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Trzeciak JR, Steele AD. Studying food entrainment: Models, methods, and musings. Front Nutr 2022; 9:998331. [PMID: 36211505 PMCID: PMC9532691 DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2022.998331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2022] [Accepted: 08/24/2022] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to tell time relative to predictable feeding opportunities has a long history of research, going back more than 100 years with behavioral observations of honeybees and rats. Animals that have access to food at a particular time of day exhibit “food anticipatory activity” (FAA), which is a preprandial increase in activity and arousal thought to be driven by food entrained circadian oscillator(s). However, the mechanisms behind adaptation of behavior to timed feeding continue to elude our grasp. Methods used to study circadian entrainment by food vary depending on the model system and the laboratory conducting the experiments. Most studies have relied on rodent model systems due to neuroanatomical tools and genetic tractability, but even among studies of laboratory mice, methods vary considerably. A lack of consistency within the field in experimental design, reporting, and definition of food entrainment, or even FAA, makes it difficult to compare results across studies or even within the same mutant mouse strain, hindering interpretation of replication studies. Here we examine the conditions used to study food as a time cue and make recommendations for study design and reporting.
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Vijaya Shankara J, Mistlberger RE, Antle MC. Anticipation of Scheduled Feeding in BTBR Mice Reveals Independence and Interactions Between the Light- and Food-Entrainable Circadian Clocks. Front Integr Neurosci 2022; 16:896200. [PMID: 35712346 PMCID: PMC9195425 DOI: 10.3389/fnint.2022.896200] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2022] [Accepted: 04/12/2022] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Many animal species exhibit food-anticipatory activity (FAA) when fed at a fixed time of the day. FAA exhibits properties of a daily rhythm controlled by food-entrainable circadian oscillators (FEOs). Lesion studies indicate that FEOs are separate from the light-entrainable circadian pacemaker (LEP) located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus. While anatomically distinct, food- and light-entrainable clocks do appear to interact, and the output of these clocks may be modulated by their phase relation. We report here an analysis of FAA in the BTBR T+ Itpr3tf/J (BTBR) mouse strain that provides new insights into the nature of interactions between food- and light-entrained clocks and rhythms. BTBR mice fed ad libitum exhibit an unusually short active phase and free-running circadian periodicity (~22.5 h). In a light-dark cycle, BTBR mice limited to a 4 h daily meal in the light period show robust FAA compared to the C57BL/6J mice. In constant darkness, BTBR mice exhibit clear and distinct free-running and food-anticipatory rhythms that interact in a phase-dependent fashion. The free-running rhythm exhibits phase advances when FAA occurs in the mid-to-late rest phase of the free run, and phase delays when FAA occurs in the late active phase. A phase-response curve (PRC) inferred from these shifts is similar to the PRC for activity-induced phase shifts in nocturnal rodents, suggesting that the effects of feeding schedules on the LEP in constant darkness are mediated by FAA. A phase-dependent effect of the free-running rhythm on FAA was evident in both its magnitude and duration; FAA counts were greatest when FAA occurred during the active phase of the free-running rhythm. The LEP inhibited FAA when FAA occurred at the end of the subjective day. These findings provide evidence for interactions between food- and light-entrainable circadian clocks and rhythms and demonstrate the utility of the BTBR mouse model in probing these interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jhenkruthi Vijaya Shankara
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
| | | | - Michael C. Antle
- Department of Psychology, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Hotchkiss Brain Institute, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary, Calgary, AB, Canada
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Sucrose intake by rats affected by both intraperitoneal oxytocin administration and time of day. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2022; 239:429-442. [PMID: 34731267 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-021-06014-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 10/20/2021] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Daily limited access to palatable food or drink at a fixed time is commonly used in rodent models of bingeing. Under these conditions, entrainment may modulate intake patterns. Oxytocin is involved in circadian patterns of intake and, when administered peripherally, reduces sucrose intake. However, oxytocin's effects on intake under limited-access conditions and its potential interaction with entrainment have not been explored. OBJECTIVES This study examined the role of entrainment on intake patterns, oxytocin's effects on sucrose intakes and locomotor activity and whether oxytocin's effects were mediated by its actions at the oxytocin receptor. METHODS Sated rats received daily 1-h access to 10% sucrose solution either at a fixed or varied time of day. Rats received intraperitoneal oxytocin (0 mg/kg, 0.3 mg/kg, 1 mg/kg, 3 mg/kg) prior to sucrose access, and spontaneous locomotor activity was assessed in an open-field test. Rats were then pre-treated with an oxytocin receptor antagonist, L368,899, prior to oxytocin before sucrose access. RESULTS Intake patterns did not differ between fixed- or varied-time presentations; rats consumed more sucrose solution in the middle as opposed to the early-dark phase. Oxytocin dose-dependently reduced sucrose intakes, but also reduced locomotor activity. There was some evidence of partial blockade of oxytocin-induced sucrose intake reductions by L368,899, but the results were unclear. CONCLUSIONS Time of day and oxytocin impact sucrose solution intake under daily limited access in rats and the sedative-like effects of oxytocin should be considered in future studies on oxytocin and food intake.
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Wang RYR, Noddings CM, Kirschke E, Myasnikov AG, Johnson JL, Agard DA. Structure of Hsp90-Hsp70-Hop-GR reveals the Hsp90 client-loading mechanism. Nature 2022; 601:460-464. [PMID: 34937942 PMCID: PMC9179170 DOI: 10.1038/s41586-021-04252-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 96] [Impact Index Per Article: 48.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/02/2020] [Accepted: 11/16/2021] [Indexed: 01/03/2023]
Abstract
Maintaining a healthy proteome is fundamental for the survival of all organisms1. Integral to this are Hsp90 and Hsp70, molecular chaperones that together facilitate the folding, remodelling and maturation of the many 'client proteins' of Hsp902. The glucocorticoid receptor (GR) is a model client protein that is strictly dependent on Hsp90 and Hsp70 for activity3-7. Chaperoning GR involves a cycle of inactivation by Hsp70; formation of an inactive GR-Hsp90-Hsp70-Hop 'loading' complex; conversion to an active GR-Hsp90-p23 'maturation' complex; and subsequent GR release8. However, to our knowledge, a molecular understanding of this intricate chaperone cycle is lacking for any client protein. Here we report the cryo-electron microscopy structure of the GR-loading complex, in which Hsp70 loads GR onto Hsp90, uncovering the molecular basis of direct coordination by Hsp90 and Hsp70. The structure reveals two Hsp70 proteins, one of which delivers GR and the other scaffolds the Hop cochaperone. Hop interacts with all components of the complex, including GR, and poises Hsp90 for subsequent ATP hydrolysis. GR is partially unfolded and recognized through an extended binding pocket composed of Hsp90, Hsp70 and Hop, revealing the mechanism of GR loading and inactivation. Together with the GR-maturation complex structure9, we present a complete molecular mechanism of chaperone-dependent client remodelling, and establish general principles of client recognition, inhibition, transfer and activation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ray Yu-Ruei Wang
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Chari M. Noddings
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Elaine Kirschke
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA
| | - Alexander G. Myasnikov
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA,Present address: Dubochet Center for Imaging (DCI) at EPFL, EPFL SB IPHYS DCI, Lausanne, Switzerland
| | - Jill L. Johnson
- Department of Biological Sciences, University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, USA
| | - David A. Agard
- Department of Biochemistry and Biophysics, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA,Correspondence and requests for materials should be addressed to David A. Agard.
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de Lartigue G, McDougle M. Dorsal striatum dopamine oscillations: Setting the pace of food anticipatory activity. Acta Physiol (Oxf) 2019; 225:e13152. [PMID: 29920950 DOI: 10.1111/apha.13152] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/09/2017] [Revised: 06/08/2018] [Accepted: 06/11/2018] [Indexed: 12/15/2022]
Abstract
Predicting the uncertainties of the ever-changing environment provides a competitive advantage for animals. The need to anticipate food sources has provided a strong evolutionary drive for synchronizing behavioural and internal processes with daily circadian cycles. When food is restricted to a few hours per day, rodents exhibit increased wakefulness and foraging behaviour preceding the arrival of food. Interestingly, while the master clock located in the suprachiasmatic nucleus entrains daily rhythms to the light cycle, it is not necessary for this food anticipatory activity. This suggests the existence of a food-entrained oscillator located elsewhere. Based on the role of nigrostriatal dopamine in reward processing, motor function, working memory and internal timekeeping, we propose a working model by which food-entrained dopamine oscillations in the dorsal striatum can enable animals maintained on a restricted feeding schedule to anticipate food arrival. Finally, we summarize how metabolic signals in the gut are conveyed to the nigrostriatal pathway to suggest possible insight into potential input mechanisms for food anticipatory activity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Guillaume de Lartigue
- The John B. Pierce Laboratory; New Haven Connecticut
- Department of Cellular and Molecular Physiology; Yale Medical School; New Haven Connecticut
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Hsu TM, Suarez AN, Kanoski SE. Ghrelin: A link between memory and ingestive behavior. Physiol Behav 2016; 162:10-7. [PMID: 27072509 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2016.03.039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2016] [Revised: 03/29/2016] [Accepted: 03/31/2016] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
Feeding is a highly complex behavior that is influenced by learned associations between external and internal cues. The type of excessive feeding behavior contributing to obesity onset and metabolic deficit may be based, in part, on conditioned appetitive and ingestive behaviors that occur in response to environmental and/or interoceptive cues associated with palatable food. Therefore, there is a critical need to understand the neurobiology underlying learned aspects of feeding behavior. The stomach-derived "hunger" hormone, ghrelin, stimulates appetite and food intake and may function as an important biological substrate linking mnemonic processes with feeding control. The current review highlights data supporting a role for ghrelin in mediating the cognitive and neurobiological mechanisms that underlie conditioned feeding behavior. We discuss the role of learning and memory on food intake control (with a particular focus on hippocampal-dependent memory processes) and provide an overview of conditioned cephalic endocrine responses. A neurobiological framework is provided through which conditioned cephalic ghrelin secretion signals in neurons in the hippocampus, which then engage orexigenic neural circuitry in the lateral hypothalamus to express learned feeding behavior.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ted M Hsu
- Human and Evolutionary Biology Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Neuroscience Program, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Andrea N Suarez
- Human and Evolutionary Biology Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA
| | - Scott E Kanoski
- Human and Evolutionary Biology Section, Department of Biological Sciences, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA; Neuroscience Program, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.
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Dantas-Ferreira RF, Dumont S, Gourmelen S, Cipolla-Neto J, Simonneaux V, Pévet P, Challet E. Food-anticipatory activity in Syrian hamsters: behavioral and molecular responses in the hypothalamus according to photoperiodic conditions. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0126519. [PMID: 25970608 PMCID: PMC4430487 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0126519] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/16/2015] [Accepted: 04/03/2015] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
When food availability is restricted, animals adjust their behavior according to the timing of food access. Most rodents, such as rats and mice, and a wide number of other animals express before timed food access a bout of activity, defined as food-anticipatory activity (FAA). One notable exception amongst rodents is the Syrian hamster, a photoperiodic species that is not prone to express FAA. The present study was designed to understand the reasons for the low FAA in that species. First, we used both wheel-running activity and general cage activity to assess locomotor behavior. Second, the possible effects of photoperiod was tested by challenging hamsters with restricted feeding under long (LP) or short (SP) photoperiods. Third, because daytime light may inhibit voluntary activity, hamsters were also exposed to successive steps of full and skeleton photoperiods (two 1-h light pulses simulating dawn and dusk). When hamsters were exposed to skeleton photoperiods, not full photoperiod, they expressed FAA in the wheel independently of daylength, indicating that FAA in the wheel is masked by daytime light under full photoperiods. During FAA under skeleton photoperiods, c-Fos expression was increased in the arcuate nuclei independently of the photoperiod, but differentially increased in the ventromedial and dorsomedial hypothalamic nuclei according to the photoperiod. FAA in general activity was hardly modulated by daytime light, but was reduced under SP. Together, these findings show that food-restricted Syrian hamsters are not prone to display FAA under common laboratory conditions, because of the presence of light during daytime that suppresses FAA expression in the wheel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rosana F. Dantas-Ferreira
- Department of Neurobiology of Rhythms, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neurosciences, UPR 3212 CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Stéphanie Dumont
- Department of Neurobiology of Rhythms, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neurosciences, UPR 3212 CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Sylviane Gourmelen
- Department of Neurobiology of Rhythms, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neurosciences, UPR 3212 CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - José Cipolla-Neto
- Department of Physiology and Biophysics, Institute of Biomedical Sciences, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Valérie Simonneaux
- Department of Neurobiology of Rhythms, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neurosciences, UPR 3212 CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Paul Pévet
- Department of Neurobiology of Rhythms, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neurosciences, UPR 3212 CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
| | - Etienne Challet
- Department of Neurobiology of Rhythms, Institute of Cellular and Integrative Neurosciences, UPR 3212 CNRS, University of Strasbourg, Strasbourg, France
- * E-mail:
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Activation of physiological stress responses by a natural reward: Novel vs. repeated sucrose intake. Physiol Behav 2015; 150:43-52. [PMID: 25747321 DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2015.03.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2014] [Revised: 02/19/2015] [Accepted: 03/04/2015] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
Pharmacological rewards, such as drugs of abuse, evoke physiological stress responses, including increased heart rate and blood pressure, and activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis. It is not clear to what extent the natural reward of palatable foods elicits similar physiological responses. In order to address this question, HPA axis hormones, heart rate, blood pressure and brain pCREB immunolabeling were assessed following novel and repeated sucrose exposure. Briefly, adult, male rats with ad libitum food and water were given either a single (day 1) or repeated (twice-daily for 14 days) brief (up to 30 min) exposure to a second drink bottle containing 4 ml of 30% sucrose drink vs. water (as a control for bottle presentation). Sucrose-fed rats drank more than water-fed on all days of exposure, as expected. On day 1 of exposure, heart rate, blood pressure, plasma corticosterone, and locomotion were markedly increased by presentation of the second drink bottle regardless of drink type. After repeated exposure (day 14), these responses habituated to similar extents regardless of drink type and pCREB immunolabeling in the hypothalamic paraventricular nucleus (PVN) also did not vary with drink type, whereas basolateral amygdala pCREB was increased by sucrose intake. Taken together, these data suggest that while sucrose is highly palatable, physiological stress responses were evoked principally by the drink presentation itself (e.g., an unfamiliar intervention by the investigators), as opposed to the palatability of the offered drink.
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Paulus EV, Mintz EM. Photic and nonphotic responses of the circadian clock in serotonin-deficient Pet-1 knockout mice. Chronobiol Int 2013; 30:1251-60. [PMID: 24059871 DOI: 10.3109/07420528.2013.815198] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022]
Abstract
The neurotransmitter serotonin plays an important role in the regulation of the circadian clock. To gain further insight into the mechanisms by which serotonin regulates rhythmicity, the authors investigated photic and nonphotic effects on the circadian clock in Pet-1 knockout mice. In these mice, the serotonergic system suffers a developmental loss of 70% of serotonin neurons, with the remaining neurons being deficient in serotonergic function as well. Pet-1 knockout mice show significantly decreased phase delays of the circadian clock in response to light pulses in the early night; however, this difference was not reflected in a difference in the expression of Fos protein in the suprachiasmatic nucleus. There were no genotypic differences detected in the phase-shifting response to injection of the 5-HT1A/7 (serotonin 1A and 7) agonist 8-OH-DPAT ((±)-8-hydroxy-2-(dipropylamino)tetralin hydrobromide); however, there were small but significant differences in the phase-shifting responses to cages between genotypes and sexes. Several different patterns of wheel-running activity were observed in knockout mice that differed from those in wild-type mice, suggesting that normal serotonergic function is necessary for the proper consolidation of nocturnal activity. Overall, these data are consistent with other pharmacological and genetic studies demonstrating a significant role for serotonin in circadian clock function.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin V Paulus
- Department of Biological Sciences and School of Biomedical Sciences, Kent State University , Kent, Ohio , USA
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Chabot CC, Connolly DM, Waring BB. The effects of lighting conditions and food restriction paradigms on locomotor activity of common spiny mice, Acomys cahirinus. J Circadian Rhythms 2012; 10:6. [PMID: 22958374 PMCID: PMC3485179 DOI: 10.1186/1740-3391-10-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/11/2012] [Accepted: 08/26/2012] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND An endogenous circadian clock controls locomotor activity in common spiny mice (Acomys cahirinus). However, little is known about the effects of constant light (LL) on this activity or about the existence of an additional food entrainable clock. A series of experiments were performed to investigate the effects of LL and DD on tau and activity levels. METHODS Spiny mice were housed individually and their running wheel activity monitored. One group of mice was exposed to LD, DD and several intensities of LL. Another group was exposed to a restricted feeding (RF) paradigm in light: dark (LD) during one hour before the L to D transition. Significance of rhythmicity was assessed using Lomb-Scargle periodograms. RESULTS In LD all animals exhibited nocturnal activity rhythms that persisted in DD. When animals were exposed to RF (during L), all of these animals (n = 11) demonstrated significant food anticipatory activity as well as an increase in diurnal activity. This increase in diurnal activity persisted in 4/11 animals during subsequent ad libitum conditions. Under LL conditions, the locomotor rhythms of 2/11 animals appeared to entrain to RF. When animals were exposed to sequentially increasing LL intensities, rhythmicity persisted and, while activity decreased significantly, the free-running period was relatively unaffected. In addition, the period in LL was significantly longer than the period in DD. Exposure to LL also induced long-term changes (after-effects) on period and activity when animals were again exposed to DD. CONCLUSIONS Overall these studies demonstrate clear and robust circadian rhythms of wheel-running in A. cahirinus. In addition, LL clearly inhibited activity in this species and induced after-effects. The results also confirm the presence of a food entrainable oscillator in this species.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christopher C Chabot
- Department of Biological Sciences, Plymouth State University, Plymouth, NH 03264, UK
| | - Devin M Connolly
- Department of Biological Sciences, Plymouth State University, Plymouth, NH 03264, UK
| | - Brenda B Waring
- Department of Biological Sciences, Plymouth State University, Plymouth, NH 03264, UK
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11
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Scheduled daily mating induces circadian anticipatory activity rhythms in the male rat. PLoS One 2012; 7:e40895. [PMID: 22848408 PMCID: PMC3405034 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0040895] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2012] [Accepted: 06/14/2012] [Indexed: 11/28/2022] Open
Abstract
Daily schedules of limited access to food, palatable high calorie snacks, water and salt can induce circadian rhythms of anticipatory locomotor activity in rats and mice. All of these stimuli are rewarding, but whether anticipation can be induced by neural correlates of reward independent of metabolic perturbations associated with manipulations of food and hydration is unclear. Three experiments were conducted to determine whether mating, a non-ingestive behavior that is potently rewarding, can induce circadian anticipatory activity rhythms in male rats provided scheduled daily access to steroid-primed estrous female rats. In Experiment 1, rats anticipated access to estrous females in the mid-light period, but also exhibited post-coital eating and running. In Experiment 2, post-coital eating and running were prevented and only a minority of rats exhibited anticipation. Rats allowed to see and smell estrous females showed no anticipation. In both experiments, all rats exhibited sustained behavioral arousal and multiple mounts and intromissions during every session, but ejaculated only every 2–3 days. In Experiment 3, the rats were given more time with individual females, late at night for 28 days, and then in the midday for 28 days. Ejaculation rates increased and anticipation was robust to night sessions and significant although weaker to day sessions. The anticipation rhythm persisted during 3 days of constant dark without mating. During anticipation of nocturnal mating, the rats exhibited a significant preference for a tube to the mating cage over a tube to a locked cage with mating cage litter. This apparent place preference was absent during anticipation of midday mating, which may reflect a daily rhythm of sexual reward. The results establish mating as a reward stimulus capable of inducing circadian rhythms of anticipatory behavior in the male rat, and reveal a critical role for ejaculation, a modulatory role for time of day, and a potential confound role for uncontrolled food intake.
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Mendoza J, Gourmelen S, Dumont S, Sage-Ciocca D, Pévet P, Challet E. Setting the main circadian clock of a diurnal mammal by hypocaloric feeding. J Physiol 2012; 590:3155-68. [PMID: 22570380 DOI: 10.1113/jphysiol.2012.230300] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/29/2023] Open
Abstract
Caloric restriction attenuates the onset of a number of pathologies related to ageing. In mammals, circadian rhythms, controlled by the hypothalamic suprachiasmatic (SCN) clock, are altered with ageing. Although light is the main synchronizer for the clock, a daily hypocaloric feeding (HF) may also modulate the SCN activity in nocturnal rodents. Here we report that a HF also affects behavioural, physiological and molecular circadian rhythms of the diurnal rodent Arvicanthis ansorgei. Under constant darkness HF, but not normocaloric feeding (NF), entrains circadian behaviour. Under a light–dark cycle, HF at midnight led to phase delays of the rhythms of locomotor activity and plasma corticosterone. Furthermore, Per2 and vasopressin gene oscillations in the SCN were phase delayed in HF Arvicanthis compared with animals fed ad libitum. Moreover, light-induced expression of Per genes in the SCN was modified in HF Arvicanthis, despite a non-significant effect on light-induced behavioural phase delays. Together, our data show that HF affects the circadian system of the diurnal rodent Arvicanthis ansorgei differentially from nocturnal rodents. The Arvicanthis model has relevance for the potential use of HF to manipulate circadian rhythms in diurnal species including humans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Mendoza
- Département de Neurobiologie des Rythmes, Institut des Neurosciences Cellulaires et Intégratives, CNRS UPR-3212, 5 rue Blaise Pascal, 67084 Strasbourg, France.
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Paulus EV, Mintz EM. Developmental disruption of the serotonin system alters circadian rhythms. Physiol Behav 2012; 105:257-63. [DOI: 10.1016/j.physbeh.2011.08.032] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/29/2010] [Revised: 08/03/2011] [Accepted: 08/24/2011] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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Challet E, Mendoza J. Metabolic and reward feeding synchronises the rhythmic brain. Cell Tissue Res 2010; 341:1-11. [DOI: 10.1007/s00441-010-1001-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/02/2010] [Accepted: 05/28/2010] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
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15
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Mendoza J, Clesse D, Pévet P, Challet E. Food-reward signalling in the suprachiasmatic clock. J Neurochem 2010; 112:1489-99. [DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-4159.2010.06570.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
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Abstract
Mother rabbits nurse their young once a day with circadian periodicity. Nursing bouts are brief (ca. 3 min) and occur inside the maternal burrow. Despite this limited contact mother rabbits and their pups are tuned to each other to ensure that the capacities of each party are used efficiently to ensure the weaning of a healthy litter. In this review we present behavioral, metabolic and hormonal correlates of this phenomenon in mother rabbits and their pups. Research is revealing that the circadian rhythm of locomotion shifts in parallel to the timing of nursing in both parties. In pups corticosterone has a circadian rhythm with highest levels at the time of nursing. Other metabolic and hormonal parameters follow an exogenous or endogenous rhythm which is affected by the time of nursing. In the brain, clock genes and their proteins (e.g. Per1) are differentially expressed in specific brain regions (e.g. suprachiasmatic nucleus, paraventricular nucleus) in relation to providing or ingesting milk in mothers and young, respectively. These findings suggest that circadian activities are modulated, in the mothers, by suckling stimulation and, in the young, by the ingestion of milk and/or the perception of the mammary pheromone. In conclusion, the rabbit pup is an extraordinary model for studying the entraining by a single daily food pulse with minimal manipulations. The mother offers the possibility of studying nursing as a non-photic synchronizer, also with minimal manipulation, as suckling stimulation from the litter occurs only once daily.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mario Caba
- Dirección General de Investigaciones, Universidad Veracruzana, Apdo. Postal 114, Xalapa, Ver., México.
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Abe H, Honma S, Honma KI. Daily restricted feeding resets the circadian clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus of CS mice. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2007; 292:R607-15. [PMID: 16990494 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00331.2006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 43] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Circadian rhythms in clock gene expressions in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) of CS mice and C57BL/6J mice were measured under a daily restricted feeding (RF) schedule in continuous darkness (DD), and entrainment of the SCN circadian pacemaker to RF was examined. After 2-3 wk under a light-dark cycle with free access to food, animals were released into DD and fed for 3 h at a fixed time of day for 3-4 wk. Subsequently, they returned to having free access to food for 2-3 wk. In CS mice, wheel-running rhythms entrained to RF with a stable phase relationship between the activity onset and feeding time, and the rhythms started to free run from the feeding time after the termination of RF. mPer1, mPer2, and mBMAL1 mRNA rhythms in the SCN showed a fixed phase relationship with feeding time, indicating that the circadian pacemaker in the SCN entrained to RF. On the other hand, in C57BL/6J mice, wheel-running rhythms free ran under RF, and clock gene expression rhythms in the SCN showed a stable phase relation not to feeding time but to the behavioral rhythms, indicating that the circadian pacemaker in the SCN did not entrain. These results indicate that the SCN circadian pacemaker of CS mice is entrainable to RF under DD and suggest that CS mice have a circadian clock system that can be reset by a signal associated with feeding time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hiroshi Abe
- Department of Physiology, Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine, Sapporo, Japan.
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Mendoza J, Angeles-Castellanos M, Escobar C. A daily palatable meal without food deprivation entrains the suprachiasmatic nucleus of rats. Eur J Neurosci 2006; 22:2855-62. [PMID: 16324120 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2005.04461.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/09/2023]
Abstract
Food is considered a potent Zeitgeber for peripheral oscillators but not for the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN), which is entrained principally by the light-dark cycle. However, when food attains relevant properties in quantity and quality, it can be a potent Zeitgeber even for the SCN. Here we evaluated the entrainment influence of a daily palatable meal, without regular food deprivation, on the circadian rhythm of locomotor activity and the c-Fos and PER-1 protein expression in the SCN. Rats fed ad libitum, in constant darkness, received a palatable meal for 6 weeks starting in the middle of the subjective day. Locomotor activity showed entrainment when the offset of activity coincided with the palatable meal-time. In the SCN, the peak expression of c-Fos was observed at palatable meal-time and PER-1 showed a peak during the onset of subjective night, as predicted according to the behavioural entrained pattern. In addition, c-Fos and PER-1 expression in the paraventricular thalamic nucleus (PVT) showed increased expression at palatable meal-time, while the intergeniculate leaflet did not, suggesting that the PVT may be involved as an input pathway of palatable food-entrainment to the SCN. These results demonstrate that daily access to a palatable meal can entrain the SCN; several stimuli can be implicated in this process, including motivation and arousal.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Mendoza
- Departamento de Anatomía, Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México DF, 04510, México.
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Landry GJ, Simon MM, Webb IC, Mistlberger RE. Persistence of a behavioral food-anticipatory circadian rhythm following dorsomedial hypothalamic ablation in rats. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2006; 290:R1527-34. [PMID: 16424080 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00874.2005] [Citation(s) in RCA: 131] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
Circadian rhythms of behavior in rodents are regulated by a system of circadian oscillators, including a master light-entrainable pacemaker in the suprachiasmatic nucleus that mediates synchrony to the day-night cycle, and food-entrainable oscillators located elsewhere that generate rhythms of food-anticipatory activity (FAA) synchronized to daily feeding schedules. Despite progress in elucidating neural and molecular mechanisms of circadian oscillators, localization of food-entrainable oscillators driving FAA remains an enduring problem. Recent evidence suggests that the dorsomedial hypothalamic nucleus (DMH) may function as a final common output for behavioral rhythms and may be critical for the expression of FAA (Gooley JJ, Schomer A, and Saper CB. Nat Neurosci 9: 398-407, 2006). To determine whether the reported loss of FAA by DMH lesions is specific to one behavioral measure or generalizes to other measures, rats received large radiofrequency lesions aimed at the DMH and were recorded in cages with movement sensors. Total and partial DMH ablation was associated with a significant attenuation of light-dark-entrained activity rhythms during ad libitum food access, because of a selective reduction in nocturnal activity. When food was restricted to a single 3-h daily meal in the middle of the lights-on period, all DMH and intact rats exhibited significant FAA. The rhythm of FAA persisted during a 48-h food deprivation test and reappeared during a 72-h deprivation test after ad libitum food access. The DMH is not the site of oscillators or entrainment pathways necessary for all manifestations of FAA, but may participate on the output side of this circadian function.
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Affiliation(s)
- G J Landry
- Department of Psychology, Simon Fraser University, 8888 Univ. Drive, Burnaby, BC, Canada, V5A 1S6
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Mendoza J, Angeles-Castellanos M, Escobar C. Entrainment by a palatable meal induces food-anticipatory activity and c-Fos expression in reward-related areas of the brain. Neuroscience 2005; 133:293-303. [PMID: 15893651 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2005.01.064] [Citation(s) in RCA: 92] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/27/2004] [Revised: 01/25/2005] [Accepted: 01/26/2005] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Rats maintained under restricted feeding schedules (RFS) develop food-anticipatory activity and entrainment of physiological parameters. Food entrainment is independent of the suprachiasmatic nucleus and depends on food-entrainable oscillators (FEO). Restricted feeding schedules lead animals toward a catabolic state and to increase their food driven motivation, suggesting that in this process metabolic- and reward-related mechanisms are implicated. This study explored if motivation driven by a palatable meal is sufficient to produce food-entrainment. To address this question, we evaluated whether daily fixed access to a highly palatable meal entrained (PME) locomotor activity, serum glucose and free fatty acids concentrations in rats maintained without food deprivation. The entrained response of PME rats was compared with rats entrained to RFS. In a second experiment, we used c-Fos-IR to identify structures in the central nervous system involved with PME. Rats showed anticipatory activity to a daily palatable meal, with a lower intensity than rats entrained to RFS. Anticipatory activity persisted at least for four cycles after interrupting palatable meal, suggesting that this persistence depends on an endogenous oscillator. Glucose and free fatty acids were not entrained in PME rats. c-Fos expression in limbic system nuclei was in phase with PME time, but not in the hypothalamus. Results suggest 1) that food deprivation, i.e. a catabolic state is not necessary for the expression of anticipatory activity; 2) that an increase in the motivational state due to taste and/or nutritional contents of palatable meal is sufficient to entrain behavior; and 3) that structures in the limbic system are involved in this entrainment process. The present study indicates that metabolic and motivational mechanisms are involved in food entrainment, and suggests that the FEO may be a multi-oscillatory system distributed over different regulatory systems in the brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- J Mendoza
- Departamento de Anatomía, Facultad de Medicina, Edificio "B" 4 Piso, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México DF, 04510, México
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Mendoza J, Angeles-Castellanos M, Escobar C. Differential role of the accumbens Shell and Core subterritories in food-entrained rhythms of rats. Behav Brain Res 2005; 158:133-42. [PMID: 15680201 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbr.2004.08.016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 59] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2004] [Revised: 08/12/2004] [Accepted: 08/25/2004] [Indexed: 11/24/2022]
Abstract
Restricted feeding schedules (RFS) entrain behavioral and physiological rhythms even in suprachiasmatic nucleus ablated animals, suggesting the existence of a food-entrained oscillator. The nucleus accumbens is an important structure for the expression of motivational behaviors and because its anatomical subterritories, Shell (Acc-Sh) and Core (Acc-Co) establish connections with different functional systems, they may participate in a differential way in food-entrainment. A first experiment, explored the role of Acc-Sh and Acc-Co in food-entrainment using the immunohistochemical detection of the protein c-Fos as a transcriptional activation marker. Experiment 2 tested the differential effect of Acc-Sh and Acc-Co, NMDA excitotoxic lesions. Lesioned rats were entrained to RFS and locomotor activity and free fatty acids (FFA) concentrations were evaluated. Results data show that in the Acc-Sh there is an increase of c-Fos immunoreactivity in food-entrained rats principally during feeding, whereas c-Fos expression in the Acc-Co region was increased during feeding and also anticipating mealtime. FFA were entrained in both lesioned groups, but the basal level was lower in Core-lesion rats. All rats exhibited food anticipatory activity (FAA). However, FAA was increased in Shell-lesioned animals and was almost abolished in the Core-lesion rats. These data indicate that the accumbens nucleus is involved with behavioral and metabolic food-entrainment, and that there is a differential role between both subregions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jorge Mendoza
- Departamento de Anatomía, Facultad de Medicina, Edificio B 4 Piso, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, México DF 04510, México
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Even PC, Bertin E, Gangnerau MN, Roseau S, Tome D, Portha B. Energy restriction with protein restriction increases basal metabolism and meal-induced thermogenesis in rats. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2003; 284:R751-9. [PMID: 12456383 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00268.2002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022]
Abstract
We previously observed an increased sympathetic nervous system (SNS) activity that was partly responsible for a defect in the insulin secretion response to glucose after postweaning protein-energy restriction (PER) in female rats. These results, together with other data on low-protein feeding, suggested that a low protein-to-energy ratio (P/E) in the diet could stimulate energy expenditure (EE), but direct measurements of EE have never been reported under conditions of PER. The goal of the present study was thus to quantify the changes induced by PER to body composition, the various parameters of EE, and plasma triiodothyronine levels. PER induced severe growth retardation, but the subcutaneous white and interscapular brown adipose tissue masses were preserved. Basal metabolism, meal-induced thermogenesis, and triiodothyronine levels were increased, but substrate utilization by the working muscles was unaffected. Meal-induced thermogenesis was increased by spontaneous activity in PER rats only. These results suggest that rats adapt to a low P/E in the diet by burning part of their excess nonprotein energy and storing the remaining excess in subcutaneous adipose tissue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Patrick C Even
- Laboratoire de Physiologie de la Nutrition et du Comportement Alimentaire, Unité Mixte de Recherche 914, Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique, Institut National Agronomique Paris-Grignon, 75231 Paris Cedex 05, France.
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