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Affiliation(s)
- Vishal D Naik
- Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, C.S. Mott Center for Human Growth and Development, School of Medicine, Wayne State University, Detroit, Michigan, USA
| | - Jehoon Lee
- Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
| | - Guoyao Wu
- Department of Animal Science, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
| | - Shannon Washburn
- Department of Veterinary Physiology and Pharmacology, College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas, USA
| | - Jayanth Ramadoss
- J. Ramadoss, Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology and Department of Physiology, 275 E Hancock St, C.S. Mott Center for Human Growth and Development, Rm 195, School of Medicine, Wayne State University, Detroit, MI 48201, USA. E-mail:
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Feizolahi F, Azarbayjani MA, Nasehi M, Peeri M, Zarrindast MR. The combination of swimming and curcumin consumption may improve spatial memory recovery after binge ethanol drinking. Physiol Behav 2019; 207:139-150. [PMID: 31071339 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2019.03.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/25/2018] [Revised: 03/16/2019] [Accepted: 03/18/2019] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
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RNA Sequencing Reveals the Alteration of the Expression of Novel Genes in Ethanol-Treated Embryoid Bodies. PLoS One 2016; 11:e0149976. [PMID: 26930486 PMCID: PMC4773011 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0149976] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2015] [Accepted: 02/08/2016] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Fetal alcohol spectrum disorder is a collective term representing fetal abnormalities associated with maternal alcohol consumption. Prenatal alcohol exposure and related anomalies are well characterized, but the molecular mechanism behind this phenomenon is not well characterized. In this present study, our aim is to profile important genes that regulate cellular development during fetal development. Human embryonic carcinoma cells (NCCIT) are cultured to form embryoid bodies and then treated in the presence and absence of ethanol (50 mM). We employed RNA sequencing to profile differentially expressed genes in the ethanol-treated embryoid bodies from NCCIT vs. EB, NCCIT vs. EB+EtOH and EB vs. EB+EtOH data sets. A total of 632, 205 and 517 differentially expressed genes were identified from NCCIT vs. EB, NCCIT vs. EB+EtOH and EB vs. EB+EtOH, respectively. Functional annotation using bioinformatics tools reveal significant enrichment of differential cellular development and developmental disorders. Furthermore, a group of 42, 15 and 35 transcription factor-encoding genes are screened from all of the differentially expressed genes obtained from NCCIT vs. EB, NCCIT vs. EB+EtOH and EB vs. EB+EtOH, respectively. We validated relative gene expression levels of several transcription factors from these lists by quantitative real-time PCR. We hope that our study substantially contributes to the understanding of the molecular mechanism underlying the pathology of alcohol-mediated anomalies and ease further research.
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Fernandes C, Rocha NBF, Rocha S, Herrera-Solís A, Salas-Pacheco J, García-García F, Murillo-Rodríguez E, Yuan TF, Machado S, Arias-Carrión O. Detrimental role of prolonged sleep deprivation on adult neurogenesis. Front Cell Neurosci 2015; 9:140. [PMID: 25926773 PMCID: PMC4396387 DOI: 10.3389/fncel.2015.00140] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/12/2014] [Accepted: 03/24/2015] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
Adult mammalian brains continuously generate new neurons, a phenomenon called adult neurogenesis. Both environmental stimuli and endogenous factors are important regulators of adult neurogenesis. Sleep has an important role in normal brain physiology and its disturbance causes very stressful conditions, which disrupt normal brain physiology. Recently, an influence of sleep in adult neurogenesis has been established, mainly based on sleep deprivation studies. This review provides an overview on how rhythms and sleep cycles regulate hippocampal and subventricular zone neurogenesis, discussing some potential underlying mechanisms. In addition, our review highlights some interacting points between sleep and adult neurogenesis in brain function, such as learning, memory, and mood states, and provides some insights on the effects of antidepressants and hypnotic drugs on adult neurogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carina Fernandes
- Faculty of Medicine, University of PortoPorto, Portugal
- Laboratory of Neuropsychophysiology, Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences, University of PortoPorto, Portugal
| | | | - Susana Rocha
- School of Accounting and Administration of Porto, Polytechnic Institute of PortoPorto, Portugal
| | - Andrea Herrera-Solís
- Unidad de Trastornos del Movimiento y Sueño, Hospital General Dr. Manuel Gea González/Instituto de Fisiología Celular, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de MéxicoMexico City, Mexico
| | - José Salas-Pacheco
- Instituto de Investigación Científica, Universidad Juárez del Estado de DurangoDurango, Mexico
| | - Fabio García-García
- Departamento de Biomedicina, Instituto de Ciencias de la Salud, Universidad VeracruzanaXalapa, Mexico
| | - Eric Murillo-Rodríguez
- División Ciencias de la Salud, Laboratorio de Neurociencias Moleculares e Integrativas, Escuela de Medicina, Universidad Anáhuac MayabMérida, México
| | - Ti-Fei Yuan
- School of Psychology, Nanjing Normal UniversityNanjing, China
| | - Sergio Machado
- Panic and Respiration, Institute of Psychiatry of Federal University of Rio de JaneiroRio de Janeiro, Brazil
- Physical Activity Neuroscience, Physical Activity Sciences Postgraduate Program, Salgado de Oliveira UniversityNiterói, Brazil
| | - Oscar Arias-Carrión
- Unidad de Trastornos del Movimiento y Sueño, Hospital General Dr. Manuel Gea González/Instituto de Fisiología Celular, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de MéxicoMexico City, Mexico
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Alcohol exposure inhibits adult neural stem cell proliferation. Exp Brain Res 2014; 232:2775-84. [PMID: 24770860 DOI: 10.1007/s00221-014-3958-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/03/2013] [Accepted: 04/08/2014] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Alcohol exposure can reduce adult proliferation and/or neurogenesis, but its impact on the ultimate neurogenic precursors, neural stem cells (NSCs), has been poorly addressed. Accordingly, the impact of voluntary consumption of alcohol on NSCs in the subventricular zone (SVZ) of the lateral ventricle was examined in this study. The NSC population in adult male C57BL/6J mice was measured after voluntary alcohol exposure in a two-bottle choice task using the neurosphere assay, while the number of NSCs that had proliferated 2 weeks prior to tissue collection was indexed using bromodeoxyuridine (BrdU) retention. There was a significant decrease in the number of BrdU-retaining cells in alcohol-consuming mice compared with controls, but no difference in the number of neurosphere-forming cells that could be derived from the SVZ of alcohol-consuming mice compared with controls. Additionally, PCNA-labeled cells in the SVZ tended to be lower, but there was no difference in BrdU labeling in the dentate gyrus following alcohol exposure. To determine alcohol's direct impact on NSCs and their progeny, neurospheres derived from naïve mice were treated with alcohol in vitro. Neurosphere formation was reduced by 100 mM alcohol without reducing cell viability. These findings are the first to assess the impact of moderate voluntary alcohol consumption on selective measures of adult NSCs and indicate that such exposure alters NSC proliferation dynamics in vivo and alcohol has direct but dissociable effects on the expansion and viability on NSCs and their progeny in vitro.
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Khalid O, Kim JJ, Kim HS, Hoang M, Tu TG, Elie O, Lee C, Vu C, Horvath S, Spigelman I, Kim Y. Gene expression signatures affected by alcohol-induced DNA methylomic deregulation in human embryonic stem cells. Stem Cell Res 2014; 12:791-806. [PMID: 24751885 DOI: 10.1016/j.scr.2014.03.009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 51] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/09/2013] [Revised: 03/27/2014] [Accepted: 03/31/2014] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Stem cells, especially human embryonic stem cells (hESCs), are useful models to study molecular mechanisms of human disorders that originate during gestation. Alcohol (ethanol, EtOH) consumption during pregnancy causes a variety of prenatal and postnatal disorders collectively referred to as fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASDs). To better understand the molecular events leading to FASDs, we performed a genome-wide analysis of EtOH's effects on the maintenance and differentiation of hESCs in culture. Gene Co-expression Network Analysis showed significant alterations in gene profiles of EtOH-treated differentiated or undifferentiated hESCs, particularly those associated with molecular pathways for metabolic processes, oxidative stress, and neuronal properties of stem cells. A genome-wide DNA methylome analysis revealed widespread EtOH-induced alterations with significant hypermethylation of many regions of chromosomes. Undifferentiated hESCs were more vulnerable to EtOH's effect than their differentiated counterparts, with methylation on the promoter regions of chromosomes 2, 16 and 18 in undifferentiated hESCs most affected by EtOH exposure. Combined transcriptomic and DNA methylomic analysis produced a list of differentiation-related genes dysregulated by EtOH-induced DNA methylation changes, which likely play a role in EtOH-induced decreases in hESC pluripotency. DNA sequence motif analysis of genes epigenetically altered by EtOH identified major motifs representing potential binding sites for transcription factors. These findings should help in deciphering the precise mechanisms of alcohol-induced teratogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Omar Khalid
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Jeffrey J Kim
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Hyun-Sung Kim
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Michael Hoang
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Thanh G Tu
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Omid Elie
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Connie Lee
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Catherine Vu
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Steve Horvath
- Department of Human Genetics and Biostatistics, UCLA David Geffen School of Medicine, Box 957088, 4357A Gonda Center, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Igor Spigelman
- Division of Oral Biology & Medicine, UCLA School of Dentistry, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 63-078 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
| | - Yong Kim
- Laboratory of Stem Cell & Cancer Epigenetic Research, School of Dentistry, University of California, Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-041 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.,Division of Oral Biology & Medicine, UCLA School of Dentistry, 10833 Le Conte Avenue, 73-022 CHS, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.,UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, 8-684 Factor Building, Box 951781, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA
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Zeisel SH. What choline metabolism can tell us about the underlying mechanisms of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders. Mol Neurobiol 2011; 44:185-91. [PMID: 21259123 DOI: 10.1007/s12035-011-8165-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 44] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/16/2010] [Accepted: 01/05/2011] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
The consequences of fetal exposure to alcohol are very diverse and the likely molecular mechanisms involved must be able to explain how so many developmental processes could go awry. If pregnant rat dams are fed alcohol, their pups develop abnormalities characteristic of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD), but if these rat dams were also treated with choline, the effects from ethanol were attenuated in their pups. Choline is an essential nutrient in humans, and is an important methyl group donor. Alcohol exposure disturbs the metabolism of choline and other methyl donors. Availability of choline during gestation directly influences epigenetic marks on DNA and histones, and alters gene expression needed for normal neural and endothelial progenitor cell proliferation. Maternal diets low in choline alter development of the mouse hippocampus, and decrement memory for life. Women eating low-choline diets have an increased risk of having an infant with a neural tube or orofacial cleft birth defect. Thus, the varied effects of choline could affect the expression of FASD, and studies on choline might shed some light on the underlying molecular mechanisms responsible for FASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Steven H Zeisel
- Department of Nutrition, UNC Nutrition Research Institute at Kannapolis, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 500 Laureate Way, Room 2218, Kannapolis, NC 28081, USA.
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Morris SA, Eaves DW, Smith AR, Nixon K. Alcohol inhibition of neurogenesis: a mechanism of hippocampal neurodegeneration in an adolescent alcohol abuse model. Hippocampus 2010; 20:596-607. [PMID: 19554644 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.20665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 89] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/06/2022]
Abstract
Adolescents diagnosed with an alcohol use disorder show neurodegeneration in the hippocampus, a region important for learning, memory, and mood regulation. This study examines a potential mechanism by which excessive alcohol intake, characteristic of an alcohol use disorder, produces neurodegeneration. As hippocampal neural stem cells underlie ongoing neurogenesis, a phenomenon that contributes to hippocampal structure and function, we investigated aspects of cell death and cell birth in an adolescent rat model of an alcohol use disorder. Immunohistochemistry of various markers along with Bromo-deoxy-Uridine (BrdU) injections were used to examine different aspects of neurogenesis. After 4 days of binge alcohol exposure, neurogenesis was decreased by 33 and 28% at 0 and 2 days after the last dose according to doublecortin expression. To determine whether this decrease in neurogenesis was due to effects on neural stem cell proliferation, quantification of BrdU-labeled cells revealed a 21% decrease in the dentate gyrus of alcohol-exposed brains. Cell survival and phenotype of BrdU-labeled cells were assessed 28 days after alcohol exposure and revealed a significant, 50% decrease in the number of surviving cells in the alcohol-exposed group. Reduced survival was supported by significant increases in the number of pyknotic-, FluoroJade B positive-, and TUNEL-positive cells. However, so few cells were TUNEL-positive that cell death is likely necrotic in this model. Although alcohol decreased the number of newborn cells, it did not affect the percentage of cells that matured into neurons (differentiation). Thus, our data support that in a model of an adolescent alcohol use disorder, neurogenesis is impaired by two mechanisms: alcohol-inhibition of neural stem cell proliferation and alcohol effects on new cell survival. Remarkably, alcohol inhibition of neurogenesis may outweigh the few dying cells per section, which implies that alcohol inhibition of neurogenesis contributes to hippocampal neurodegeneration in alcohol use disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephanie A Morris
- Department of Pharmaceutical Sciences, The University of Kentucky, College of Pharmacy, Lexington, Kentucky 40536-0082, USA
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Isayama RN, Leite PEC, Lima JPM, Uziel D, Yamasaki EN. Impact of ethanol on the developing GABAergic system. Anat Rec (Hoboken) 2010; 292:1922-39. [PMID: 19943346 DOI: 10.1002/ar.20966] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Alcohol intake during pregnancy has a tremendous impact on the developing brain. Embryonic and early postnatal alcohol exposures have been investigated experimentally to elucidate the fetal alcohol spectrum disorders' (FASD) milieu, and new data have emerged to support a devastating effect on the GABAergic system in the adult and developing nervous system. GABA is a predominantly inhibitory neurotransmitter that during development excites neurons and orchestrates several developmental processes such as proliferation, migration, differentiation, and synaptogenesis. This review summarizes and brings new data on neurodevelopmental aspects of the GABAergic system with FASD in experimental telencephalic models.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ricardo Noboro Isayama
- Institute of Biomedical Sciences, Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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Nixon K, Morris SA, Liput DJ, Kelso ML. Roles of neural stem cells and adult neurogenesis in adolescent alcohol use disorders. Alcohol 2010; 44:39-56. [PMID: 20113873 DOI: 10.1016/j.alcohol.2009.11.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/06/2009] [Revised: 10/24/2009] [Accepted: 11/07/2009] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
This review discusses the contributions of a newly considered form of plasticity, the ongoing production of new neurons from neural stem cells, or adult neurogenesis, within the context of neuropathologies that occur with excessive alcohol intake in the adolescents. Neural stem cells and adult neurogenesis are now thought to contribute to the structural integrity of the hippocampus, a limbic system region involved in learning, memory, behavioral control, and mood. In adolescents with alcohol use disorders (AUDs), the hippocampus appears to be particularly vulnerable to the neurodegenerative effects of alcohol, but the role of neural stem cells and adult neurogenesis in alcoholic neuropathology has only recently been considered. This review encompasses a brief overview of neural stem cells and the processes involved in adult neurogenesis, how neural stem cells are affected by alcohol, and possible differences in the neurogenic niche between adults and adolescents. Specifically, what is known about developmental differences in adult neurogenesis between the adult and adolescent is gleaned from the literature, as well as how alcohol affects this process differently among the age groups. Finally, this review suggests differences that may exist in the neurogenic niche between adults and adolescents and how these differences may contribute to the susceptibility of the adolescent hippocampus to damage. However, many more studies are needed to discern whether these developmental differences contribute to the vulnerability of the adolescent to developing an AUD.
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Crews FT, Boettiger CA. Impulsivity, frontal lobes and risk for addiction. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2009; 93:237-47. [PMID: 19410598 PMCID: PMC2730661 DOI: 10.1016/j.pbb.2009.04.018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 455] [Impact Index Per Article: 30.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/07/2009] [Revised: 04/18/2009] [Accepted: 04/24/2009] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Alcohol and substance abuse disorders involve continued use of substances despite negative consequences, i.e. loss of behavioral control of drug use. The frontal-cortical areas of the brain oversee behavioral control through executive functions. Executive functions include abstract thinking, motivation, planning, attention to tasks and inhibition of impulsive responses. Impulsiveness generally refers to premature, unduly risky, poorly conceived actions. Dysfunctional impulsivity includes deficits in attention, lack of reflection and/or insensitivity to consequences, all of which occur in addiction [Evenden JL. Varieties of impulsivity. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 1999;146:348-361.; de Wit H. Impulsivity as a determinant and consequence of drug use: a review of underlying processes. Addict Biol 2009;14:22-31]. Binge drinking models indicate chronic alcohol damages in the corticolimbic brain regions [Crews FT, Braun CJ, Hoplight B, Switzer III RC, Knapp DJ. Binge ethanol consumption causes differential brain damage in young adolescent rats compared with adult rats. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2000;24:1712-1723] causing reversal learning deficits indicative of loss of executive function [Obernier JA, White AM, Swartzwelder HS, Crews FT. Cognitive deficits and CNS damage after a 4-day binge ethanol exposure in rats. Pharmacol Biochem Behav 2002b;72:521-532]. Genetics and adolescent age are risk factors for alcoholism that coincide with sensitivity to alcohol-induced neurotoxicity. Cortical degeneration from alcohol abuse may increase impulsivity contributing to the development, persistence and severity of alcohol use disorders. Interestingly, abstinence results in bursts of neurogenesis and brain regrowth [Crews FT, Nixon K. Mechanisms of neurodegeneration and regeneration in alcoholism. Alcohol Alcohol 2009;44:115-127]. Treatments for alcoholism, including naltrexone pharmacotherapy and psychotherapy may work through improving executive functions. This review will examine the relationships between impulsivity and executive function behaviors to changes in cortical structure during alcohol dependence and recovery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fulton Timm Crews
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, United States.
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He J, Overstreet DH, Crews FT. Abstinence from moderate alcohol self-administration alters progenitor cell proliferation and differentiation in multiple brain regions of male and female P rats. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2008; 33:129-38. [PMID: 19076732 DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2008.00823.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 25] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Acute and chronic ethanol exposure has been found to decrease hippocampal neurogenesis, reduce dendritic differentiation of new neurons, and increase cell death. Interestingly, abstinence from such treatment increases hippocampal neurogenesis and microglial genesis across several brain regions. The goal of the current investigation was to study cellular alterations on neuro- and cell-genesis during abstinence following alcohol self-administration using alcohol-preferring rats (P rats). METHODS Male and female P rats were given the choice of drinking 10% alcohol in water or pure water for 7 weeks. Social interaction behavioral assessments were conducted at 5 hours upon removal of alcohol, followed by bromo-deoxyuridine (BrdU, 150 mg/kg x 1/d x 14 d) injections to label proliferating cells. Animals were then killed 4 weeks later to conduct immunohistochemical and confocal analyses using antibodies against BrdU and other phenotypic markers (NeuN for mature neurons; Iba-1 for microglia; GFAP for astrocytes; and NG(2) for oligodendrocyte progenitors). RESULTS Mild alcohol withdrawal anxiety was detected by reduction in social interactions. The number of hippocampal BrdU(+) cells was increased approximately 50% during alcohol abstinence (26 +/- 2.8 in controls vs. 39 +/- 4 in alcohol group). BrdU(+) cells were also increased in the substantia nigra (SN) approximately 65% in the alcohol abstinent group (12 +/- 1 in controls vs. 19 +/- 1.5 in alcohol group). No gender differences were found. Confocal analyses indicated that approximately 75% of co-localization of BrdU(+) cells with NeuN in the hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) resulting a net increase in neurogenesis in the alcohol abstinent group compared to controls. In cingulum, greater proportion of BrdU(+) cells were co-localized with NG(2) in the alcohol abstinent group indicating increased differentiation toward oligodendrocyte progenitors in both genders. However, the phenotype of the BrdU(+) cells in SN and other brain regions were not identified by NeuN, Iba-1, GFAP, or NG(2) suggesting that these BrdU(+) cells probably remain in a nondifferentiated stage. CONCLUSIONS These data indicate that abstinence from moderate alcohol drinking increases hippocampal neurogenesis, cingulate NG(2) differentiation, and SN undifferentiated cell proliferation in both males and females. Such cellular alteration during abstinence could contribute to the spontaneous partial restoration of cognitive deficits upon sobriety.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jun He
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, School of Medicine, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7178, USA
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Crews FT, Nixon K. Mechanisms of neurodegeneration and regeneration in alcoholism. Alcohol Alcohol 2008; 44:115-27. [PMID: 18940959 DOI: 10.1093/alcalc/agn079] [Citation(s) in RCA: 400] [Impact Index Per Article: 25.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
AIMS This is a review of preclinical studies covering alcohol-induced brain neuronal death and loss of neurogenesis as well as abstinence-induced brain cell genesis, e.g. brain regeneration. Efforts are made to relate preclinical studies to human studies. METHODS The studies described are preclinical rat experiments using a 4-day binge ethanol treatment known to induce physical dependence to ethanol. Neurodegeneration and cognitive deficits following binge treatment mimic the mild degeneration and cognitive deficits found in humans. Various histological methods are used to follow brain regional degeneration and regeneration. RESULTS Alcohol-induced degeneration occurs due to neuronal death during alcohol intoxication. Neuronal death is related to increases in oxidative stress in brain that coincide with the induction of proinflammatory cytokines and oxidative enzymes that insult brain. Degeneration is associated with increased NF-kappaB proinflammatory transcription and decreased CREB transcription. Corticolimbic brain regions are most sensitive to binge-induced degeneration and induce relearning deficits. Drugs that block oxidative stress and NF-kappaB transcription or increase CREB transcription block binge-induced neurodegeneration, inhibition of neurogenesis and proinflammatory enzyme induction. Regeneration of brain occurs during abstinence following binge ethanol treatment. Bursts of proliferating cells occur across multiple brain regions, with many new microglia across brain after months of abstinence and many new neurons in neurogenic hippocampal dentate gyrus. Brain regeneration may be important to sustain abstinence in humans. CONCLUSIONS Alcohol-induced neurodegeneration occurs primarily during intoxication and is related to increased oxidative stress and proinflammatory proteins that are neurotoxic. Abstinence after binge ethanol intoxication results in brain cell genesis that could contribute to the return of brain function and structure found in abstinent humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fulton T Crews
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC 27599, USA.
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Aronne MP, Evrard SG, Mirochnic S, Brusco A. Prenatal Ethanol Exposure Reduces the Expression of the Transcriptional FactorPax6in the Developing Rat Brain. Ann N Y Acad Sci 2008; 1139:478-98. [DOI: 10.1196/annals.1432.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
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Ishii T, Hashimoto E, Ukai W, Tateno M, Yoshinaga T, Saito S, Sohma H, Saito T. Lithium-induced suppression of transcription repressor NRSF/REST: effects on the dysfunction of neuronal differentiation by ethanol. Eur J Pharmacol 2008; 593:36-43. [PMID: 18671961 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejphar.2008.07.021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 21] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2008] [Revised: 06/26/2008] [Accepted: 07/05/2008] [Indexed: 01/01/2023]
Abstract
Lithium, a mood-stabilizing drug, is widely used to treat bipolar affective disorder. Recent studies have demonstrated that lithium has neuroprotective and neurotrophic properties, which may relate to its clinical effectiveness. Ethanol is a deleterious agent that causes various kinds of neuronal damage to both the developing and adult brain. In this study, we investigated the potential of lithium to produce recovery of ethanol-induced suppressed neuronal differentiation at ethanol concentrations lower than those that affect the viability of neural stem cells (NSCs). We evaluated the effect of lithium on neuronal differentiation of NSCs obtained from rat embryos. To elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying the altered neuronal differentiation induced by lithium and ethanol, we focused on neuron-restrictive silencer factor (NRSF), which represses transcription of neuronal genes in the terminal stage of NSC differentiation. Lithium increased neuronal differentiation and decreased ethanol-induced suppression of neuronal differentiation of NSCs. Furthermore, lithium reduced the DNA binding activity and protein level of NRSF enhanced by ethanol. Based on our findings, we speculate that lithium may be efficacious in the treatment of ethanol-induced neurological deficits.
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Affiliation(s)
- Takao Ishii
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, School of Medicine, Sapporo Medical University, Chuo-ku, Sapporo, Japan
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Tateno M, Ukai W, Yamamoto M, Hashimoto E, Ikeda H, Saito T. The Effect of Ethanol on Cell Fate Determination of Neural Stem Cells. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2008; 29:225S-9S. [PMID: 16385227 DOI: 10.1097/01.alc.0000190658.56149.d4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 47] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/26/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Recent studies have described the possible relevance of impaired neural stem cell (NSC) functions to the pathophysiology of psychiatric disorders, including alcoholism. However, relatively little is known about ethanol's effects on the determination of cell fate in NSCs. In this study, we investigated the effect of ethanol on neuronal and glial differentiation of NSCs. METHODS Under neuron-inductive culture conditions, NSCs were induced to differentiate and exposed to ethanol for 96 hr. Immunocytochemistry with cell-type-specific markers was performed (microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2) for neurons, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP) for astrocytes and O4 for oligodendrocytes). The cells positive to MAP2, GFAP or O4 were counted, and the number of MAP2-positive cells was quantified by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) following immunostaining with anti-MAP2 (MAP2-ELISA). The alteration of MAP2, GFAP or myelin basic protein (MBP, a marker for oligodendrocytes) expression was evaluated by Western blot analysis. RESULTS Ethanol exposure increased astrocytic and oligodendrocytic differentiation with a statistically significant difference at 100 mM, while 25 to 100 mM ethanol reduced neuronal differentiation without affecting the viability of NSCs. The enhanced expression of glial markers was revealed by Western blot analysis for GFAP or MBP. CONCLUSIONS Glial cells are known to increase in response to various kinds of insults to the central nervous system. It is possible that the increase of astrocytes and oligodendrocytes after ethanol exposure is a compensatory mechanism to repair the impaired neural network by promoting neurite outgrowth and increasing newly generated neurons.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masaru Tateno
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Sapporo Medical University, School of Medicine, Chuo-ku, Japan.
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Abstract
Alcohol is a well-known cytotoxic agent which causes various kinds of neuronal damage. In spite of thousands of published studies, the true mechanism of alcohol-induced neuronal damage remains unclear. Neurogenesis is the generation of neurons from neural stem cells (NSCs) and occurs in predominantly two regions of the brain, the subventricular zone and the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. NSCs are the self-renewing, multipotent precursor cells of neurons, astrocytes, and oligodendrocytes in the central nervous system. Recent studies have begun to illuminate the role of neurogenesis in the biological and cellular basis of psychiatric disorders and several clinical symptoms seen in alcoholism such as depression, cognitive impairment, underlying stress and brain atrophy have been linked to impaired neurogenesis. Heavy alcohol consumption decreases neurogenesis in animals, while in vitro studies have shown decreased generation of new neurons after alcohol exposure. These findings suggest that decreased neurogenesis is important in the pathophysiology of alcoholism. Neurogenesis can be divided into four stages; proliferation, migration, differentiation and survival. Our in vitro studies on NSCs showed that alcohol decreased neuronal differentiation at doses lower than those that affected cell survival and suggested that neuron-restrictive silencer factor, or repressor element-1 silencing transcription factor (NRSF/REST) could be involved in alcohol-induced inhibition of neuronal differentiation. In an animal model of fetal alcohol effects behavioral symptoms improved after NSC transplantation. Neurogenesis could be the target for new strategies to treat alcohol related disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Masaru Tateno
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Sapporo Medical University, Sapporo, Japan
| | - Toshikazu Saito
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Sapporo Medical University, Sapporo, Japan
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Yoshinaga T, Hashimoto E, Ukai W, Toki S, Saito S, Saito T. Neural stem cell transplantation in a model of fetal alcohol effects. JOURNAL OF NEURAL TRANSMISSION. SUPPLEMENTUM 2007:331-337. [PMID: 17982911 DOI: 10.1007/978-3-211-73574-9_41] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/25/2023]
Abstract
Neural stem cell (NSC) transplantation has been investigated and developed in areas such as brain injury, stroke and neurodegenerative diseases. Recently, emerging evidence suggest that many of clinical symptoms observed in psychiatric disease are likely related to neural network disruptions including neurogenesis dysfunction. In the present study, we transplanted NSCs into a model of fetal alchol effects (FAE) for the purpose of investigating the possibility of regenerative therapy for the FAE. We labeled NSCs with fluorescent dye and radioisotope which were transplanted into FAE rats by intravenous injection. The transplanted cells were detected in wide areas of brain and were greater in number in the brains of the FAE group compared to the control group. Furthermore NSC transplantation attenuated behavioral abnormalities in FAE animals. These results suggest NSC transplantation as a potental new therapy for human FAE.
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Affiliation(s)
- T Yoshinaga
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Sapporo Medical University, Sapporo, S-1, W-16, Chuo-ku 060-8543, Japan
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Evrard SG, Duhalde-Vega M, Tagliaferro P, Mirochnic S, Caltana LR, Brusco A. A low chronic ethanol exposure induces morphological changes in the adolescent rat brain that are not fully recovered even after a long abstinence: An immunohistochemical study. Exp Neurol 2006; 200:438-59. [PMID: 16631170 DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2006.03.001] [Citation(s) in RCA: 46] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2005] [Revised: 02/25/2006] [Accepted: 03/01/2006] [Indexed: 10/24/2022]
Abstract
Little is known about the morphological effects of alcoholism on the developing adolescent brain and its consequences into adulthood. We studied here the relationship between two neurotransmitter systems (the serotoninergic and nitrergic) and the astrocytic and neuronal cytoskeleton immediately and long after drinking cessation of a chronic, but low, ethanol administration. Adolescent male Wistar rats were exposed to ethanol 6.6% (v/v) in drinking water for 6 weeks and studied after ending exposure or after a 10-week recovery period drinking water. Control animals received water. Brain sections were processed by immunohistochemistry using antibodies to serotonin (5-HT); glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP); astroglial S-100b protein; microtubule associated protein-2 (MAP-2); 200 kDa neurofilaments (Nf-200); and neuronal nitric oxide synthase (nNOS). The mesencephalic dorsal and median raphe nucleus (DRN; MRN) and three prosencephalic areas closely related to cognitive abilities (CA1 hippocampal area, striatum and frontal cortex) were studied by digital image analysis. 5-HT immunoreactivity (-ir) decreased in the DRN and recovered after abstinence and was not changed in the MRN. In the three prosencephalic areas, astrocytes' cell area (GFAP-ir cells) increased after EtOH exposure and tended to return to normality after abstinence, while cytoplasmic astroglial S100b protein-ir, relative area of MAP-2-ir and Nf-200-ir fibers decreased, and later partially recovered. In the striatum and frontal cortex, nNOS-ir decreased only after abstinence. In conclusion, in the adolescent brain, drinking cessation can partially ameliorate the ethanol-induced morphological changes on neurons and astrocytes but cannot fully return it to the basal state.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sergio Gustavo Evrard
- Instituto de Biología Celular y Neurociencias, Prof. Eduardo De Robertis, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Paraguay 2155 3rd fl., C1121ABG, Buenos Aires, Argentina
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Chandler LJ, Carpenter-Hyland E, Hendricson AW, Maldve RE, Morrisett RA, Zhou FC, Sari Y, Bell R, Szumlinski KK. Structural and functional modifications in glutamateric synapses following prolonged ethanol exposure. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2006; 30:368-76. [PMID: 16441286 PMCID: PMC1512148 DOI: 10.1111/j.1530-0277.2006.00041.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/19/2023]
Abstract
This article summarizes the proceedings of a symposium presented at the 2005 annual meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism in Santa Barbara, California, USA. The organizer and chair was L. Judson Chandler. The presentations were (1) Chronic Ethanol Exposure, N-Methyl-D-Aspartate (NMDA) Receptor Dynamics, and Withdrawal Hyperexcitability, by Adam Hendricson, Regina Maldve, and Richard Morrisett; (2) Ethanol-Induced Synaptic Targeting of NMDA Receptors Is Associated With Enhanced Postsynaptic Density-95 Clustering and Spine Size, by Judson Chandler and Ezekiel Carpenter-Hyland; (3) Presynaptic and Postsynaptic Alterations in the Nucleus Accumbens Following Chronic Alcohol Exposure, by Feng Zhou, Youssef Sari, and Richard Bell; and (4) An Active Role for Accumbens Homer2 Expression in Alcohol-Induced Neural Plasticity, by Karen Szumlinski.
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Affiliation(s)
- L Judson Chandler
- Alcohol Research Center and Department of Neurosciences, Medical University of South Carolina, Charleston, South Carolina 29425, USA.
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Nixon K. Alcohol and adult neurogenesis: Roles in neurodegeneration and recovery in chronic alcoholism. Hippocampus 2006; 16:287-95. [PMID: 16421863 DOI: 10.1002/hipo.20162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 119] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
The concept of "structural plasticity" has emerged as a potential mechanism in neurodegenerative and psychiatric diseases such as drug abuse, depression, and dementia. Chronic alcoholism is a progressive neurodegenerative disease while the person continues to abuse alcohol, though clinical and imaging studies show that some recovery may occur with abstinence. The neural plasticity observed in chronic alcoholism coupled with conflicting reports on alcohol-induced hippocampal neuropathology make this disease ripe for reconsideration in terms of the phenomenon of adult neurogenesis. This review describes opposing neurogenic processes that occur with alcohol intoxication and abstinence following alcohol dependence and how these opposing events relate to neurodegeneration and recovery from chronic alcoholism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly Nixon
- College of Pharmacy, University of Kentucky, Lexington, Kentucky 40536, USA.
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Abstract
Forty years since the initial discovery of neurogenesis in the postnatal rat hippocampus, investigators have now firmly established that active neurogenesis from neural progenitors continues throughout life in discrete regions of the central nervous systems (CNS) of all mammals, including humans. Significant progress has been made over the past few years in understanding the developmental process and regulation of adult neurogenesis, including proliferation, fate specification, neuronal maturation, targeting, and synaptic integration of the newborn neurons. The function of this evolutionarily conserved phenomenon, however, remains elusive in mammals. Adult neurogenesis represents a striking example of structural plasticity in the mature CNS environment. Advances in our understanding of adult neurogenesis will not only shed light on the basic principles of adult plasticity, but also may lead to strategies for cell replacement therapy after injury or degenerative neurological diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guo-li Ming
- Institute for Cell Engineering, Departments of Neurology and Neuroscience, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA.
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Tateno M, Ukai W, Hashimoto E, Ikeda H, Saito T. Implication of increased NRSF/REST binding activity in the mechanism of ethanol inhibition of neuronal differentiation. J Neural Transm (Vienna) 2005; 113:283-93. [PMID: 15959844 DOI: 10.1007/s00702-005-0320-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2005] [Accepted: 04/17/2005] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
The neuron-restrictive silencer factor (NRSF), or repressor element-1 silencing transcription factor (REST), is a transcription factor that mediates negative regulation of neuronal genes. NRSF represses multiple neuronal target genes in non-neuronal and neuronal precursor cells to regulate the proper timing of neuronal gene expression during neurogenesis. In the present study, we investigated the effects of ethanol and MEK inhibitor U0126 on the DNA binding activity of NRSF in neural stem cells prepared from rat embryos. Both ethanol and U0126 enhanced NRSF binding activity measured by the method based on the principal of electrophoretic mobility shift assay (EMSA) and decreased neuronal differentiation in a concentration dependent manner. Western blot analysis revealed that ethanol suppressed phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) without affecting expression of total ERK. These results suggest that ethanol-induced potentiation of NRSF binding activity underlies the mechanism of ethanol inhibition of neuronal differentiation and decreased neurogenesis.
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Affiliation(s)
- M Tateno
- Department of Neuropsychiatry, Sapporo Medical University, School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.
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Nixon K, Crews FT. Temporally specific burst in cell proliferation increases hippocampal neurogenesis in protracted abstinence from alcohol. J Neurosci 2005; 24:9714-22. [PMID: 15509760 PMCID: PMC6730141 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.3063-04.2004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 185] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/11/2023] Open
Abstract
Adult neurogenesis is a newly considered form of plasticity that could contribute to brain dysfunction in psychiatric disease. Chronic alcoholism, a disease affecting over 8% of the adult population, produces cognitive impairments and decreased brain volumes, both of which are partially reversed during abstinence. Clinical data and animal models implicate the hippocampus, a region important in learning and memory. In a model of alcohol dependence (chronic binge exposure for 4 d), we show that adult neurogenesis is inhibited during dependence with a pronounced increase in new hippocampal neuron formation after weeks of abstinence. This increase is attributable to a temporally and regionally specific fourfold increase in cell proliferation at day 7 of abstinence, with a majority of those cells surviving and differentiating at percentages similar to controls, effects that doubled the formation of new neurons. Although increases in cell proliferation correlated with alcohol withdrawal severity, proliferation remained increased when diazepam (10 mg/kg) was used to reduce withdrawal severity. Indeed, those animals with little withdrawal activity still show a twofold burst in cell proliferation at day 7 of abstinence. Thus, alcohol dependence and recovery from dependence continues to alter hippocampal plasticity during abstinence. Because neurogenesis may contribute to hippocampal function and/or learning, memory, and mood, compensatory neurogenesis and the return of normal neurogenesis may also have an impact on hippocampal structure and function. For the first time, these data provide a neurobiological mechanism that may underlie the return of human cognitive function and brain volume associated with recovery from addiction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kimberly Nixon
- Bowles Center for Alcohol Studies, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina 27599, USA
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Pandey SC, Chartoff EH, Carlezon WA, Zou J, Zhang H, Kreibich AS, Blendy JA, Crews FT. CREB Gene Transcription Factors: Role in Molecular Mechanisms of Alcohol and Drug Addiction. Alcohol Clin Exp Res 2005; 29:176-84. [PMID: 15714041 DOI: 10.1097/01.alc.0000153550.31168.1d] [Citation(s) in RCA: 54] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
This article presents the proceedings of a symposium presented at the meeting of the Research Society on Alcoholism, held in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, in June 2004. The organizers and chairpersons were Subhash C. Pandey and Fulton Crews. The presentations were (1) Ethanol Modulation of CREB: Role in Dependence and Withdrawal, by Fulton Crews; (2) Effects of D1 Dopamine Receptor Activation During Withdrawal From Chronic Morphine: Enhanced CREB Activation and Decreased Conditioned Place Aversion, by Elena H. Chartoff; (3) CREB-Haplodeficient Mice: Role in Anxiety and Alcohol-Drinking Behaviors, by Subhash C. Pandey; and (4) A Role for CREB in Stress and Drug Addiction, by Julie A. Blendy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Subhash C Pandey
- Department of Psychiatry, University of Illinois at Chicago and Jesse Brown VA Medical Center, Chicago, Illinois 60612, USA.
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Abstract
Addiction can be viewed as a form of drug-induced neural plasticity. One of the best-established molecular mechanisms of addiction is upregulation of the cAMP second messenger pathway, which occurs in many neuronal cell types in response to chronic administration of opiates or other drugs of abuse. This upregulation and the resulting activation of the transcription factor CREB appear to mediate aspects of tolerance and dependence. In contrast, induction of another transcription factor, termed DeltaFosB, exerts the opposite effect and may contribute to sensitized responses to drug exposure. Knowledge of these mechanisms could lead to more effective treatments for addictive disorders.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jennifer Chao
- Department of Psychiatry and Center for Basic Neuroscience, The University of Texas, Southwestern Medical Center, 5323 Harry Hines Boulevard, Dallas, Texas 75390-9070, USA
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