive. To date, most studies have exclusively targeted neuronal populations and not considered neuron-glia crosstalk as a crucially important element for the integrity of stress-related brain function. Here, we have investigated the impact of ELA, in the form of a limited bedding and nesting material (LBN) paradigm, on a glial subpopulation with unique properties in brain homeostasis, the NG2+ cells. First, we have established a link between maternal behavior, activation of the offspring's stress response and heterogeneity in the outcome to LBN manipulation. We further showed that LBN targets the hippocampal NG2+ transcriptome with glucocorticoids being an important mediator of the LBN-induced molecular changes. LBN altered the NG2+ transcriptome and these transcriptional effects were correlated with glucocorticoids levels. The functional relevance of one LBN-induced candidate gene, Scn7a, could be confirmed by an increase in the density of voltage-gated sodium (Nav) channel activated currents in hippocampal NG2+ cells. Scn7a remained upregulated until adulthood in LBN animals, which displayed impaired cognitive performance. Considering that Nav channels are important for NG2+ cell-to-neuron communication, our findings provide novel insights into the disruption of this process in LBN mice.
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13
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van der Veen R, Bonapersona V, Joëls M. The relevance of a rodent cohort in the Consortium on Individual Development. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2020; 45:100846. [PMID: 32957026 PMCID: PMC7509002 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2020.100846] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2020] [Revised: 07/29/2020] [Accepted: 08/23/2020] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
One of the features of the Consortium on Individual Development is the existence of a rodent cohort, in parallel with the human cohorts. Here we give an overview of the current status. We first elaborate on the choice of rat and mouse models mimicking early life adverse or beneficial conditions during development. We performed a systematic literature search on early life adversity and adult social behavior to address the status quo. Next, we describe the behavioral tasks we used and designed to examine behavioral control and social competence in rodents. The results so far indicate that manipulation of the environment in the first postnatal week only subtly affects social behavior. Stronger effects were seen in the model that targeted early adolescence; once adult, these rats are characterized by increased attention, a higher degree of impulsiveness and reduced social interest in peers. Many experiments in our rodent models with tightly controlled conditions were inspired by findings in human cohorts, and now allow in-depth mechanistic investigations. Vice versa, some of the findings in rodents are currently followed up by dedicated investigations in the human cohorts. This exemplifies the added value of animal investigations in a consortium encompassing primarily human developmental cohorts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rixt van der Veen
- Dept. Translational Neuroscience, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands; Faculty of Social and Behavioral Sciences, Leiden University, Leiden, the Netherlands.
| | - Valeria Bonapersona
- Dept. Translational Neuroscience, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands
| | - Marian Joëls
- Dept. Translational Neuroscience, UMC Utrecht Brain Center, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, Utrecht, the Netherlands; University of Groningen, University Medical Center Groningen, Groningen, the Netherlands
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14
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Wang HL, Li JT, Wang H, Sun YX, Liu R, Wang XD, Su YA, Si TM. Prefrontal Nectin3 Reduction Mediates Adolescent Stress-Induced Deficits of Social Memory, Spatial Working Memory, and Dendritic Structure in Mice. Neurosci Bull 2020; 36:860-874. [PMID: 32385776 PMCID: PMC7410914 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-020-00499-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2019] [Accepted: 12/16/2019] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Chronic stress may disrupt the normal neurodevelopmental trajectory of the adolescent brain (especially the prefrontal cortex) and contribute to the pathophysiology of stress-related mental illnesses, but the underlying molecular mechanisms remain unclear. Here, we investigated how synaptic cell adhesion molecules (e.g., nectin3) are involved in the effects of adolescent chronic stress on mouse medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC). Male C57BL/6N mice were subjected to chronic social instability stress from postnatal days 29 to 77. One week later, the mice exposed to chronic stress exhibited impaired social recognition and spatial working memory, simplified dendritic structure, and reduced spine density in the mPFC. Membrane localization of nectin3 was also altered, and was significantly correlated with behavioral performance. Furthermore, knocking down mPFC nectin3 expression by adeno-associated virus in adolescent mice reproduced the stress-induced changes in behavior and mPFC morphology. These results support the hypothesis that nectin3 is a potential mediator of the effects of adolescent chronic stress on prefrontal structural and functional abnormalities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hong-Li Wang
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, 100191, China.,The National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders & Beijing Key Laboratory of Mental Disorders, Beijing Anding Hospital, Capital Medical University & the Advanced Innovation Center for Human Brain Protection, Capital Medical University, Beijing, 100088, China
| | - Ji-Tao Li
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, 100191, China.
| | - Han Wang
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Ya-Xin Sun
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Rui Liu
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Xiao-Dong Wang
- Department of Neurobiology, Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology of The Ministry of Health of China, Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, 310003, China
| | - Yun-Ai Su
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, 100191, China
| | - Tian-Mei Si
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University Sixth Hospital), Beijing, 100191, China.
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15
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Maternal Separation Early in Life Alters the Expression of Genes Npas4 and Nr1d1 in Adult Female Mice: Correlation with Social Behavior. Behav Neurol 2020; 2020:7830469. [PMID: 32190129 PMCID: PMC7072106 DOI: 10.1155/2020/7830469] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/13/2019] [Revised: 02/05/2020] [Accepted: 02/15/2020] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Early-life stress affects neuronal plasticity of the brain regions participating in the implementation of social behavior. Our previous studies have shown that brief and prolonged separation of pups from their mothers leads to enhanced social behavior in adult female mice. The goal of the present study was to characterize the expression of genes (which are engaged in synaptic plasticity) Egr1, Npas4, Arc, and Homer1 in the prefrontal cortex and dorsal hippocampus of adult female mice with a history of early-life stress. In addition, we evaluated the expression of stress-related genes: glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid receptors (Nr3c1 and Nr3c2) and Nr1d1, which encodes a transcription factor (also known as REVERBα) modulating sociability and anxiety-related behavior. C57Bl/6 mice were exposed to either maternal separation (MS, 3 h once a day) or handling (HD, 15 min once a day) on postnatal days 2 through 14. In adulthood, the behavior of female mice was analyzed by some behavioral tests, and on the day after the testing of social behavior, we measured the gene expression. We found increased Npas4 expression only in the prefrontal cortex and higher Nr1d1 expression in both the prefrontal cortex and dorsal hippocampus of adult female mice with a history of MS. The expression of the studied genes did not change in HD female mice. The expression of stress-related genes Nr3c1 and Nr3c2 was unaltered in both groups. We propose that the upregulation of Npas4 and Nr1d1 in females with a history of early-life stress and the corresponding enhancement of social behavior may be regarded as an adaptation mechanism reversing possible aberrations caused by early-life stress.
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16
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Bartsch VB, Lord JS, Diering GH, Zylka MJ. Mania- and anxiety-like behavior and impaired maternal care in female diacylglycerol kinase eta and iota double knockout mice. GENES, BRAIN, AND BEHAVIOR 2020; 19:e12570. [PMID: 30985063 PMCID: PMC6800745 DOI: 10.1111/gbb.12570] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2018] [Revised: 02/18/2019] [Accepted: 03/24/2019] [Indexed: 01/28/2023]
Abstract
Genome-wide association studies linked diacylglycerol kinase eta and iota to mood disorders, including bipolar disorder and schizophrenia, and both genes are expressed throughout the brain. Here, we generated and behaviorally characterized female mice lacking Dgkh alone, Dgki alone, and double Dgkh/Dgki-knockout (dKO) mice. We found that fewer than 30% of newborn pups raised by dKO females survived to weaning, while over 85% of pups survived to weaning when raised by wild-type (WT) females. Poor survival under the care of dKO mothers was unrelated to pup genotype. Moreover, pups from dKO dams survived when fostered by WT dams, suggesting the poor survival rate of dKO-raised litters was related to impaired maternal care by dKO dams. Nest building was similar between WT and dKO dams; however, some dKO females failed to retrieve any pups in a retrieval assay. Pups raised by dKO dams had smaller or absent milk spots and reduced weight, indicative of impaired nursing. Unlike WT females, postpartum dKO females showed erratic, panicked responses to cage disturbances. Virgin dKO females showed behavioral signs of anxiety and mania, which were not seen in mice lacking either Dgkh or Dgki alone. Our research indicates that combined deletion of Dgkh and Dgki impairs maternal behavior in the early postpartum period, and suggests female dKO mice model symptoms of mania and anxiety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Victoria B. Bartsch
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Julia S. Lord
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina,UNC Neuroscience Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Graham H. Diering
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina,UNC Neuroscience Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
| | - Mark J. Zylka
- Department of Cell Biology and Physiology, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina,UNC Neuroscience Center, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina
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17
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Tractenberg SG, Orso R, Creutzberg KC, Malcon LMC, Lumertz FS, Wearick-Silva LE, Viola TW, Riva MA, Grassi-Oliveira R. Vulnerable and resilient cognitive performance related to early life stress: The potential mediating role of dopaminergic receptors in the medial prefrontal cortex of adult mice. Int J Dev Neurosci 2020; 80:13-27. [PMID: 31907967 DOI: 10.1002/jdn.10004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/05/2019] [Accepted: 12/22/2019] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
RATIONALE Exposure to early life stress (ELS) is known to have pronounced effects on the prefrontal cortex (PFC). However, not all individuals exposed to ELS manifest the same neurobiological and cognitive phenotypes when adults. Dopamine signaling could be a key factor in understanding the effects of stress on PFC-related cognitive function. OBJECTIVES We aimed to investigate the differential effects of ELS on cognitive performance of adult mice and the dopaminergic receptors expression in the PFC. METHODS BALB/c males were exposed to the maternal separation (MS) procedure and their cognitive performance on the eight-arm radial maze (8-RAM) were assessed during adulthood. For molecular-level assessments, we performed mRNA expression analyses for dopamine receptors-DRD1, DRD2, DRD3-and Hers1 expression in the medial PFC. RESULTS While MS produced an overall impairment on 8-RAM, the stressed animals could be divided in two groups based on their performance: those with impaired cognitive performance (vulnerable to maternal separation, V-MS) and those without any impairment (resilient to maternal separation, R-MS). V-MS animals showed increased DRD1 and DRD2 expression in comparison with other groups. Errors on 8-RAM were also positively correlated with DRD1 and DRD2 mRNA expression. CONCLUSIONS Our findings suggest a potential role of the dopaminergic system in the programming mechanisms of cognitive vulnerability and resilience related to ELS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Saulo G Tractenberg
- Graduate Program in Psychology, School of Health and Life Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Rodrigo Orso
- Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Brain Institute (InsCer), Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Kerstin C Creutzberg
- Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Brain Institute (InsCer), Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Luiza M C Malcon
- Graduate Program in Psychology, School of Health and Life Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Francisco S Lumertz
- Graduate Program in Psychology, School of Health and Life Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Luis Eduardo Wearick-Silva
- Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Brain Institute (InsCer), Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Thiago W Viola
- Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Brain Institute (InsCer), Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Marco A Riva
- Department of Pharmacological and Biomolecular Sciences, Università degli Studi di Milano, Milan, Italy
| | - Rodrigo Grassi-Oliveira
- Graduate Program in Psychology, School of Health and Life Sciences, Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil.,Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience Lab, Brain Institute (InsCer), Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul (PUCRS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
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18
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White JD, Kaffman A. The Moderating Effects of Sex on Consequences of Childhood Maltreatment: From Clinical Studies to Animal Models. Front Neurosci 2019; 13:1082. [PMID: 31680821 PMCID: PMC6797834 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2019.01082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 42] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2019] [Accepted: 09/25/2019] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Stress has pronounced effects on the brain, and thus behavioral outputs. This is particularly true when the stress occurs during vulnerable points in development. A review of the clinical literature regarding the moderating effects of sex on psychopathology in individuals exposed to childhood maltreatment (CM) is complicated by a host of variables that are difficult to quantify and control in clinical settings. As a result, the precise role of sex in moderating the consequences of CM remains elusive. In this review, we explore the rationale for studying this important question and their implications for treatment. We examine this issue using the threat/deprivation conceptual framework and highlight a growing body of work demonstrating important sex differences in human studies and in animal models of early life stress (ELS). The challenges and obstacles for effectively studying this question are reviewed and are followed by recommendations on how to move forward at the clinical and preclinical settings. We hope that this review will help inspire additional studies on this important topic.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordon D White
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
| | - Arie Kaffman
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, United States
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19
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Late Cognitive Consequences of Gestational Diabetes to the Offspring, in a New Mouse Model. Mol Neurobiol 2019; 56:7754-7764. [PMID: 31115777 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-019-1624-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2019] [Accepted: 04/24/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
Gestational diabetes mellitus (GD) is a form of insulin resistance triggered during gestation, which affects approximately 10% of pregnant women. Although previously considered a transient condition with few long-term consequences, growing evidence suggest that GD may be linked to permanent metabolic and neurologic changes in the offspring. Currently available GD models fail to recapitulate the full spectrum of this disease, thus providing limited information about the true burden of this condition. Here, we describe a new mouse model of GD, based on the administration of an insulin receptor antagonist (S961, 30 nmol/kg s.c. daily) during pregnancy. Pregnant mice developed increased fasting glycemia and glucose intolerance in the absence of maternal obesity, with a return to normoglycemia shortly after parturition. Moreover, we showed that the adult offspring of GD dams presented pronounced metabolic and cognitive dysfunction when exposed to short-term high-fat diet (HFD). Our data demonstrate that S961 administration to pregnant mice comprises a valuable approach to study the complex pathophysiology of GD, as well as strategies focused on prevention and treatment of both the mother and the offspring. Our findings suggest that the offspring of GD mothers are more susceptible to metabolic and cognitive impairments when exposed to high-fat diet later in life, thus indicating that approaches to prevent and treat these late effects should be pursued.
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20
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Liu R, Wang H, Wang HL, Sun YX, Su YA, Wang XD, Li JT, Si TM. Postnatal nectin-3 knockdown induces structural abnormalities of hippocampal principal neurons and memory deficits in adult mice. Hippocampus 2019; 29:1063-1074. [PMID: 31066147 PMCID: PMC6850426 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.23098] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/16/2018] [Revised: 03/10/2019] [Accepted: 04/17/2019] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
The early postnatal stage is a critical period of hippocampal neurodevelopment and also a period of high vulnerability to adverse life experiences. Recent evidence suggests that nectin-3, a cell adhesion molecule, mediates memory dysfunction and dendritic alterations in the adult hippocampus induced by postnatal stress. But it is unknown whether postnatal nectin-3 reduction alone is sufficient to alter hippocampal structure and function in adulthood. Here, we down regulated hippocampal expression of nectin-3 and its heterophilic adhesion partner nectin-1, respectively, from early postnatal stage by injecting adeno-associated virus (AAV) into the cerebral lateral ventricles of neonatal mice (postnatal day 2). We found that suppression of nectin-3, but not nectin-1, expression from the early postnatal stage impaired hippocampus-dependent novel object recognition and spatial object recognition in adult mice. Moreover, AAV-mediated nectin-3 knockdown significantly reduced dendritic complexity and spine density of pyramidal neurons throughout the hippocampus, whereas nectin-1 knockdown only induced the loss of stubby spines in CA3. Our data provide direct evidence that nectins, especially nectin-3, are necessary for postnatal hippocampal development of memory functions and structural integrity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rui Liu
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University), Beijing, China
| | - Han Wang
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University), Beijing, China
| | - Hong-Li Wang
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University), Beijing, China
| | - Ya-Xin Sun
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University), Beijing, China
| | - Yun-Ai Su
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University), Beijing, China
| | - Xiao-Dong Wang
- Department of Neurobiology, Key Laboratory of Medical Neurobiology of Ministry of Health of China, Zhejiang Province Key Laboratory of Neurobiology, Zhejiang University School of Medicine, Hangzhou, China
| | - Ji-Tao Li
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University), Beijing, China
| | - Tian-Mei Si
- National Clinical Research Center for Mental Disorders (Peking University Sixth Hospital/Institute of Mental Health) and the Key Laboratory of Mental Health, Ministry of Health (Peking University), Beijing, China
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21
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Stenz L, Schechter DS, Serpa SR, Paoloni-Giacobino A. Intergenerational Transmission of DNA Methylation Signatures Associated with Early Life Stress. Curr Genomics 2018; 19:665-675. [PMID: 30532646 PMCID: PMC6225454 DOI: 10.2174/1389202919666171229145656] [Citation(s) in RCA: 49] [Impact Index Per Article: 8.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2017] [Revised: 04/25/2017] [Accepted: 12/17/2017] [Indexed: 02/07/2023] Open
Abstract
Early life stress in humans (i.e. maltreatment, violence exposure, loss of a loved one) and in rodents (i.e. disrupted attachment or nesting, electric shock, restraint, predator odor) occurs during critical steps of neural circuit formation. ELS in humans is associated with increased risk for developmental psychopathology, including anxious and depressive phenotypes. The biological mechanisms underlying these potentially persistent maladaptive changes involve long-term epigenetic modifications, which have been suggested to be potentially transmissible to subsequent generations. DNA methylation is an epigenetic mechanism that modifies gene expression patterns in response to environmental challenges and influences mutation rates. It remains to be seen whether a functionally relevant fraction of DNA methylation marks can escape genome-wide erasures that occur in primordial germ cells and after fertilization within the zygote. Early life-stress-triggered changes in epigenetic mediated transmission of acquired behavioral traits among humans have been assessed mainly by targeting genes involved in the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis, such as NR3C1 and FKBP5. Recently, researchers examining epigenetic transmission have begun to apply genome-wide approaches. In humans, reduced representation bisulfite sequencing (RRBS) was performed on peripheral samples that were obtained from individuals who were prenatally exposed to the "Dutch Hunger Winter", resulting in two Differentially Methylated Regions (DMRs) in INSR and CPTIA genes that were functionally, biologically and technically validated, and significantly associated with birth weights and LDL cholesterol levels in offspring. In rodents, non-genomic intergenerational transmission of anxiety which was associated with differentially methylated enhancers that were putatively involved in lipid signaling and synaptic/neurotransmission in hippocampal granule cells, was discovered also using RRBS. Finally, transgenerational transmission of altered behaviors was associated with sperm-derived microRNAs produced by ELS male mice. The field of epigenetic transmission is just beginning to enter the epigenomic era by using genome-wide analyses. Such approaches remain of strong interest to human studies, first in order to help to assess the relevance of the previous targeted studies, and second to discover new important epigenetic modifications of potential clinical importance. New discoveries may help to assess how transmittable the negative impact of stress may be to offspring. The latter may open doors for future treatments and resilience-promoting interventions, as well as new approaches to treat the effects of childhood trauma before the onset of psychiatric disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Daniel S. Schechter
- Address correspondence to this author at the Department of Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, University of Geneva Hospitals and Faculty of Medicine, Geneva, Switzerland; Tel: +41 (022) 372 5067; Fax: +91 (022) 372 5077; E-mail:
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22
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Murthy S, Gould E. Early Life Stress in Rodents: Animal Models of Illness or Resilience? Front Behav Neurosci 2018; 12:157. [PMID: 30108490 PMCID: PMC6079200 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2018.00157] [Citation(s) in RCA: 76] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2018] [Accepted: 07/06/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Sahana Murthy
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
| | - Elizabeth Gould
- Princeton Neuroscience Institute, Princeton University, Princeton, NJ, United States
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23
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Temporal profiling of an acute stress-induced behavioral phenotype in mice and role of hippocampal DRR1. Psychoneuroendocrinology 2018; 91:149-158. [PMID: 29555365 DOI: 10.1016/j.psyneuen.2018.03.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/24/2017] [Revised: 02/08/2018] [Accepted: 03/07/2018] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Understanding the neurobiological mechanisms underlying the response to an acute stressor may provide novel insights into successful stress-coping strategies. Acute behavioral stress-effects may be restricted to a specific time window early after stress-induction. However, existing behavioral test batteries typically span multiple days or even weeks, limiting the feasibility for a broad behavioral analysis following acute stress. Here, we designed a novel comprehensive behavioral test battery in male mice that assesses multiple behavioral dimensions within a sufficiently brief time window to capture acute stress-effects and its temporal profile. Using this battery, we investigated the behavioral impact of acute social defeat stress (ASD) early thereafter (ASD-early, ∼4 h), when circulating corticosterone levels were elevated, and late after stress-induction (ASD-late, ∼8 h), when corticosterone were returned to timed control levels. ASD-early, but not ASD-late, displayed hippocampal-dependent cognitive impairments in the Y-maze and in the spatial object recognition test. The actin-binding protein (ABP) Tumor suppressor down-regulated in renal cell carcinoma 1 (DRR1) has been described as resilience-promoting factor but the potential of DRR1 to curb stress-effects has not been investigated. Hippocampal DRR1 mRNA-expression was increased in ASD-early and ASD-late whereas DRR1-protein levels were increased only in ASD-late. We hypothesized that the absence of hippocampal DRR1 protein-upregulation in ASD-early caused the associated cognitive impairments. Hence, virus-mediated hippocampal DRR1-overexpression was induced as putative treatment, but cognitive deficits in ASD-early were not improved. We conclude that hippocampal DRR1-overexpression is insufficient to protect from the detrimental cognitive effects following acute social stress where perhaps a more global response in local actin dynamics, involving multiple stress-responsive ABPs that act synergistically, was warranted.
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24
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Heun-Johnson H, Levitt P. Differential impact of Met receptor gene interaction with early-life stress on neuronal morphology and behavior in mice. Neurobiol Stress 2017; 8:10-20. [PMID: 29255778 PMCID: PMC5723381 DOI: 10.1016/j.ynstr.2017.11.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2017] [Revised: 11/24/2017] [Accepted: 11/25/2017] [Indexed: 01/01/2023] Open
Abstract
Early adversity in childhood increases the risk of anxiety, mood, and post-traumatic stress disorders in adulthood, and specific gene-by-environment interactions may increase risk further. A common functional variant in the promoter region of the gene encoding the human MET receptor tyrosine kinase (rs1858830 ‘C’ allele) reduces expression of MET and is associated with altered cortical circuit function and structural connectivity. Mice with reduced Met expression exhibit changes in anxiety-like and conditioned fear behavior, precocious synaptic maturation in the hippocampus, and reduced neuronal arbor complexity and synaptogenesis. These phenotypes also can be produced independently by early adversity in wild-type mice. The present study addresses the outcome of combining early-life stress and genetic influences that alter timing of maturation on enduring functional and structural phenotypes. Using a model of reduced Met expression (Met+/−) and early-life stress from postnatal day 2–9, social, anxiety-like, and contextual fear behaviors in later life were measured. Mice that experienced early-life stress exhibited impairments in social interaction, whereas alterations in anxiety-like behavior and fear learning were driven by Met haploinsufficiency, independent of rearing condition. Early-life stress or reduced Met expression decreased arbor complexity of ventral hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons projecting to basolateral amygdala. Paradoxically, arbor complexity in Met+/− mice was increased following early-life stress, and thus not different from arbors in wild-type mice raised in control conditions. The changes in dendritic morphology are consistent with the hypothesis that the physiological state of maturation of CA1 neurons in Met+/− mice influences their responsiveness to early-life stress. The dissociation of behavioral and structural changes suggests that there may be phenotype-specific sensitivities to early-life stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanke Heun-Johnson
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Pat Levitt
- Institute for the Developing Mind, Children's Hospital Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA.,Department of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
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Transient Prepubertal Mifepristone Treatment Normalizes Deficits in Contextual Memory and Neuronal Activity of Adult Male Rats Exposed to Maternal Deprivation. eNeuro 2017; 4:eN-NWR-0253-17. [PMID: 29098176 PMCID: PMC5666324 DOI: 10.1523/eneuro.0253-17.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2017] [Revised: 09/05/2017] [Accepted: 09/20/2017] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Early life adversity is a well-known risk factor for behavioral dysfunction later in life, including the formation of contextual memory; it is also (transiently) accompanied by hyperactivity of the stress system. We tested whether mifepristone (MIF) treatment, which among other things blocks glucocorticoid receptors (GRs), during the prepubertal period [postnatal days (PND)26-PND28] normalizes memory deficits in adult male rats exposed to 24-h maternal deprivation (MD) at PND3. MD reduced body weight gain and increased basal corticosterone (CORT) levels during the PND26, but not in adulthood. In adulthood, contextual memory formation of MD compared to noMD (i.e., control) male rats was significantly impaired. This impairment was fully prevented by MIF treatment at PND26-PND28, whereas MIF by itself did not affect behavior. A second behavioral test, a rodent version of the Iowa Gambling Task (rIGT), revealed that flexible spatial learning rather than reward-based aspects of performance was impaired by MD; the deficit was prevented by MIF. Neuronal activity as tested by c-Fos staining in the latter task revealed changes in the right hippocampal-dorsomedial striatal pathway, but not in prefrontal areas involved in reward learning. Follow-up electrophysiological recordings measuring spontaneous glutamate transmission showed reduced frequency of miniature postsynaptic excitatory currents in adult CA1 dorsal hippocampal and enhanced frequency in dorsomedial striatal neurons from MD versus noMD rats, which was not seen in MIF-treated rats. We conclude that transient prepubertal MIF treatment normalizes hippocampus-striatal-dependent contextual memory/spatial learning deficits in male rats exposed to early life adversity, possibly by normalizing glutamatergic transmission.
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Hierarchical Status Predicts Behavioral Vulnerability and Nucleus Accumbens Metabolic Profile Following Chronic Social Defeat Stress. Curr Biol 2017; 27:2202-2210.e4. [PMID: 28712571 DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2017.06.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 133] [Impact Index Per Article: 19.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2017] [Revised: 05/09/2017] [Accepted: 06/09/2017] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Extensive data highlight the existence of major differences in individuals' susceptibility to stress [1-4]. While genetic factors [5, 6] and exposure to early life stress [7, 8] are key components for such neurobehavioral diversity, intriguing observations revealed individual differences in response to stress in inbred mice [9-12]. This raised the possibility that other factors might be critical in stress vulnerability. A key challenge in the field is to identify non-invasively risk factors for vulnerability to stress. Here, we investigated whether behavioral factors, emerging from preexisting dominance hierarchies, could predict vulnerability to chronic stress [9, 13-16]. We applied a chronic social defeat stress (CSDS) model of depression in C57BL/6J mice to investigate the predictive power of hierarchical status to pinpoint which individuals will exhibit susceptibility to CSDS. Given that the high social status of dominant mice would be the one particularly challenged by CSDS, we predicted and found that dominant individuals were the ones showing a strong susceptibility profile as indicated by strong social avoidance following CSDS, while subordinate mice were not affected. Data from 1H-NMR spectroscopy revealed that the metabolic profile in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) relates to social status and vulnerability to stress. Under basal conditions, subordinates show lower levels of energy-related metabolites compared to dominants. In subordinates, but not dominants, levels of these metabolites were increased after exposure to CSDS. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first study that identifies non-invasively the origin of behavioral risk factors predictive of stress-induced depression-like behaviors associated with metabolic changes.
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Paquola C, Bennett MR, Hatton SN, Hermens DF, Lagopoulos J. Utility of the cumulative stress and mismatch hypotheses in understanding the neurobiological impacts of childhood abuse and recent stress in youth with emerging mental disorder. Hum Brain Mapp 2017; 38:2709-2721. [PMID: 28256777 PMCID: PMC6866861 DOI: 10.1002/hbm.23554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/09/2016] [Revised: 02/03/2017] [Accepted: 02/21/2017] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Childhood abuse has an enduring impact on the brain's stress system. Whether the effects of childhood abuse and adulthood stress are additive (cumulative stress hypothesis) or interactive (mismatch hypothesis) is widely disputed, however. The primary aim of this study was to test the utility of the cumulative stress and mismatch hypotheses in understanding brain and behaviour. We recruited 64 individuals (aged 14-26) from a specialised clinic for assessment and early intervention of mental health problems in young people. A T1-weighted MRI, a resting state fMRI and clinical assessment were acquired from each participant. Grey matter estimates and resting state functional connectivity (rsFC) of the hippocampus, amygdala and anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) were determined using segmentation and seed-to-voxel rsFC analyses. We explored the effects of childhood abuse and recent stress on the structure and function of the regions of interest within general linear models. Worse psychiatric symptoms were significantly related to higher levels of life time stress. Individuals with mismatched childhood and recent stress levels had reduced left hippocampal volume, reduced ACC-ventrolateral prefrontal cortex rsFC and greater ACC-hippocampus rsFC, compared to individuals with matched childhood and recent stress levels. These results show specific utility of the cumulative stress hypothesis in understanding psychiatric symptomatology and of the mismatch hypothesis in modelling hippocampal grey matter, prefrontal rsFC, and prefrontal-hippocampal rsFC. We provide novel evidence for the enduring impact of childhood abuse on stress reactivity in a clinical population, and demonstrate the distinct effects of stress in different systems. Hum Brain Mapp 38:2709-2721, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
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Affiliation(s)
- Casey Paquola
- Clinical Research Unit, Brain & Mind CentreUniversity of SydneyNew South Wales2050Australia
| | - Maxwell R Bennett
- Clinical Research Unit, Brain & Mind CentreUniversity of SydneyNew South Wales2050Australia
| | - Sean N Hatton
- Clinical Research Unit, Brain & Mind CentreUniversity of SydneyNew South Wales2050Australia
- Department of PsychiatryUniversity of California, San DiegoLa JollaCalifornia
| | - Daniel F. Hermens
- Clinical Research Unit, Brain & Mind CentreUniversity of SydneyNew South Wales2050Australia
| | - Jim Lagopoulos
- Clinical Research Unit, Brain & Mind CentreUniversity of SydneyNew South Wales2050Australia
- Sunshine Coast Mind and NeuroscienceUniversity of the Sunshine CoastQueensland4558Australia
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28
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Cirulli F. Interactions between early life stress and metabolic stress in programming of mental and metabolic health. Curr Opin Behav Sci 2017. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cobeha.2016.12.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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Silva JG, Boareto AC, Schreiber AK, Redivo DDB, Gambeta E, Vergara F, Morais H, Zanoveli JM, Dalsenter PR. Chlorpyrifos induces anxiety-like behavior in offspring rats exposed during pregnancy. Neurosci Lett 2017; 641:94-100. [PMID: 28130185 DOI: 10.1016/j.neulet.2017.01.053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2016] [Revised: 01/19/2017] [Accepted: 01/23/2017] [Indexed: 12/27/2022]
Abstract
Chlorpyrifos is a pesticide, member of the organophosphate class, widely used in several countries to manage insect pests on many agricultural crops. Currently, chlorpyrifos health risks are being reevaluated due to possible adverse effects, especially on the central nervous system. The aim of this study was to investigate the possible action of this pesticide on the behaviors related to anxiety and depression of offspring rats exposed during pregnancy. Wistar rats were treated orally with chlorpyrifos (0.01, 0.1, 1 and 10mg/kg/day) on gestational days 14-20. Male offspring behavior was evaluated on post-natal days 21 and 70 by the elevated plus-maze test, open field test and forced swimming test. The results demonstrated that exposure to 0.1, 1 or 10mg/kg/day of chlorpyrifos could induce anxiogenic-like, but not depressive-like behavior at post-natal day 21, without causing fetal toxicity. This effect was reversed on post-natal day 70.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas G Silva
- Department of Chemistry and Biology, Federal Technological University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81280-340, Brazil; Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil.
| | - Ana C Boareto
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil
| | - Anne K Schreiber
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil
| | - Daiany D B Redivo
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil
| | - Eder Gambeta
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil
| | - Fernanda Vergara
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil
| | - Helen Morais
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil
| | - Janaína M Zanoveli
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil
| | - Paulo R Dalsenter
- Department of Pharmacology, Federal University of Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná 81540-990 Brazil
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Childhood adversity and epigenetic regulation of glucocorticoid signaling genes: Associations in children and adults. Dev Psychopathol 2016; 28:1319-1331. [PMID: 27691985 DOI: 10.1017/s0954579416000870] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
Early childhood experiences have lasting effects on development, including the risk for psychiatric disorders. Research examining the biologic underpinnings of these associations has revealed the impact of childhood maltreatment on the physiologic stress response and activity of the hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis. A growing body of literature supports the hypothesis that environmental exposures mediate their biological effects via epigenetic mechanisms. Methylation, which is thought to be the most stable form of epigenetic change, is a likely mechanism by which early life exposures have lasting effects. We present recent evidence related to epigenetic regulation of genes involved in hypothalamus-pituitary-adrenal axis regulation, namely, the glucocorticoid receptor gene (nuclear receptor subfamily 3, group C, member 1 [NR3C1]) and FK506 binding protein 51 gene (FKBP5), after childhood adversity and associations with risk for psychiatric disorders. Implications for the development of interventions and future research are discussed.
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Heun-Johnson H, Levitt P. Early-Life Stress Paradigm Transiently Alters Maternal Behavior, Dam-Pup Interactions, and Offspring Vocalizations in Mice. Front Behav Neurosci 2016; 10:142. [PMID: 27458353 PMCID: PMC4932116 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2016.00142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 35] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2016] [Accepted: 06/22/2016] [Indexed: 12/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Animal models can help elucidate the mechanisms through which early-life stress (ELS) has pathophysiological effects on the developing brain. One model that has been developed for rodents consists of limiting the amount of bedding and nesting material during the first postnatal weeks of pup life. This ELS environment has been shown to induce "abusive" behaviors by rat dams towards pups, while mouse dams have been hypothesized to display "fragmented care". Here, as part of an ongoing study of gene-environment interactions that impact brain development, we analyzed long observation periods of wild-type C57Bl/6J dams caring for wild-type and Met heterozygous pups. Met encodes for the MET receptor tyrosine kinase, which is involved in cortical and hippocampal synaptogenesis. Dams with limited resources from postnatal day (P)2 to P9 preserved regular long on-nest periods, and instead increased the number of discrete dam-pup interactions during regular off-nest periods. Immediately after dams entered the nest during off-nest periods in this ELS environment, pups responded to these qualitatively different interactions with an increased number of ultrasonic vocalizations (USV) and audible vocalizations (AV), communication signals that have been associated with aversive and painful stimuli. After returning to control conditions, nest entry behaviors normalized, and dams did not show altered anxiety-like or contextual fear learning behaviors after pup weaning. Furthermore, female mice that had undergone ELS as pups did not show atypical nest entry behaviors in control conditions in adulthood, suggesting that these specific maternal behaviors are not learned during the ELS period. The results suggest that atypical responses of both mother and pups during exposure to this ELS environment likely contribute to long-term negative outcomes in mice, and that these responses more closely resemble the effects of limited bedding on rat dams and pups than was previously suggested. Discerning how different early-life stressors mediate changes in maternal-pup interactions can help elucidate the mechanisms of ELS on brain development and behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hanke Heun-Johnson
- Neuroscience Graduate Program, University of Southern CaliforniaLos Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Pat Levitt
- Institute for the Developing Mind, Children’s Hospital Los AngelesLos Angeles, CA, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern CaliforniaLos Angeles, CA, USA
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