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Islam R, White JD, Arefin TM, Mehta S, Liu X, Polis B, Giuliano L, Ahmed S, Bowers C, Zhang J, Kaffman A. Early adversity causes sex-specific deficits in perforant pathway connectivity and contextual memory in adolescent mice. Biol Sex Differ 2024; 15:39. [PMID: 38715106 PMCID: PMC11075329 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-024-00616-0] [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] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/07/2023] [Accepted: 04/26/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Early life adversity impairs hippocampal development and function across diverse species. While initial evidence indicated potential variations between males and females, further research is required to validate these observations and better understand the underlying mechanisms contributing to these sex differences. Furthermore, most of the preclinical work in rodents was performed in adult males, with only few studies examining sex differences during adolescence when such differences appear more pronounced. To address these concerns, we investigated the impact of limited bedding (LB), a mouse model of early adversity, on hippocampal development in prepubescent and adolescent male and female mice. METHODS RNA sequencing, confocal microscopy, and electron microscopy were used to evaluate the impact of LB and sex on hippocampal development in prepubescent postnatal day 17 (P17) mice. Additional studies were conducted on adolescent mice aged P29-36, which included contextual fear conditioning, retrograde tracing, and ex vivo diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI). RESULTS More severe deficits in axonal innervation and myelination were found in the perforant pathway of prepubescent and adolescent LB males compared to LB female littermates. These sex differences were due to a failure of reelin-positive neurons located in the lateral entorhinal cortex (LEC) to innervate the dorsal hippocampus via the perforant pathway in males, but not LB females, and were strongly correlated with deficits in contextual fear conditioning. CONCLUSIONS LB impairs the capacity of reelin-positive cells located in the LEC to project and innervate the dorsal hippocampus in LB males but not female LB littermates. Given the critical role that these projections play in supporting normal hippocampal function, a failure to establish proper connectivity between the LEC and the dorsal hippocampus provides a compelling and novel mechanism to explain the more severe deficits in myelination and contextual freezing found in adolescent LB males.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rafiad Islam
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, 300 George Street, Suite 901, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA
| | - Jordon D White
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, 300 George Street, Suite 901, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA
| | - Tanzil M Arefin
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, 10016, USA
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Center for Neurotechnology in Mental Health Research (CNMHR), The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, 16802, USA
| | - Sameet Mehta
- Yale Center for Genomic Analysis, P.O. Box 27386, West Haven, CT, 06516-7386, USA
| | - Xinran Liu
- Department of Cell Biology, Yale University School of Medicine, 333 Cedar Street, SHM IE26, New Haven, CT, 06510, USA
- Center for Cellular and Molecular Imaging, Electron Microscopy Core Facility, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, CT, USA
| | - Baruh Polis
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, 300 George Street, Suite 901, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA
| | - Lauryn Giuliano
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, 300 George Street, Suite 901, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA
| | - Sahabuddin Ahmed
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, 300 George Street, Suite 901, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA
| | - Christian Bowers
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, 300 George Street, Suite 901, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA
| | - Jiangyang Zhang
- Bernard and Irene Schwartz Center for Biomedical Imaging, Department of Radiology, New York University School of Medicine, New York, NY, 10016, USA
| | - Arie Kaffman
- Department of Psychiatry, Yale University School of Medicine, 300 George Street, Suite 901, New Haven, CT, 06511, USA.
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Warhaftig G, Almeida D, Turecki G. Early life adversity across different cell- types in the brain. Neurosci Biobehav Rev 2023; 148:105113. [PMID: 36863603 DOI: 10.1016/j.neubiorev.2023.105113] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 02/13/2023] [Accepted: 02/24/2023] [Indexed: 03/04/2023]
Abstract
Early life adversity (ELA)- which includes physical, psychological, emotional, and sexual abuse is one of the most common predictors to diverse psychopathologies later in adulthood. As ELA has a lasting impact on the brain at a developmental stage, recent findings from the field highlighted the specific contributions of different cell types to ELA and their association with long lasting consequences. In this review we will gather recent findings describing morphological, transcriptional and epigenetic alterations within neurons, glia and perineuronal nets and their associated cellular subpopulation. The findings reviewed and summarized here highlight important mechanisms underlying ELA and point to therapeutic approaches for ELA and related psychopathologies later in life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gal Warhaftig
- McGill Group for Suicide Studies, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal QC H4H 1R3, Canada
| | - Daniel Almeida
- McGill Group for Suicide Studies, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal QC H4H 1R3, Canada
| | - Gustavo Turecki
- McGill Group for Suicide Studies, Douglas Hospital Research Center, Montreal QC H4H 1R3, Canada; Department of Psychiatry, McGill University, Montreal QC H3A 1A1, Canada.
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Milbocker KA, Campbell TS, Collins N, Kim S, Smith IF, Roth TL, Klintsova AY. Glia-Driven Brain Circuit Refinement Is Altered by Early-Life Adversity: Behavioral Outcomes. Front Behav Neurosci 2021; 15:786234. [PMID: 34924972 PMCID: PMC8678604 DOI: 10.3389/fnbeh.2021.786234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/30/2021] [Accepted: 11/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022] Open
Abstract
Early-life adversity (ELA), often clinically referred to as "adverse childhood experiences (ACE)," is the exposure to stress-inducing events in childhood that can result in poor health outcomes. ELA negatively affects neurodevelopment in children and adolescents resulting in several behavioral deficits and increasing the risk of developing a myriad of neuropsychiatric disorders later in life. The neurobiological mechanisms by which ELA alters neurodevelopment in childhood have been the focus of numerous reviews. However, a comprehensive review of the mechanisms affecting adolescent neurodevelopment (i.e., synaptic pruning and myelination) is lacking. Synaptic pruning and myelination are glia-driven processes that are imperative for brain circuit refinement during the transition from adolescence to adulthood. Failure to optimize brain circuitry between key brain structures involved in learning and memory, such as the hippocampus and prefrontal cortex, leads to the emergence of maladaptive behaviors including increased anxiety or reduced executive function. As such, we review preclinical and clinical literature to explore the immediate and lasting effects of ELA on brain circuit development and refinement. Finally, we describe a number of therapeutic interventions best-suited to support adolescent neurodevelopment in children with a history of ELA.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | | | | | | | - Anna Y. Klintsova
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, United States
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