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Mould AW, Hall NA, Milosevic I, Tunbridge EM. Targeting synaptic plasticity in schizophrenia: insights from genomic studies. Trends Mol Med 2021; 27:1022-1032. [PMID: 34419330 DOI: 10.1016/j.molmed.2021.07.014] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/03/2021] [Revised: 07/19/2021] [Accepted: 07/26/2021] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Patients with schizophrenia experience cognitive dysfunction and negative symptoms that do not respond to current drug treatments. Historical evidence is consistent with the hypothesis that these deficits are due, at least in part, to altered cortical synaptic plasticity (the ability of synapses to strengthen or weaken their activity), making this an attractive pathway for therapeutic intervention. However, while synaptic transmission and plasticity is well understood in model systems, it has been challenging to identify specific therapeutic targets for schizophrenia. New information is emerging from genomic findings, which converge on synaptic plasticity and provide a new window on the neurobiology of schizophrenia. Translating this information into therapeutic advances will require a multidisciplinary and collaborative approach.
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Affiliation(s)
- Arne W Mould
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK; Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford, UK
| | - Nicola A Hall
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK; Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford, UK
| | - Ira Milosevic
- Wellcome Centre for Human Genetics, Oxford, UK; NIHR Oxford Biomedical Research Centre, Oxford, UK; Nuffield Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK
| | - Elizabeth M Tunbridge
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK; Oxford Health NHS Foundation Trust, Oxford, UK.
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Wolf R, Dobrowolny H, Nullmeier S, Bogerts B, Schwegler H. Effects of neonatal excitotoxic lesions in ventral thalamus on social interaction in the rat. Eur Arch Psychiatry Clin Neurosci 2018; 268:461-470. [PMID: 28361258 DOI: 10.1007/s00406-017-0781-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/07/2016] [Accepted: 03/06/2017] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
The role of the thalamus in schizophrenia has increasingly been studied in recent years. Deficits in the ventral thalamus have been described in only few postmortem and neuroimaging studies. We utilised our previously introduced neurodevelopmental animal model, the neonatal excitotoxic lesion of the ventral thalamus of Sprague-Dawley rats (Wolf et al., Pharmacopsychiatry 43:99-109, 22). At postnatal day (PD7), male pubs received bilateral thalamic infusions with ibotenic acid (IBA) or artificial cerebrospinal fluid (control). In adulthood, social interaction of two animals not familiar to each other was studied by a computerised video tracking system. This study displays clear lesion effects on social interaction of adult male rats. The significant reduction of total contact time and the significant increase in distance between the animals in the IBA group compared to controls can be interpreted as social withdrawal modelling a negative symptom of schizophrenia. The significant increase of total distance travelled in the IBA group can be hypothesised as agitation modelling a positive symptom of schizophrenia. Using a triple concept of social interaction, the percentage of no social interaction (Non-SI%) was significantly larger, and inversely, the percentage of passive social interaction (SI-passive%) was significantly smaller in the IBA group when compared to controls. In conclusion, on the background of findings in schizophrenic patients, the effects of neonatal ventral thalamic IBA lesions in adult male rats support the hypothesis of face and construct validity as animal model of schizophrenia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rainer Wolf
- Department of Psychiatry, Ruhr-University Bochum, Alexandrinenstr. 1, 44791, Bochum, Germany.
- Department of Psychiatry, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany.
| | - Henrik Dobrowolny
- Department of Psychiatry, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Sven Nullmeier
- Institute of Anatomy, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Bernhard Bogerts
- Department of Psychiatry, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
| | - Herbert Schwegler
- Institute of Anatomy, Otto-von-Guericke University, Magdeburg, Germany
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Ouhaz Z, Fleming H, Mitchell AS. Cognitive Functions and Neurodevelopmental Disorders Involving the Prefrontal Cortex and Mediodorsal Thalamus. Front Neurosci 2018; 12:33. [PMID: 29467603 PMCID: PMC5808198 DOI: 10.3389/fnins.2018.00033] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/13/2017] [Accepted: 01/15/2018] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus (MD) has been implicated in executive functions (such as planning, cognitive control, working memory, and decision-making) because of its significant interconnectivity with the prefrontal cortex (PFC). Yet, whilst the roles of the PFC have been extensively studied, how the MD contributes to these cognitive functions remains relatively unclear. Recently, causal evidence in monkeys has demonstrated that in everyday tasks involving rapid updating (e.g., while learning something new, making decisions, or planning the next move), the MD and frontal cortex are working in close partnership. Furthermore, researchers studying the MD in rodents have been able to probe the underlying mechanisms of this relationship to give greater insights into how the frontal cortex and MD might interact during the performance of these essential tasks. This review summarizes the circuitry and known neuromodulators of the MD, and considers the most recent behavioral, cognitive, and neurophysiological studies conducted in monkeys and rodents; in total, this evidence demonstrates that MD makes a critical contribution to cognitive functions. We propose that communication occurs between the MD and the frontal cortex in an ongoing, fluid manner during rapid cognitive operations, via the means of efference copies of messages passed through transthalamic routes; the conductance of these messages may be modulated by other brain structures interconnected to the MD. This is similar to the way in which other thalamic structures have been suggested to carry out forward modeling associated with rapid motor responding and visual processing. Given this, and the marked thalamic pathophysiology now identified in many neuropsychiatric disorders, we suggest that changes in the different subdivisions of the MD and their interconnections with the cortex could plausibly give rise to a number of the otherwise disparate symptoms (including changes to olfaction and cognitive functioning) that are associated with many different neuropsychiatric disorders. In particular, we will focus here on the cognitive symptoms of schizophrenia and suggest testable hypotheses about how changes to MD-frontal cortex interactions may affect cognitive processes in this disorder.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zakaria Ouhaz
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Hugo Fleming
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
| | - Anna S Mitchell
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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Ouhaz Z, Ba-M'hamed S, Mitchell AS, Elidrissi A, Bennis M. Behavioral and cognitive changes after early postnatal lesions of the rat mediodorsal thalamus. Behav Brain Res 2015; 292:219-32. [PMID: 26079768 PMCID: PMC4571833 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2015.06.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2014] [Revised: 06/08/2015] [Accepted: 06/09/2015] [Indexed: 12/22/2022]
Abstract
Early insults to the thalamus result in functional and/or structural abnormalities in the cerebral cortex. However, differences in behavioral and cognitive changes after early insult are not well characterized. The present study assessed whether early postnatal damage to mediodorsal nucleus of the thalamus (MD), reciprocally interconnected with the prefrontal cortex, causes behavioral and cognitive alterations in young adult rats. Rat pups at postnatal day 4 received bilateral electrolytic lesion of MD, or a MD Sham lesion or were anesthetized controls; on recovery they were returned to their mothers until weaning. Seven weeks later, all rats were tested with the following behavioral and cognitive paradigms: T-maze test, open field test, actimetry, elevated plus maze test, social interactions test and passive avoidance test. Rats with bilateral MD damage presented with disrupted recognition memory, deficits in shifting response rules, significant hypoactivity, increased anxiety-like behavior, deficits in learning associations as well as decreased locomotor activity, and reduced social interactions compared to MD Sham lesion and anesthetized Control rats. The lesion also caused significant decreases in pyramidal cell density in three frontal cortex regions: medial infralimbic cortex, dorsolateral anterior cortex, and cingulate Cg1 cortex. The present findings suggest a functional role for MD in the postnatal maturation of affective behavior. Further some of the behavioral and cognitive alterations observed in these young adult rats after early MD lesion are reminiscent of those present in major psycho-affective disorders, such as schizophrenia in humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zakaria Ouhaz
- Laboratory of Pharmacology, Neurobiology and Behavior (URAC-37), Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco
| | - Saadia Ba-M'hamed
- Laboratory of Pharmacology, Neurobiology and Behavior (URAC-37), Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco
| | - Anna S Mitchell
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, South Parks Road, Oxford OX1 3UD, United Kingdom.
| | - Abdeslem Elidrissi
- Biology Department, College of Staten Island, The City University of New York, Staten Island, USA
| | - Mohamed Bennis
- Laboratory of Pharmacology, Neurobiology and Behavior (URAC-37), Cadi Ayyad University, Marrakech, Morocco.
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Ikeda H, Kotani A, Lee J, Koshikawa N, Cools A. GABAA receptors in the mediodorsal thalamus play a crucial role in rat shell-specific acetylcholine-mediated, but not dopamine-mediated, turning behaviour. Neuroscience 2009; 159:1200-7. [DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2009.02.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2008] [Revised: 01/13/2009] [Accepted: 02/07/2009] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Luyten L, Welkenhuysen M, van Kuyck K, Fieuws S, Das J, Sciot R, Nuttin B. The effects of electrical stimulation or an electrolytic lesion in the mediodorsal thalamus of the rat on survival, body weight, food intake and running activity in the activity-based anorexia model. Brain Res Bull 2009; 79:116-22. [PMID: 19185605 DOI: 10.1016/j.brainresbull.2009.01.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/20/2008] [Revised: 12/17/2008] [Accepted: 01/05/2009] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
The glucose metabolism in the mediodorsal thalamus (MD) is increased in rats in the activity-based anorexia (ABA) model. In patients, electrical stimulation in hyperactive brain regions reduced symptoms in e.g. major depressive disorder and cluster headache. In two blinded randomised controlled experiments, we therefore examined the effects of high-frequency electrical stimulation and an electrolytic lesion in the MD in a validated rat model for anorexia nervosa. The ABA model was successfully replicated in all our experiments, with a reduction in body weight, food intake, and survival time and an increase in running activity. In a first experiment, we evaluated the effect of electrical stimulation or a curative lesion in the MD on survival, body weight, food intake and locomotor activity in ABA rats. Electrical MD stimulation or an electrolytic MD lesion did not improve the symptoms of rats in the ABA model, compared to control groups. In a second experiment, we investigated the effect of a preventive electrolytic lesion in the MD on rats in the ABA model. Although there was no significant improvement of survival, body weight and food intake, locomotor activity was significantly reduced in the lesion group compared to the control group. Apart from this positive effect on running activity, we found no convincing evidence for the suitability of the MD as a neuromodulation target for anorexia nervosa patients.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Luyten
- Laboratory of Experimental Functional Neurosurgery, Department of Neurosciences, K.U. Leuven, Provisorium I, Minderbroedersstraat 19 bus 1033, 3000 Leuven, Belgium.
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The neonatal ventral hippocampal lesion as a heuristic neurodevelopmental model of schizophrenia. Behav Brain Res 2008; 204:295-305. [PMID: 19100784 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2008.11.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 269] [Impact Index Per Article: 16.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/09/2008] [Revised: 11/06/2008] [Accepted: 11/25/2008] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
Traditionally, animal models of schizophrenia were predominantly pharmacological constructs focused on phenomena linked to dopamine and glutamate neurotransmitter systems, and were created by direct perturbations of these systems. A number of developmental models were subsequently generated that allowed testing of hypotheses about the origin of the disease, mimicked a wider array of clinical and neurobiological features of schizophrenia, and opened new avenues for developing novel treatment strategies. The most thoroughly characterized (approximately 100 primary research articles) is the neonatal ventral hippocampal lesion (NVHL) model, which is the subject of this review. We highlight its advantages and limitations, and how it may offer clues about the extent to which positive, negative, cognitive, and other aspects of schizophrenia, including addiction vulnerability, represent inter-related pathophysiological mechanisms.
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Abekawa T, Ito K, Nakagawa S, Koyama T. Prenatal exposure to an NMDA receptor antagonist, MK-801 reduces density of parvalbumin-immunoreactive GABAergic neurons in the medial prefrontal cortex and enhances phencyclidine-induced hyperlocomotion but not behavioral sensitization to methamphetamine in postpubertal rats. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2007; 192:303-16. [PMID: 17340116 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-007-0729-8] [Citation(s) in RCA: 87] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2006] [Accepted: 01/26/2007] [Indexed: 01/31/2023]
Abstract
RATIONALE Neurodevelopmental deficits of parvalbumin-immunoreactive gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic interneurons in prefrontal cortex have been reported in schizophrenia. Glutamate influences the proliferation of this type of interneuron by an N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA)-receptor-mediated mechanism. The present study hypothesized that prenatal blockade of NMDA receptors would disrupt GABAergic neurodevelopment, resulting in differences in effects on behavioral responses to a noncompetitive NMDA antagonist, phencyclidine (PCP), and a dopamine releaser, methamphetamine (METH). METHODS GABAergic neurons were immunohistochemically stained with parvalbumin antibody. Psychostimulant-induced hyperlocomotion was measured using an infrared sensor. RESULTS Prenatal exposure (E15-E18) to the NMDA receptor antagonist MK-801 reduced the density of parvalbumin-immunoreactive neurons in rat medial prefrontal cortex on postnatal day 63 (P63) and enhanced PCP-induced hyperlocomotion but not the acute effects of METH on P63 or the development of behavioral sensitization. Prenatal exposure to MK-801 reduced the number of parvalbumin-immunoreactive neurons even on postnatal day 35 (P35) and did not enhance PCP-induced hyperlocomotion, the acute effects of METH on P35, or the development of behavioral sensitization to METH. CONCLUSIONS These findings suggest that prenatal blockade of NMDA receptors disrupts GABAergic neurodevelopment in medial prefrontal cortex, and that this disruption of GABAergic development may be related to the enhancement of the locomotion-inducing effect of PCP in postpubertal but not juvenile offspring. GABAergic deficit is unrelated to the effects of METH. This GABAergic neurodevelopmental disruption and the enhanced PCP-induced hyperlocomotion in adult offspring prenatally exposed to MK-801 may prove useful as a new model of the neurodevelopmental process of pathogenesis of treatment-resistant schizophrenia via an NMDA-receptor-mediated hypoglutamatergic mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tomohiro Abekawa
- Department of Psychiatry, Graduate School of Medicine, Hokkaido University, Kita 15, Nishi 7, 060-8638, Sapporo, Japan.
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Broome MR, Woolley JB, Tabraham P, Johns LC, Bramon E, Murray GK, Pariante C, McGuire PK, Murray RM. What causes the onset of psychosis? Schizophr Res 2005; 79:23-34. [PMID: 16198238 DOI: 10.1016/j.schres.2005.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 110] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/21/2004] [Revised: 02/10/2005] [Accepted: 02/12/2005] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
It has become increasingly clear that the simple neurodevelopmental model fails to explain many aspects of schizophrenia including the timing of the onset, and the nature of the abnormal perceptions. Furthermore, we do not know why some members of the general population have anomalous experiences but remain well, while others enter the prodrome of psychosis, and a minority progress to frank schizophrenia. We suggest that genes or developmental damage result in individuals vulnerable to dopamine deregulation. In contemporary society, this is often compounded by abuse of drugs such as amphetamines and cannabis, which then propel the individual into a state of dopamine-induced misinterpretation of the environment. Certain types of social adversity such as migration and social isolation, as well as affective change can also contribute to this. Thereafter, biased cognitive appraisal processes result in delusional interpretation of the abnormal perceptual experiences. Thus, a plausible model of the onset of psychosis needs to draw not only on neuroscience, but also on the insights of social psychiatry and cognitive psychology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthew R Broome
- Division of Psychological Medicine, Institute of Psychiatry, De Crespigny Park, London SE5 8AF, UK.
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Chen BY, Chang HH, Chiou HL, Lin DPC. Influenza-B-virus-induced eye and brain malformations during early chick embryogenesis and localization of the viral RNA in specific areas. J Biomed Sci 2004. [DOI: 10.1007/bf02256570] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
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