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Cummings KJ, Leiter JC, Trachtenberg FL, Okaty BW, Darnall RA, Haas EA, Harper RM, Nattie EE, Krous HF, Mena OJ, Richerson GB, Dymecki SM, Kinney HC, Haynes RL. Altered 5-HT2A/C receptor binding in the medulla oblongata in the sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS): Part II. Age-associated alterations in serotonin receptor binding profiles within medullary nuclei supporting cardiorespiratory homeostasis. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol 2024; 83:144-160. [PMID: 38323418 PMCID: PMC10880067 DOI: 10.1093/jnen/nlae004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/08/2024] Open
Abstract
The failure of chemoreflexes, arousal, and/or autoresuscitation to asphyxia may underlie some sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) cases. In Part I, we showed that some SIDS infants had altered 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)2A/C receptor binding in medullary nuclei supporting chemoreflexes, arousal, and autoresuscitation. Here, using the same dataset, we tested the hypotheses that the prevalence of low 5-HT1A and/or 5-HT2A/C receptor binding (defined as levels below the 95% confidence interval of controls-a new approach), and the percentages of nuclei affected are greater in SIDS versus controls, and that the distribution of low binding varied with age of death. The prevalence and percentage of nuclei with low 5-HT1A and 5-HT2A/C binding in SIDS were twice that of controls. The percentage of nuclei with low 5-HT2A/C binding was greater in older SIDS infants. In >80% of older SIDS infants, low 5-HT2A/C binding characterized the hypoglossal nucleus, vagal dorsal nucleus, nucleus of solitary tract, and nuclei of the olivocerebellar subnetwork (important for blood pressure regulation). Together, our findings from SIDS infants and from animal models of serotonergic dysfunction suggest that some SIDS cases represent a serotonopathy. We present new hypotheses, yet to be tested, about how defects within serotonergic subnetworks may lead to SIDS.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J Cummings
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri, USA
| | - James C Leiter
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | | | - Benjamin W Okaty
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Robert A Darnall
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Elisabeth A Haas
- Department of Research, Rady’s Children’s Hospital, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Ronald M Harper
- Department of Neurobiology and the Brain Research Institute, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Los Angeles, California, USA
| | - Eugene E Nattie
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, New Hampshire, USA
| | - Henry F Krous
- Department of Pediatrics, University of California San Diego, San Diego, California, USA
- Departments of Pathology and Pediatrics, Rady Children’s Hospital, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Othon J Mena
- San Diego County Medical Examiner Office, San Diego, California, USA
| | - George B Richerson
- Departments of Neurology and Molecular Physiology & Biophysics, University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA
| | - Susan M Dymecki
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Hannah C Kinney
- Department of Pathology, CJ Murphy Laboratory for SIDS Research, Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Robin L Haynes
- Department of Pathology, CJ Murphy Laboratory for SIDS Research, Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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Nuding SC, Segers LS, Iceman K, O'Connor R, Dean JB, Valarezo PA, Shuman D, Solomon IC, Bolser DC, Morris KF, Lindsey BG. Hypoxia evokes a sequence of raphe-pontomedullary network operations for inspiratory drive amplification and gasping. BIORXIV : THE PREPRINT SERVER FOR BIOLOGY 2024:2023.11.07.566027. [PMID: 37986850 PMCID: PMC10659307 DOI: 10.1101/2023.11.07.566027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
Hypoxia can trigger a sequence of breathing-related behaviors, from tachypnea to apneusis to apnea and gasping, an autoresuscitative behavior that, via large tidal volumes and altered intrathoracic pressure, can enhance coronary perfusion, carotid blood flow, and sympathetic activity, and thereby coordinate cardiac and respiratory functions. We tested the hypothesis that hypoxia-evoked gasps are amplified through a disinhibitory microcircuit within the inspiratory neuron chain and a distributed efference copy mechanism that generates coordinated gasp-like discharges concurrently in other circuits of the raphe-pontomedullary respiratory network. Data were obtained from 6 decerebrate, vagotomized, neuromuscularly-blocked, and artificially ventilated adult cats. Arterial blood pressure, phrenic nerve activity, end-tidal CO2, and other parameters were monitored. Hypoxia was produced by ventilation with a gas mixture of 5% O2 in nitrogen (N2). Neuron spike trains were recorded at multiple pontomedullary sites simultaneously and evaluated for firing rate modulations and short-time scale correlations indicative of functional connectivity. Experimental perturbations evoked reconfiguration of raphe-pontomedullary circuits during tachypnea, apneusis and augmented bursts, apnea, and gasping. The functional connectivity, altered firing rates, efference copy of gasp drive, and coordinated step increments in blood pressure reported here support a distributed brain stem network model for amplification and broadcasting of inspiratory drive during autoresuscitative gasping that begins with a reduction in inhibition by expiratory neurons and an initial loss of inspiratory drive during hypoxic apnea.
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Haynes RL, Trachtenberg F, Darnall R, Haas EA, Goldstein RD, Mena OJ, Krous HF, Kinney HC. Altered 5-HT2A/C receptor binding in the medulla oblongata in the sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS): Part I. Tissue-based evidence for serotonin receptor signaling abnormalities in cardiorespiratory- and arousal-related circuits. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol 2023; 82:467-482. [PMID: 37226597 PMCID: PMC10209647 DOI: 10.1093/jnen/nlad030] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/26/2023] Open
Abstract
The sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), the leading cause of postneonatal infant mortality in the United States, is typically associated with a sleep period. Previously, we showed evidence of serotonergic abnormalities in the medulla (e.g. altered serotonin (5-HT)1A receptor binding), in SIDS cases. In rodents, 5-HT2A/C receptor signaling contributes to arousal and autoresuscitation, protecting brain oxygen status during sleep. Nonetheless, the role of 5-HT2A/C receptors in the pathophysiology of SIDS is unclear. We hypothesize that in SIDS, 5-HT2A/C receptor binding is altered in medullary nuclei that are key for arousal and autoresuscitation. Here, we report altered 5-HT2A/C binding in several key medullary nuclei in SIDS cases (n = 58) compared to controls (n = 12). In some nuclei the reduced 5-HT2A/C and 5-HT1A binding overlapped, suggesting abnormal 5-HT receptor interactions. The data presented here (Part 1) suggest that a subset of SIDS is due in part to abnormal 5-HT2A/C and 5-HT1A signaling across multiple medullary nuclei vital for arousal and autoresuscitation. In Part II to follow, we highlight 8 medullary subnetworks with altered 5-HT receptor binding in SIDS. We propose the existence of an integrative brainstem network that fails to facilitate arousal and/or autoresuscitation in SIDS cases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Robin L Haynes
- CJ Murphy Laboratory for SIDS Research, Department of Pathology, Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Robert’s Program on Sudden Unexpected Death in Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | | | - Ryan Darnall
- CJ Murphy Laboratory for SIDS Research, Department of Pathology, Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Elisabeth A Haas
- Department of Research, Rady Children’s Hospital, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Richard D Goldstein
- Robert’s Program on Sudden Unexpected Death in Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Department of Pediatrics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
| | - Othon J Mena
- San Diego County Medical Examiner Office, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Henry F Krous
- University of California, San Diego, San Diego, California, USA
- Rady Children’s Hospital, San Diego, California, USA
| | - Hannah C Kinney
- CJ Murphy Laboratory for SIDS Research, Department of Pathology, Boston Children’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Robert’s Program on Sudden Unexpected Death in Pediatrics, Division of General Pediatrics, Department of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
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Xu F, Zhao L, Zhuang J, Gao X. Peripheral Neuroplasticity of Respiratory Chemoreflexes, Induced by Prenatal Nicotinic Exposure: Implication for SIDS. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2023; 313:104053. [PMID: 37019251 DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2023.104053] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/10/2023] [Revised: 03/23/2023] [Accepted: 04/02/2023] [Indexed: 04/05/2023]
Abstract
Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) occurs during sleep in seemingly healthy infants. Maternal cigarette smoking and hypoxemia during sleep are assumed to be the major causal factors. Depressed hypoxic ventilatory response (dHVR) is observed in infants with high risk of SIDS, and apneas (lethal ventilatory arrest) appear during the fatal episode of SIDS. Disturbance of the respiratory center has been proposed to be involved, but the pathogenesis of SIDS is still not fully understood. Peripherally, the carotid body is critical to generate HVR, and bronchopulmonary and superior laryngeal C-fibers (PCFs and SLCFs) are important for triggering central apneas; however, their roles in the pathogenesis of SIDS have not been explored until recently. There are three lines of recently accumulated evidence to show the disorders of peripheral sensory afferent-mediated respiratory chemoreflexes in rat pups with prenatal nicotinic exposure (a SIDS model) in which acute severe hypoxia leads to dHVR followed by lethal apneas. (1) The carotid body-mediated HVR is suppressed with a reduction of the number and sensitivity of glomus cells. (2) PCF-mediated apneic response is largely prolonged via increased PCF density, pulmonary IL-1β and serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) release, along with the enhanced expression of TRPV1, NK1R, IL1RI and 5-HT3R in pulmonary C-neurons to strengthen these neural responses to capsaicin, a selective stimulant to C-fibers. (3) SLCF-mediated apnea and capsaicin-induced currents in superior laryngeal C-neurons are augmented by upregulation of TRPV1 expression in these neurons. These results, along with hypoxic sensitization/stimulation of PCFs, gain insight into the mechanisms of prenatal nicotinic exposure-induced peripheral neuroplasticity responsible for dHVR and long-lasting apnea during hypoxia in rat pups. Therefore, in addition to the disturbance in the respiratory center, the disorders of peripheral sensory afferent-mediated chemoreflexes may also be involved in respiratory failure and death denoted in SIDS victims.
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Yackle K. Transformation of Our Understanding of Breathing Control by Molecular Tools. Annu Rev Physiol 2023; 85:93-113. [PMID: 36323001 PMCID: PMC9918693 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-physiol-021522-094142] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/12/2023]
Abstract
The rhythmicity of breath is vital for normal physiology. Even so, breathing is enriched with multifunctionality. External signals constantly change breathing, stopping it when under water or deepening it during exertion. Internal cues utilize breath to express emotions such as sighs of frustration and yawns of boredom. Breathing harmonizes with other actions that use our mouth and throat, including speech, chewing, and swallowing. In addition, our perception of breathing intensity can dictate how we feel, such as during the slow breathing of calming meditation and anxiety-inducing hyperventilation. Heartbeat originates from a peripheral pacemaker in the heart, but the automation of breathing arises from neural clusters within the brainstem, enabling interaction with other brain areas and thus multifunctionality. Here, we document how the recent transformation of cellular and molecular tools has contributed to our appreciation of the diversity of neuronal types in the breathing control circuit and how they confer the multifunctionality of breathing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin Yackle
- Department of Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, California, USA;
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Genes involved in paediatric apnoea and death based on knockout animal models: Implications for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Paediatr Respir Rev 2022; 44:53-60. [PMID: 34750067 DOI: 10.1016/j.prrv.2021.09.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2021] [Accepted: 09/14/2021] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The mechanism of death in Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) remains unknown but it is hypothesised that cardiorespiratory failure of brainstem origin results in early post-natal death. For a subset of SIDS infants, an underlying genetic cause may be present, and genetic abnormalities affecting brainstem respiratory control may result in abnormalities that are detectable before death. Genetic knockout mice models were developed in the 1990s and have since helped to elucidate the physiological roles of a number of genes. This systematic review aimed to identify which genes, when knocked out, result in the phenotypes of abnormal cardiorespiratory control and/or early post-natal death. Three major genes were identified: Pet1- a serotonin transcription factor, the neurotrophin pituitary adenylate cyclase activating polypeptide (PACAP) and its receptor (PAC1). Knockouts targeting these genes had blunted hypercapnic and/or hypoxic responses and early post-natal death. The hypothesis that these genes have a role in SIDS is supported by their being identified as abnormal in SIDS cohorts. Future research in SIDS cohorts will be important to determine whether these genetic abnormalities coexist and their potential applicability as biomarkers.
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Mouradian GC, Lakshminrusimha S, Konduri GG. Perinatal Hypoxemia and Oxygen Sensing. Compr Physiol 2021; 11:1653-1677. [PMID: 33792908 DOI: 10.1002/cphy.c190046] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
The development of the control of breathing begins in utero and continues postnatally. Fetal breathing movements are needed for establishing connectivity between the lungs and central mechanisms controlling breathing. Maturation of the control of breathing, including the increase of hypoxia chemosensitivity, continues postnatally. Insufficient oxygenation, or hypoxia, is a major stressor that can manifest for different reasons in the fetus and neonate. Though the fetus and neonate have different hypoxia sensing mechanisms and respond differently to acute hypoxia, both responses prevent deviations to respiratory and other developmental processes. Intermittent and chronic hypoxia pose much greater threats to the normal developmental respiratory processes. Gestational intermittent hypoxia, due to maternal sleep-disordered breathing and sleep apnea, increases eupneic breathing and decreases the hypoxic ventilatory response associated with impaired gasping and autoresuscitation postnatally. Chronic fetal hypoxia, due to biologic or environmental (i.e. high-altitude) factors, is implicated in fetal growth restriction and preterm birth causing a decrease in the postnatal hypoxic ventilatory responses with increases in irregular eupneic breathing. Mechanisms driving these changes include delayed chemoreceptor development, catecholaminergic activity, abnormal myelination, increased astrocyte proliferation in the dorsal respiratory group, among others. Long-term high-altitude residents demonstrate favorable adaptations to chronic hypoxia as do their offspring. Neonatal intermittent hypoxia is common among preterm infants due to immature respiratory systems and thus, display a reduced drive to breathe and apneas due to insufficient hypoxic sensitivity. However, ongoing intermittent hypoxia can enhance hypoxic sensitivity causing ventilatory overshoots followed by apnea; the number of apneas is positively correlated with degree of hypoxic sensitivity in preterm infants. Chronic neonatal hypoxia may arise from fetal complications like maternal smoking or from postnatal cardiovascular problems, causing blunting of the hypoxic ventilatory responses throughout at least adolescence due to attenuation of carotid body fibers responses to hypoxia with potential roles of brainstem serotonin, microglia, and inflammation, though these effects depend on the age in which chronic hypoxia initiates. Fetal and neonatal intermittent and chronic hypoxia are implicated in preterm birth and complicate the respiratory system through their direct effects on hypoxia sensing mechanisms and interruptions to the normal developmental processes. Thus, precise regulation of oxygen homeostasis is crucial for normal development of the respiratory control network. © 2021 American Physiological Society. Compr Physiol 11:1653-1677, 2021.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gary C Mouradian
- Department of Physiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
| | - Satyan Lakshminrusimha
- Department of Pediatrics, UC Davis Children's Hospital, UC Davis Health, UC Davis, Davis, California, USA
| | - Girija G Konduri
- Department of Pediatrics, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA.,Children's Research Institute, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
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Cummings KJ. Eupnea and gasping in vivo are facilitated by the activation of 5-HT 2A receptors. J Neurophysiol 2021; 125:1543-1551. [PMID: 33760672 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00088.2021] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Eupnea and gasping in infancy depend on central nervous system (CNS) serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT). Although previous in vitro preparations have provided some evidence that 5-HT acts through type 2 A receptors (5-HT2A) to facilitate eupnea and gasping, here the hypothesis addressed is that 5-HT2A receptor activation is necessary for eupnea and the proper generation of gasping in vivo. To test this, we administered 2,5-dimethoxy-4-iodoamphetamine (DOI; 0.25 mg/kg i.p.), a 5-HT2A agonist, 8-hydroxy-2-(di-n-propylamino)tetralin (8-OH-DPAT; 0.25 mg/kg i.p.), a 5-HT1A agonist, or vehicle (saline) to 7-9-day-old tryptophan hydroxylase 2 knockout (TPH2-/-) mice. A second experiment assessed the effect of MDL-11,939 (MDL; 10 mg/kg i.p.), the specific 5-HT2A antagonist, or vehicle (DMSO) on the gasping of wild-type (TPH2+/+) animals. Drugs were given 15 min prior to five episodes of severe hypoxia that elicited gasping. TPH2-/- breathed more slowly but had the same V̇e and V̇e/V̇o2 compared with TPH2+/+. As previously reported, the gasping of TPH2-/- was significantly delayed (P < 0.001) and occurred at a significantly lower frequency compared with TPH2+/+ (P = 0.04). For both genotypes, DOI hastened eupneic frequency but had no effect on V̇e or V̇e/V̇o2. The gasping of TPH2-/-, although unaffected by 8-OH-DPAT, was indistinguishable from the gasping of TPH2+/+ following DOI. In TPH2+/+, application of MDL led to hypoventilation (P = 0.01), a delay in the appearance of gasping (P = 0.005), and reduced gasp frequency (P = 0.05). These data show that, in vivo, 5-HT2A receptors facilitate both eupnea and gasping. As has been shown in vitro, 5-HT2A probably promotes gasping by exciting hypoxia-resistant pacemaker neurons.NEW & NOTEWORTHY Previous in vitro studies suggest that 5-HT2A receptors contribute to eupnea and are necessary for fictive gasping. The current study shows that the impaired gasping displayed by neonatal TPH2-/- mice, deficient in CNS serotonin, is restored by 5-HT2A receptor activation. Following 5-HT2A blockade, wild-type mice hypoventilated and their gasping resembled that of TPH2-/- mice. This study shows that both eupnea and gasping in vivo rely on the activation of 5-HT2A receptors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J Cummings
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri and Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri
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Shoemaker A, Steelman K, Srbu R, Bell HJ. Disparity in the effect of morphine on eupnea and gasping in anesthetized spontaneously breathing adult rats. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 2020; 319:R526-R540. [PMID: 32903040 DOI: 10.1152/ajpregu.00031.2020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
The goal of this study was to examine the effects of systemic morphine on the pattern and morphology of gasping breathing during respiratory autoresuscitation from transient anoxia. We hypothesized that systemic morphine levels sufficient to cause significant depression of eupnea would also cause depression of gasping breathing. Respiratory and cardiovascular variables were studied in 20 spontaneously breathing pentobarbital-anaesthetized adult male rats. Sham (saline) injections caused no significant change in resting respiratory or cardiovascular variables (n = 10 rats). Morphine, on the other hand, caused significant depression of eupneic breathing, with ventilation and peak inspiratory flow decreased by ∼30-60%, depending on the background condition (n = 10 rats). In contrast, morphine did not depress gasping breathing. Duration of primary apnea, time to restore eupnea, the number and amplitude of gasping breaths, average and maximum peak flows, and volume of gasping breaths were not significantly different postinjection in either condition. Blood pressures were all significantly lower following morphine injection at key time points in the process of autoresuscitation. Last, rate of successful recovery from anoxia was 80% in the morphine group (8/10 rats) compared with 100% (10/10 rats) in the sham group, postinjection. We conclude that the mechanisms and/or anatomic correlates underlying generation of gasping rhythm are distinct from those underlying eupnea, allowing gasping to remain robust to systemic morphine levels causing significant depression of eupnea. Morphine nevertheless decreases likelihood of recovery from transient anoxia, possibly as a result of decreased tissue perfusion pressures at critical time points during the process of respiratory autoresuscitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda Shoemaker
- Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
| | - Kevin Steelman
- Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
| | - Rebeka Srbu
- Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
| | - Harold J Bell
- Central Michigan University College of Medicine, Mt. Pleasant, Michigan
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Kinney HC, Haynes RL. The Serotonin Brainstem Hypothesis for the Sudden Infant Death Syndrome. J Neuropathol Exp Neurol 2020; 78:765-779. [PMID: 31397480 DOI: 10.1093/jnen/nlz062] [Citation(s) in RCA: 41] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2019] [Revised: 05/28/2019] [Accepted: 06/25/2019] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
The sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is the leading cause of postneonatal infant mortality in the United States today, with an overall rate of 0.39/1000 live births. It is defined as the sudden and unexpected death of an infant <12 months of age that remains unexplained after a complete autopsy, death scene investigation, and review of the clinical history. The serotonin brainstem hypothesis has been a leading hypothesis for SIDS over the last 2 decades. Our laboratory has studied this hypothesis over time with a variety of tissue techniques, including tissue receptor autoradiography, high performance liquid chromatography, Western blot analysis, immunocytochemistry, and proteomics. The purpose of this article is to review the progress in our laboratory toward supporting this hypothesis. We conclude that an important subset of SIDS infants has serotonergic abnormalities resulting from a "core lesion" in the medullary reticular formation comprised of nuclei that contain serotonin neurons. This lesion could lead to a failure of protective brainstem responses to homeostatic challenges during sleep in a critical developmental period which cause sleep-related sudden death.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah C Kinney
- Department of Pathology, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | - Robin L Haynes
- Department of Pathology, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
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Cummings KJ, Leiter JC. Take a deep breath and wake up: The protean role of serotonin preventing sudden death in infancy. Exp Neurol 2020; 326:113165. [PMID: 31887304 PMCID: PMC6956249 DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2019.113165] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2019] [Revised: 12/14/2019] [Accepted: 12/26/2019] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Recordings from infants who died suddenly and unexpectedly demonstrate the occurrence of recurring apneas, ineffective gasping, and finally, failure to restore eupnea and arouse prior to death. Immunohistochemical and autoradiographic data demonstrate a constellation of serotonergic defects in the caudal raphe nuclei in infants who died of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS). The purpose of this review is to synthesize what is known about adaptive responses of the infant to severely hypoxic conditions, which unleash a flood of neuromodulators that inhibit cardiorespiratory function, thermogenesis, and arousal and the emerging role of serotonin, which combats this cardiorespiratory inhibition to foster autoresuscitation, eupnea, and arousal to ensure survival following an hypoxic episode. The laryngeal and carotid body chemoreflexes are potent in newborns and infants, and both reflexes can induce apnea and bradycardia, which may be adaptive initially, but must be terminated if an infant is to survive. Serotonin has a unique ability to touch on each of the processes that may be required to recover from hypoxic reflex apnea: gasping, the restoration of heart rate and blood pressure, termination of apneas and, eventually, stimulation of eupnea and arousal. Recurrent apneic events, bradycardia, ineffective gasping and a failure to terminate apneas and restore eupnea are observed in animals harboring defects in the caudal serotonergic system models - all of these phenotypes are reminiscent of and compatible with the cardiorespiratory recordings made in infants who subsequently died of SIDS. The caudal serotonergic system provides an organized, multi-pronged defense against reflex cardiorespiratory inhibition and the hypoxia that accompanies prolonged apnea, bradycardia and hypotension, and any deficiency of caudal serotonergic function will increase the propensity for sudden unexplained infant death.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J Cummings
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Missouri-Columbia, Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center, 134 Research Park Drive, Columbia, MO 65203, USA
| | - James C Leiter
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, One Rope Ferry Road, Hanover, NH 03755, USA.
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Erickson JT. Central serotonin and autoresuscitation capability in mammalian neonates. Exp Neurol 2020; 326:113162. [DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2019.113162] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2019] [Revised: 11/04/2019] [Accepted: 12/23/2019] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
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Donnelly WT, Haynes RL, Commons KG, Erickson DJ, Panzini CM, Xia L, Han QJ, Leiter JC. Prenatal intermittent hypoxia sensitizes the laryngeal chemoreflex, blocks serotoninergic shortening of the reflex, and reduces 5-HT 3 receptor binding in the NTS in anesthetized rat pups. Exp Neurol 2020; 326:113166. [PMID: 31887303 PMCID: PMC7028519 DOI: 10.1016/j.expneurol.2019.113166] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2019] [Revised: 12/14/2019] [Accepted: 12/26/2019] [Indexed: 10/25/2022]
Abstract
We tested the hypothesis that exposure to intermittent hypoxia (IH) during pregnancy would prolong the laryngeal chemoreflex (LCR) and diminish the capacity of serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine; 5-HT) to terminate the LCR. Prenatal exposure to IH was associated with significant prolongation of the LCR in younger, anesthetized, postnatal day (P) rat pups age P8 to P16 compared to control, room air (RA)-exposed rat pups of the same age. Serotonin microinjected into the NTS shortened the LCR in rat pups exposed to RA during gestation, but 5-HT failed to shorten the LCR in rat pups exposed to prenatal IH. Given these observations, we tested the hypothesis that prenatal hypoxia would decrease binding to 5-HT3 receptors in the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS) where 5-HT acts to shorten the LCR. Serotonin 3 receptor binding was reduced in younger rat pups exposed to IH compared to control, RA-exposed rat pups in the age range P8 to P12. Serotonin 3 receptor binding was similar in older animals (P18-P24) regardless of gas exposure during gestation. The failure of the 5-HT injected into the NTS to shorten the LCR was correlated with a developmental decrease in 5-HT3 receptor binding in the NTS associated with exposure to prenatal IH. In summary, prenatal IH sensitized reflex apnea and blunted processes that terminate reflex apneas in neonatal rat pups, processes that are essential to prevent death following apneas such as those seen in babies who died of SIDS.
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Affiliation(s)
- William T Donnelly
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, One Rope Ferry Road, Hanover, NH 03755, United States of America
| | - Robin L Haynes
- Department of Pathology, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, United States of America
| | - Kathryn G Commons
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, United States of America
| | - Drexel J Erickson
- Department of Pathology, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, United States of America
| | - Chris M Panzini
- Department of Anesthesiology, Perioperative and Pain Medicine, Boston Children's Hospital and Harvard Medical School, United States of America
| | - Luxi Xia
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, One Rope Ferry Road, Hanover, NH 03755, United States of America
| | - Q Joyce Han
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, One Rope Ferry Road, Hanover, NH 03755, United States of America
| | - J C Leiter
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, One Rope Ferry Road, Hanover, NH 03755, United States of America.
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14
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Cummings KJ, Hodges MR. The serotonergic system and the control of breathing during development. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2019; 270:103255. [PMID: 31362064 DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2019.103255] [Citation(s) in RCA: 18] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2019] [Revised: 06/28/2019] [Accepted: 07/12/2019] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine 5-HT) was first discovered in the late 1940's as an endogenous bioactive amine capable of inducing vasoconstriction, and in the mid-1950's was found in the brain. It was in these early years that some of the first demonstrations were made regarding a role for brain 5-HT in neurological function and behavior, including data implicating reduced brain levels of 5-HT in clinical depression. Since that time, advances in molecular biology and physiological approaches in basic science research have intensely focused on 5-HT in the brain, and the many facets of its role during embryonic development, post-natal maturation, and neural function in adulthood continues to be established. This review focuses on what is known about the developmental roles for the 5-HT system, which we define as the neurons producing 5-HT along with pre-and post-synaptic receptors, in a vital homeostatic motor behavior - the control of breathing. We will cover what is known about the embryonic origins and fate specification of 5-HT neurons, and how the 5-HT system influences pre- and post-natal maturation of the ventilatory control system. In addition, we will focus on the role of the 5-HT system in specific respiratory behaviors during fetal, neonatal and postnatal development, and the relevance of dysfunction in this system in respiratory-related human pathologies including Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS).
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J Cummings
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA; Dalton Cardiovascular Research Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
| | - Matthew R Hodges
- Department of Physiology, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA; Neuroscience Research Center, Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, WI 53226, USA
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15
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Funk GD, Biancardi V. Commentary: Acute perturbation of Pet1-neuron activity in neonatal mice impairs cardiorespiratory homeostatic recovery. Front Physiol 2019; 10:232. [PMID: 30949061 PMCID: PMC6436076 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2019.00232] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/10/2019] [Accepted: 02/21/2019] [Indexed: 11/26/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Gregory D Funk
- Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, Women and Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
| | - Vivian Biancardi
- Department of Physiology, Faculty of Medicine and Dentistry, Neuroscience and Mental Health Institute, Women and Children's Health Research Institute, University of Alberta, Edmonton, AB, Canada
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16
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Iovino L, Mutolo D, Cinelli E, Contini M, Pantaleo T, Bongianni F. Breathing stimulation mediated by 5-HT1A and 5-HT3 receptors within the preBötzinger complex of the adult rabbit. Brain Res 2019; 1704:26-39. [DOI: 10.1016/j.brainres.2018.09.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/05/2018] [Revised: 09/10/2018] [Accepted: 09/18/2018] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
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17
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Lindsey BG, Nuding SC, Segers LS, Morris KF. Carotid Bodies and the Integrated Cardiorespiratory Response to Hypoxia. Physiology (Bethesda) 2019; 33:281-297. [PMID: 29897299 DOI: 10.1152/physiol.00014.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Advances in our understanding of brain mechanisms for the hypoxic ventilatory response, coordinated changes in blood pressure, and the long-term consequences of chronic intermittent hypoxia as in sleep apnea, such as hypertension and heart failure, are giving impetus to the search for therapies to "erase" dysfunctional memories distributed in the carotid bodies and central nervous system. We review current network models, open questions, sex differences, and implications for translational research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Bruce G Lindsey
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida , Tampa, Florida
| | - Sarah C Nuding
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida , Tampa, Florida
| | - Lauren S Segers
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida , Tampa, Florida
| | - Kendall F Morris
- Department of Molecular Pharmacology and Physiology, Morsani College of Medicine, University of South Florida , Tampa, Florida
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18
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Dosumu-Johnson RT, Cocoran AE, Chang Y, Nattie E, Dymecki SM. Acute perturbation of Pet1-neuron activity in neonatal mice impairs cardiorespiratory homeostatic recovery. eLife 2018; 7:37857. [PMID: 30350781 PMCID: PMC6199134 DOI: 10.7554/elife.37857] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/15/2018] [Accepted: 09/09/2018] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Cardiorespiratory recovery from apneas requires dynamic responses of brainstem circuitry. One implicated component is the raphe system of Pet1-expressing (largely serotonergic) neurons, however their precise requirement neonatally for homeostasis is unclear, yet central toward understanding newborn cardiorespiratory control and dysfunction. Here we show that acute in vivo perturbation of Pet1-neuron activity, via triggering cell-autonomously the synthetic inhibitory receptor hM4Di, resulted in altered baseline cardiorespiratory properties and diminished apnea survival. Respiratory more than heart rate recovery was impaired, uncoupling their normal linear relationship. Disordered gasp recovery from the initial apnea distinguished mice that would go on to die during subsequent apneas. Further, the risk likelihood of apnea-related mortality associated with suppression of Pet1 neurons was higher for animals with baseline elevated ventilatory equivalents for oxygen. These findings establish that Pet1 neurons play an active role in neonatal cardiorespiratory homeostasis and provide mechanistic plausibility for the serotonergic abnormalities associated with SIDS. Our survival depends on our heart and lungs working together to supply our cells with oxygen and remove carbon dioxide waste. The brain coordinates this process by controlling the activity of the heart and lungs. Yet sometimes a person may experience an event called an apnea and briefly stop breathing. If this happens, oxygen levels in the body fall while carbon dioxide levels rise. This in turn triggers a recovery process called autoresuscitation, which includes a series of large breaths or gasps, and each gasp is accompanied by increased heart rate due to specialized parts of the nervous system. This response usually restores normal breathing. Failure of autoresuscitation may underlie many cases of sudden infant death syndrome, or SIDS (also known as “cot death” or “crib death”). SIDS is the leading cause of death in young infants in the western world, and many infants who die from SIDS show abnormalities in the brain cells that produce a chemical called serotonin. Evidence suggests that serotonin helps control breathing. This raised the question: does the autoresuscitation recovery response rely on serotonin-producing neurons? To find out, Dosumu-Johnson et al. used one-week-old mouse pups that had been genetically engineered to respond to an injected drug by rapidly inhibiting their serotonin neurons. These animals are about the same age in mouse terms as infants at greatest risk for SIDS (~2-4 months of age). Inhibiting serotonin neurons made it harder for the mouse pups to recover from artificially induced apneas. Although their heart rate showed largely normal recovery – at least at first – their breathing did not. They took fewer gasps, and were more likely to die following such episodes. These findings shed new light on how young animals control their breathing and heart rate when mounting an autoresuscitation recovery from an apnea. The observed uncoupling of breathing and heart rate recovery responses suggests that different brain cells and circuits control the two. The results also suggest that abnormalities in the activity of serotonin neurons may make infants more susceptible to SIDS. As well as offering a possible explanation to families who have lost a child to SIDS, these findings could be used to develop screening tools to identify other infants at risk. They also point to potential cellular targets for drugs that could ultimately help prevent further cases.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Andrea E Cocoran
- Department of Molecular & Systems Biology, The Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, United States
| | - YoonJeung Chang
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, United States
| | - Eugene Nattie
- Department of Molecular & Systems Biology, The Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Hanover, United States
| | - Susan M Dymecki
- Department of Genetics, Harvard Medical School, Boston, United States
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19
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Lee SY, Sirieix CM, Nattie E, Li A. Pre- and early postnatal nicotine exposure exacerbates autoresuscitation failure in serotonin-deficient rat neonates. J Physiol 2018; 596:5977-5991. [PMID: 30008184 DOI: 10.1113/jp275885] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/19/2018] [Accepted: 05/22/2018] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
KEY POINTS Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) is one of the leading causes of death during the first year of life and abnormalities linked to serotonin (5-HT) have been identified in many SIDS cases. Cigarette smoking and associated exogenous stressors, e.g. developmental nicotine exposure, may compound these serotonergic defects and any associated defects in cardiorespiratory function. Using neonatal rodent pups subjected to medullary 5-HT deficiency and perinatal nicotine exposure, we examined the impact of this interplay of factors on the neonates' ability to autoresuscitate at specific ages. In perinatal nicotine-exposed 5-HT deficient pups, impaired autoresuscitation along with significantly delayed post-anoxic recovery of normal breathing and heart rate was observed at postnatal day 10 (P10). We found that the interaction between 5-HT deficiency and perinatal nicotine exposure can significantly increase pups' vulnerability to environmental stressors and exacerbate defects in cardiorespiratory protective reflexes to repetitive anoxia during the development period. ABSTRACT Cigarette smoking during pregnancy increases the risk of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), and nicotine replacements, a key ingredient of cigarettes, have been recently prescribed to women who wish to quit smoking during their pregnancy. Serotonin (5-HT) abnormalities have been consistently identified in many SIDS cases. Here we investigated the effects of perinatal nicotine exposure in mild 5-HT deficiency rat neonates on autoresuscitation, a protective cardiorespiratory reflex. The mild 5-HT deficiency was induced by a maternal tryptophan-deficient diet, and nicotine was delivered from embryonic day (E) 4 to postnatal day (P) 10 at 6 mg kg-1 day-1 through an osmotic pump. In P10 rats, nicotine exposure exacerbates autoresuscitation failure (mortality) in mildly 5-HT-deficient rats to a greater extent than in controls (P = 0.029). The recovery of eupnoea and heart rate to baseline values following repetitive anoxic events (which elicit an apnoea accompanied by a bradycardia) is significantly delayed in 5-HT-deficient rats treated with nicotine, making them more susceptible to failure of autoresuscitation (eupnoea recovery: P = 0.0053; heart rate recovery: P = < 0.0001). Neither 5-HT deficiency nor nicotine exposure alone appears to affect the ability to autoresuscitate significantly when compared among the four treatments. The increased vulnerability to environmental stressors, e.g. severe hypoxia, asphyxia, or anoxia, in these nicotine-exposed 5-HT-deficient neonates during postnatal developmental period is evident.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stella Y Lee
- Department of Physiology and Neurobiology, Geisel school of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, 03756, USA
| | - Chrystelle M Sirieix
- Department of Physiology and Neurobiology, Geisel school of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, 03756, USA
| | - Eugene Nattie
- Department of Physiology and Neurobiology, Geisel school of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, 03756, USA
| | - Aihua Li
- Department of Physiology and Neurobiology, Geisel school of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, 03756, USA.,Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel school of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, 03756, USA
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20
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Cummings KJ. Aspiring to inspire - serotonin, the laryngeal chemoreflex and the sudden infant death syndrome. Exp Physiol 2018; 101:790. [PMID: 27368108 DOI: 10.1113/ep085834] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
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21
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Diekman CO, Thomas PJ, Wilson CG. Eupnea, tachypnea, and autoresuscitation in a closed-loop respiratory control model. J Neurophysiol 2017; 118:2194-2215. [PMID: 28724778 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00170.2017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/08/2017] [Revised: 06/22/2017] [Accepted: 07/12/2017] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
How sensory information influences the dynamics of rhythm generation varies across systems, and general principles for understanding this aspect of motor control are lacking. Determining the origin of respiratory rhythm generation is challenging because the mechanisms in a central circuit considered in isolation may be different from those in the intact organism. We analyze a closed-loop respiratory control model incorporating a central pattern generator (CPG), the Butera-Rinzel-Smith (BRS) model, together with lung mechanics, oxygen handling, and chemosensory components. We show that 1) embedding the BRS model neuron in a control loop creates a bistable system; 2) although closed-loop and open-loop (isolated) CPG systems both support eupnea-like bursting activity, they do so via distinct mechanisms; 3) chemosensory feedback in the closed loop improves robustness to variable metabolic demand; 4) the BRS model conductances provide an autoresuscitation mechanism for recovery from transient interruption of chemosensory feedback; and 5) the in vitro brain stem CPG slice responds to hypoxia with transient bursting that is qualitatively similar to in silico autoresuscitation. Bistability of bursting and tonic spiking in the closed-loop system corresponds to coexistence of eupnea-like breathing, with normal minute ventilation and blood oxygen level and a tachypnea-like state, with pathologically reduced minute ventilation and critically low blood oxygen. Disruption of the normal breathing rhythm, through either imposition of hypoxia or interruption of chemosensory feedback, can push the system from the eupneic state into the tachypneic state. We use geometric singular perturbation theory to analyze the system dynamics at the boundary separating eupnea-like and tachypnea-like outcomes.NEW & NOTEWORTHY A common challenge facing rhythmic biological processes is the adaptive regulation of central pattern generator (CPG) activity in response to sensory feedback. We apply dynamical systems tools to understand several properties of a closed-loop respiratory control model, including the coexistence of normal and pathological breathing, robustness to changes in metabolic demand, spontaneous autoresuscitation in response to hypoxia, and the distinct mechanisms that underlie rhythmogenesis in the intact control circuit vs. the isolated, open-loop CPG.
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Affiliation(s)
- Casey O Diekman
- Department of Mathematical Sciences, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, New Jersey; .,Institute for Brain and Neuroscience Research, New Jersey Institute of Technology, Newark, New Jersey
| | - Peter J Thomas
- Department of Mathematics, Applied Mathematics, and Statistics, Department of Biology, Department of Cognitive Science, and Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio
| | - Christopher G Wilson
- Lawrence D. Longo Center for Perinatal Biology, Division of Physiology, School of Medicine, Loma Linda University, Loma Linda, California; and
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22
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Donnelly WT, Xia L, Bartlett D, Leiter JC. Activation of serotonergic neurons in the medullary caudal raphe shortens the laryngeal chemoreflex in anaesthetized neonatal rats. Exp Physiol 2017; 102:1007-1018. [PMID: 28675564 DOI: 10.1113/ep086082] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2016] [Accepted: 05/25/2017] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
NEW FINDINGS What is the central question of this study? Does activation of serotonergic neurons in the caudal medullary raphe, some of which project to the nucleus of the solitary tract, shorten the laryngeal chemoreflex? What is the main finding and its importance? We found that serotonin originating from neurons in the caudal raphe acts through a 5-HT3 receptor located in the nucleus of the solitary tract to terminate reflex apnoea. Failure or deficiency of this arousal-related process is likely to be relevant to the pathogenesis of sudden infant death syndrome. Failure to terminate apnoea and arouse is likely to contribute to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Serotonin is deficient in the brainstems of babies who have died of SIDS. We tested the hypothesis that activation of serotoninergic neurons in the caudal medullary raphe, some of which project to the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS), would shorten the laryngeal chemoreflex (LCR). We studied anaesthetized neonatal rat pups between postnatal days 9 and 17. We injected 5-40 μl of water into the larynx to elicit the LCR and measured the duration of respiratory disruption. Microinjection of 50 nl of 100 μm AMPA into the caudal medullary raphe shortened the apnoeas (P < 0.001) and respiratory inhibition (P < 0.005) associated with the LCR. When 50 nl of 30 mm ondansetron, a 5-HT3 antagonist, was microinjected bilaterally into the NTS, AMPA microinjected into the caudal raphe no longer shortened the LCR. After bilateral microinjection of vehicle into the NTS, AMPA microinjection into the caudal raphe significantly shortened the LCR. AMPA, a glutamate receptor agonist, may activate many neurons within the caudal raphe, but blocking the 5-HT3 receptor-dependent responses in the NTS prevented the shortening of the LCR associated with AMPA microinjections into the caudal raphe. Thus, serotonin originating from neurons in the caudal raphe acts through a 5-HT3 receptor located in the NTS to terminate or shorten the LCR. Serotonin is deficient in the brainstems of babies who have died of SIDS, and deficient serotonergic termination of apnoea is likely to be relevant to the pathogenesis of SIDS.
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Affiliation(s)
- William T Donnelly
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, USA
| | - Luxi Xia
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, USA
| | - Donald Bartlett
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, USA
| | - J C Leiter
- Department of Molecular and Systems Biology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, USA
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23
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Krause A, Nowak Z, Srbu R, Bell H. Respiratory autoresuscitation following severe acute hypoxemia in anesthetized adult rats. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2016; 232:43-53. [DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2016.06.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2016] [Revised: 06/28/2016] [Accepted: 06/30/2016] [Indexed: 01/16/2023]
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Partial Raphe Dysfunction in Neurotransmission Is Sufficient to Increase Mortality after Anoxic Exposures in Mice at a Critical Period in Postnatal Development. J Neurosci 2016; 36:3943-53. [PMID: 27053202 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.1796-15.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 20] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/08/2015] [Accepted: 02/26/2016] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
UNLABELLED Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) cases often have abnormalities of the brainstem raphe serotonergic (5-HT) system. We hypothesize that raphe dysfunction contributes to a failure to autoresuscitate from multiple hypoxic events, leading to SIDS. We studied autoresuscitation in two transgenic mouse models in which exocytic neurotransmitter release was impaired via conditional expression of the light chain from tetanus toxin (tox) in raphe neurons expressing serotonergic bacterial artificial chromosome drivers Pet1 or Slc6a4. These used recombinase drivers targeted different portions of medullary raphe serotonergic, tryptophan hydroxylase 2 (Tph2)(+) neurons by postnatal day (P) 5 through P12: approximately one-third in triple transgenic Pet1::Flpe, hβactin::cre, RC::PFtox mice; approximately three-fourths inSlc6a4::cre, RC::Ptox mice; with the first model capturing a near equal number of Pet1(+),Tph2(+) versus Pet1(+),Tph2(low or negative) raphe cells. At P5, P8, and P12, "silenced" mice and controls were exposed to five, ∼37 s bouts of anoxia. Mortality was 5-10 times greater in "silenced" pups compared with controls at P5 and P8 (p = 0.001) but not P12, with cumulative survival not differing between experimental transgenic models. "Silenced" pups that eventually died took longer to initiate gasping (p = 0.0001), recover heart rate (p = 0.0001), and recover eupneic breathing (p = 0.011) during the initial anoxic challenges. Variability indices for baseline breathing distinguished "silenced" from controls but did not predict mortality. We conclude that dysfunction of even a portion of the raphe, as observed in many SIDS cases, can impair ability to autoresuscitate at critical periods in postnatal development and that baseline indices of breathing variability can identify mice at risk. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Many sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) cases exhibit a partial (∼26%) brainstem serotonin deficiency. Using recombinase drivers, we targeted different fractions of serotonergic and raphe neurons in mice for tetanus toxin light chain expression, which prevented vesicular neurotransmitter release. In one model, approximately one-third of medullary Tph2(+) neurons are silenced by postnatal (P) days 5 and 12, along with some Pet1(+),Tph2(low or negative) raphe cells; in the other, approximately three-fourths of medullary Tph2(+) neurons, also with some Tph2(low or negative) cells. Both models demonstrated excessive mortality to anoxia (a postulated SIDS stressor) at P5 and P8. We demonstrated fatal vulnerability to anoxic stress at a specific time in postnatal life induced by a partial defect in raphe function. This models features of SIDS.
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25
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Donnelly WT, Bartlett D, Leiter JC. Serotonin in the solitary tract nucleus shortens the laryngeal chemoreflex in anaesthetized neonatal rats. Exp Physiol 2016; 101:946-61. [PMID: 27121960 DOI: 10.1113/ep085716] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2016] [Accepted: 04/08/2016] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
What is the central question of this study? Failure to terminate apnoea and arouse is likely to contribute to sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). Serotonin is deficient in the brainstems of babies who died of SIDS. Therefore, we tested the hypothesis that serotonin in the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS) would shorten reflex apnoea. What is the main finding and its importance? Serotonin microinjected into the NTS shortened the apnoea and respiratory inhibition associated with the laryngeal chemoreflex. Moreover, this effect was achieved through a 5-HT3 receptor. This is a new insight that is likely to be relevant to the pathogenesis of SIDS. The laryngeal chemoreflex (LCR), an airway-protective reflex that causes apnoea and bradycardia, has long been suspected as an initiating event in the sudden infant death syndrome. Serotonin (5-HT) and 5-HT receptors may be deficient in the brainstems of babies who die of sudden infant death syndrome, and 5-HT seems to be important in terminating apnoeas directly or in causing arousals or as part of the process of autoresuscitation. We hypothesized that 5-HT in the brainstem would limit the duration of the LCR. We studied anaesthetized rat pups between 7 and 21 days of age and made microinjections into the cisterna magna or into the nucleus of the solitary tract (NTS). Focal, bilateral microinjections of 5-HT into the caudal NTS significantly shortened the LCR. The 5-HT1a receptor antagonist, WAY 100635, did not affect the LCR consistently, nor did a 5-HT2 receptor antagonist, ketanserin, alter the duration of the LCR. The 5-HT3 specific agonist, 1-(3-chlorophenyl)-biguanide, microinjected bilaterally into the caudal NTS significantly shortened the LCR. Thus, endogenous 5-HT released within the NTS may curtail the respiratory depression that is part of the LCR, and serotonergic shortening of the LCR may be attributed to activation of 5-HT3 receptors within the NTS. 5-HT3 receptors are expressed presynaptically on C fibre afferents of the superior laryngeal nerve, and serotonergic shortening of the LCR may be mediated presynaptically by enhanced activation of inhibitory interneurons within the NTS.
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Affiliation(s)
- William T Donnelly
- Department of Physiology and Neurobiology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, 03756, USA
| | - Donald Bartlett
- Department of Physiology and Neurobiology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, 03756, USA
| | - J C Leiter
- Department of Physiology and Neurobiology, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth, Lebanon, NH, 03756, USA
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26
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Givan SA, Cummings KJ. Intermittent severe hypoxia induces plasticity within serotonergic and catecholaminergic neurons in the neonatal rat ventrolateral medulla. J Appl Physiol (1985) 2016; 120:1277-87. [PMID: 26968026 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00048.2016] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2016] [Accepted: 03/09/2016] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
5-HT neurons contribute to autoresuscitation and survival during intermittent severe hypoxia (IsH). In adults, catecholaminergic neurons in the ventrolateral medulla (VLM) contribute to the autonomic response to hypoxia. We hypothesized that 1) catecholaminergic neurons in the neonatal VLM are activated following IsH, 2) this activation is compromised following an acute loss of brain stem 5-HT, and 3) IsH induces cellular and/or transcriptomic plasticity within catecholaminergic and serotonergic neurons that are within or project to the VLM, respectively. To test these hypotheses, we treated rat pups with 6-fluorotryptophan, a tryptophan hydroxylase (TPH) inhibitor, and then exposed treated and vehicle controls to IsH or air. Along with immunohistochemistry to detect tyrosine hydroxylase (TH)- or Fos-positive neurons, we used RNA sequencing to resolve the effects of IsH and 5-HT deficiency on the expression of serotonergic and catecholaminergic system genes in the VLM. 5-HT deficiency compromised autoresuscitation and survival. IsH significantly increased the number of identifiable TH-positive VLM neurons, an effect enhanced by 5-HT deficiency (P = 0.003). Contrary to our hypothesis, 5-HT-deficient pups had significantly more Fos-positive neurons following IsH (P = 0.008) and more activated TH-positive neurons following IsH or air (P = 0.04). In both groups the expression of the 5-HT transporter and TPH2 was increased following IsH. In 5-HT-deficient pups, the expression of the inhibitory 5-HT1A receptor was decreased following IsH, while the expression of DOPA decarboxylase was increased. These data show that the serotonergic and catecholaminergic systems in the VLM of the neonatal rat are dynamically upregulated by IsH, potentially adapting cardiorespiratory responses to severe hypoxia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Scott A Givan
- Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Informatics Research Core Facility, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri; and
| | - Kevin J Cummings
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri
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27
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Fewell JE, Lun R. Adenosine A1-receptor blockade impairs the ability of rat pups to autoresuscitate from primary apnea during repeated exposure to hypoxia. Physiol Rep 2015; 3:3/8/e12458. [PMID: 26272732 PMCID: PMC4562557 DOI: 10.14814/phy2.12458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/02/2022] Open
Abstract
Failure of gasping to bring about autoresuscitation from hypoxia-induced apnea has been suggested to play a role in sudden unexpected infant death. Little is known, however, about factors that influence the ability of gasping to restore life during severe hypoxia in newborns. Given that adenosine modulates cardiac function during hypoxia-induced apnea and that cardiac dysfunction plays a role in mediating autoresuscitation failure, the present experiments were carried out on 34, 5- to 6-, and 10- to 11-day-old rat pups to investigate their ability to autoresuscitate from hypoxia-induced apnea during repeated exposure to hypoxia after adenosine A1-receptor blockade. Each pup was placed into a temperature-controlled chamber regulated to 37 ± 1°C and repeatedly exposed to an anoxic gas mixture (97% N2 and 3% CO2) until the occurrence of autoresuscitation failure. One group was studied following administration of the selective adenosine A1-receptor antagonist 8-Cyclopentyl-1,3,-dipropylxanthine (DPCPX) and one group was studied following vehicle. DPCPX significantly attenuated bradycardia during hypoxia-induced apnea and impaired the ability of both age groups of pups to autoresuscitate during repeated exposure to hypoxia (5–6 days tolerated – vehicle 17 ± 4 vs. DPCPX 10 ± 2 hypoxia exposures [P < 0.05]; 10–11 days tolerated – vehicle 10 ± 2 vs. DPCPX 7 ± 2 hypoxia exposures [P < 0.05]). Death in all pups resulted from the inability of gasping to restore cardiovascular function during hypoxia-induced apnea although the mechanism of cardiovascular dysfunction/failure was influenced and the occurrence hastened by DPCPX. Thus, our data provide evidence that adenosine acting via adenosine A1-receptors enhances the ability of rat pups to tolerate repeated exposure to severe hypoxia during early postnatal maturation.
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Affiliation(s)
- James E Fewell
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary Health Sciences Centre Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute for Child and Maternal Health, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
| | - Rongzhi Lun
- Department of Physiology and Pharmacology, Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary Health Sciences Centre Alberta Children's Hospital Research Institute for Child and Maternal Health, Calgary, Alberta, Canada
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Abstract
The invertebrates have adopted a myriad of breathing strategies to facilitate the extraction of adequate quantities of oxygen from their surrounding environments. Their respiratory structures can take a wide variety of forms, including integumentary surfaces, lungs, gills, tracheal systems, and even parallel combinations of these same gas exchange structures. Like their vertebrate counterparts, the invertebrates have evolved elaborate control strategies to regulate their breathing activity. Our goal in this article is to present the reader with a description of what is known regarding the control of breathing in some of the specific invertebrate species that have been used as model systems to study different mechanistic aspects of the control of breathing. We will examine how several species have been used to study fundamental principles of respiratory rhythm generation, central and peripheral chemosensory modulation of breathing, and plasticity in the control of breathing. We will also present the reader with an overview of some of the behavioral and neuronal adaptability that has been extensively documented in these animals. By presenting explicit invertebrate species as model organisms, we will illustrate mechanistic principles that form the neuronal foundation of respiratory control, and moreover appear likely to be conserved across not only invertebrates, but vertebrate species as well.
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Affiliation(s)
- Harold J Bell
- Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care, Department of Medicine, Penn State University, Hershey, Pennsylvania, USA.
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Yang HT, Cummings KJ. Brain stem serotonin protects blood pressure in neonatal rats exposed to episodic anoxia. J Appl Physiol (1985) 2013; 115:1733-41. [PMID: 24136109 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00970.2013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In neonatal rodents, a loss of brain stem serotonin [5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)] in utero or at birth compromises anoxia-induced gasping and the recovery of heart rate (HR) and breathing with reoxygenation (i.e., autoresuscitation). How mean arterial pressure (MAP) is influenced after an acute loss of brain stem 5-HT content is unknown. We hypothesized that a loss of 5-HT for ∼1 day would compromise MAP during episodic anoxia. We injected 6-fluorotryptophan (20 mg/kg ip) into rat pups (postnatal days 9-10 or 11-13, n = 22 treated, 24 control), causing a ∼70% loss of brain stem 5-HT. Pups were exposed to a maximum of 15 anoxic episodes, separated by 5 min of room air to allow autoresuscitation. In younger pups, we measured breathing frequency and tidal volume using "head-out" plethysmography and HR from the electrocardiogram. In older pups, we used whole body plethysmography to detect gasping, while monitoring MAP. Gasp latency and the time required for respiratory, HR, and MAP recovery following each episode were determined. Despite normal gasp latency, breathing frequency and a larger tidal volume (P < 0.001), 5-HT-deficient pups survived one-half the number of episodes as controls (P < 0.001). The anoxia-induced decrease in MAP experienced by 5-HT-deficient pups was double that of controls (P = 0.017), despite the same drop in HR (P = 0.48). MAP recovery was delayed ∼10 s by 5-HT deficiency (P = 0.001). Our data suggest a loss of brain stem 5-HT leads to a pronounced, premature loss of MAP in response to episodic anoxia. These data may help explain why some sudden infant death syndrome cases die from what appears to be cardiovascular collapse during apparent severe hypoxia.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hsiao T Yang
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri
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30
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Chen J, Magnusson J, Karsenty G, Cummings KJ. Time- and age-dependent effects of serotonin on gasping and autoresuscitation in neonatal mice. J Appl Physiol (1985) 2013; 114:1668-76. [PMID: 23558391 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00003.2013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
The role of brain stem serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) in autoresuscitation in neonatal life is unclear. We hypothesized that a specific loss of 5-HT would compromise gasping and autoresuscitation mainly in the second postnatal week and that acute restoration of 5-HT would reverse the defects. We exposed postnatal day (P)4-5, P8-9, and P11-12 tryptophan-hydroxylase-2 knockout (TPH2(-/-)) and wild-type littermates (WT) to 10 episodes of anoxia (97% N2, 3% CO2), measuring survival, gasp latency, gasp frequency (fB), and the time required to restore eupnea and heart rate. We also tested P8-9 TPH2(-/-) mice after restoring 5-HT with a single injection of 5-hydroxytryptophan (5-HTP) 1-2 h before testing or with multiple injections beginning 24 h before testing. At P4-5 and P8-9, but not at P11-12, gasp latency and the recovery of eupnea were delayed ~2- to 3-fold in TPH2(-/-) pups compared with WT (P < 0.001). At all ages, TPH2(-/-) pups displayed reduced gasp fB (~20-30%; P < 0.001) and delayed heart rate recovery (~60%; P = 0.002) compared with WT littermates. TPH2(-/-) survival was reduced compared with WT (P < 0.001), especially at P8-9 and P11-12 (P = 0.004). Whereas 1-2 h of 5-HTP treatment improved the gasp latency and fB of P8-9 TPH2(-/-) pups, improved cardiorespiratory recovery and survival required 24 h of treatment. Our data suggest that 5-HT operates over a long time span (24 h) to improve survival during episodic severe hypoxia. Early in development (P4-9), 5-HT is critical for both respiratory and cardiovascular components of autoresuscitation; later (P11-12), it is critical mainly for cardiovascular components. Nevertheless, the effect of 5-HT deficiency on survival is most striking from P8 to P12.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jianping Chen
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Missouri, Columbia, Missouri 65211, USA
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31
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Abstract
BACKGROUND In neonatal rodents, serotonin (5-HT) neurons are critical for successful autoresuscitation. We hypothesized that caffeine, a respiratory stimulant, would hasten the onset of gasping and improve autoresuscitation in 5-HT-deficient, Pet-1(-/-) mice. METHODS Using a head-out system and electrocardiogram, we measured respiratory and heart rate (HR) responses of Pet-1(-/-) rodents and their littermates during episodic asphyxia at postnatal days 8-9 (P8-9). After a baseline recording, we injected either vehicle or caffeine (i.p.) at doses of 1, 5, or 10 mg/kg. We then induced 10 brief (~30 s) episodes of asphyxia, each interspersed with 5 min of room air to allow autoresuscitation. In addition to measuring survival, we measured the duration of hypoxic apnea (time to initiate gasping) and time to recover eupnea and HR. RESULTS Caffeine had a dose-dependent effect of hastening the onset of gasping, recovery of breathing, and restoration of HR in Pet-1(-/-) (but not in wild-type) rodents, thereby improving survival across asphyxic episodes. Increased survival was strongly correlated with hastened onset of gasping. CONCLUSION Our data suggest that caffeine reduces mortality relating to asphyxia and 5-HT deficiency. These findings may be relevant for efforts to reduce the incidence of sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), given that SIDS is associated with failed autoresuscitation and reduced brainstem 5-HT.
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Toporikova N, Butera RJ. Dynamics of neuromodulatory feedback determines frequency modulation in a reduced respiratory network: a computational study. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2012. [PMID: 23202052 DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2012.11.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/27/2022]
Abstract
Neuromodulators, such as amines and neuropeptides, alter the activity of neurons and neuronal networks. In this work, we investigate how neuromodulators, which activate G(q)-protein second messenger systems, can modulate the bursting frequency of neurons in a critical portion of the respiratory neural network, the pre-Bötzinger complex (preBötC). These neurons are a vital part of the ponto-medullary neuronal network, which generates a stable respiratory rhythm whose frequency is regulated by neuromodulator release from the nearby Raphe nucleus. Using a simulated 50-cell network of excitatory preBötC neurons with a heterogeneous distribution of persistent sodium conductance and Ca(2+), we determined conditions for frequency modulation in such a network by simulating interaction between Raphe and preBötC nuclei. We found that the positive feedback between the Raphe excitability and preBötC activity induces frequency modulation in the preBötC neurons. In addition, the frequency of the respiratory rhythm can be regulated via phasic release of excitatory neuromodulators from the Raphe nucleus. We predict that the application of a G(q) antagonist will eliminate this frequency modulation by the Raphe and keep the network frequency constant and low. In contrast, application of a G(q) agonist will result in a high frequency for all levels of Raphe stimulation. Our modeling results also suggest that high [K(+)] requirement in respiratory brain slice experiments may serve as a compensatory mechanism for low neuromodulatory tone.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia Toporikova
- Department of Biology, Washington and Lee University, Lexington, VA, USA
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33
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Guyenet PG. Loss of brainstem serotonergic neurons impairs autoresuscitation in neonate rats: is this relevant to the sudden infant death syndrome? J Physiol 2012; 589:5343-4. [PMID: 22086249 DOI: 10.1113/jphysiol.2011.221143] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Patrice G Guyenet
- Department of Pharmacology, University of Virginia, Charlottesville, VA 22908, USA.
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34
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Hu H, Brahmbhatt A, Upadhyaya R, Vega D, Hill AA. Prenatal nicotine exposure alters the response of the mouse in vitro respiratory rhythm to hypoxia. Respir Physiol Neurobiol 2012; 181:234-47. [DOI: 10.1016/j.resp.2012.03.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/28/2011] [Revised: 02/28/2012] [Accepted: 03/20/2012] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
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35
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Serotonergic transcriptional networks and potential importance to mental health. Nat Neurosci 2012; 15:519-27. [PMID: 22366757 DOI: 10.1038/nn.3039] [Citation(s) in RCA: 90] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
Transcription regulatory networks governing the genesis, maturation and maintenance of vertebrate brain serotonin (5-HT) neurons determine the level of serotonergic gene expression and signaling throughout an animal's lifespan. Recent studies suggest that alterations in these networks can cause behavioral and physiological pathogenesis in mice. Here, we synthesize findings from vertebrate loss-of-function and gain-of-function studies to build a new model of the transcriptional regulatory networks that specify 5-HT neurons during fetal life, integrate them into CNS circuitry in early postnatal life and maintain them in adulthood. We then describe findings from animal and human genetic studies that support possible alterations in the activity of serotonergic regulatory networks in the etiology of mental illness. We conclude with a discussion of the potential utility of our model, as an experimentally well-defined molecular pathway, to predict and interpret the biological effect of genetic variation that may be discovered in the orthologous human network.
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36
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Cummings KJ, Hewitt JC, Li A, Daubenspeck JA, Nattie EE. Postnatal loss of brainstem serotonin neurones compromises the ability of neonatal rats to survive episodic severe hypoxia. J Physiol 2011; 589:5247-56. [PMID: 21911619 DOI: 10.1113/jphysiol.2011.214445] [Citation(s) in RCA: 56] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022] Open
Abstract
Pet-1(-/-) mice with a prenatal, genetically induced loss of 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT, serotonin) neurones are compromised in their ability to withstand episodic environmental anoxia via autoresuscitation. Given the prenatal role of 5-HT neurones in the development of neural networks, here we ask if a postnatal loss of 5-HT neurones also compromises autoresuscitation. We treated neonatal rat pups at postnatal day (P)2-3 with an intra-cisternal injection of 5,7-dihydroxytryptamine (5,7-DHT; ~40 μg; n = 8) to pharmacologically lesion the 5-HT system, or vehicle (control; n = 14). At P7-10 we exposed unanaesthetized treated and control pups to 15 episodes of environmental anoxia (97% N(2), 3% CO(2)). Medullary 5-HT content was reduced 80% by 5,7-DHT treatment (P < 0.001). Baseline ventilation (V(E)), metabolic rate (V(O(2))), ventilatory equivalent (V(E)/V(O(2))), heart rate (HR), heart rate variability (HRV) and arterial haemoglobin saturation (S(aO(2))) were no different in 5-HT-deficient pups compared to controls. However, only 25% of 5-HT-deficient pups survived all 15 episodes of environmental anoxia, compared to 79% of control littermates (P = 0.007). High mortality of 5,7-DHT-treated pups was associated with delayed onset of gasping (P < 0.001), delayed recovery of HR from hypoxic-induced bradycardia (P < 0.001), and delayed recovery of eupnoea from hypoxic-induced apnoea (P < 0.001). Treatment with 5,7-DHT affected neither the gasping pattern once initiated, nor HR, V(E)/V(O(2)) or S(aO(2)) during the intervening episodes of room air. A significant increase in HRV occurred in all animals with repeated exposure, and in 5-HT-deficient pups this increase occurred immediately prior to death. We conclude that a postnatal loss of brainstem 5-HT content compromises autoresuscitation in response to environmental anoxia. This report provides new evidence in rat pups that 5-HT neurones serve a physiological role in autoresuscitation. Our data may be relevant to understanding the aetiology of the sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS), in which there is medullary 5-HT deficiency and in some cases evidence of severe hypoxia and failed autoresuscitation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J Cummings
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Missouri-Columbia, Columbia, MO 65211, USA.
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37
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Deneris ES. Molecular genetics of mouse serotonin neurons across the lifespan. Neuroscience 2011; 197:17-27. [PMID: 21920412 DOI: 10.1016/j.neuroscience.2011.08.061] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/12/2011] [Revised: 08/25/2011] [Accepted: 08/26/2011] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
New molecular genetics approaches have been developed over the past several years to study brain serotonin (5-HT) neuron development and the roles of 5-HT neurons in behavior and physiology. These approaches were enabled by manipulation of the gene encoding the Pet-1 ETS transcription factor whose expression in the brain is restricted to developing and adult 5-HT neurons. Targeting of the Pet-1 gene led to the development of a mouse line with a severe and stable deficiency of embryonic 5-HT-synthesizing neurons. The Pet-1 transcription regulatory region has been used to create several new 5-HT neuron-type transgenic tools that have greatly increased the experimental accessibility of the small number of brain 5-HT neurons. Permanent and specific marking of 5-HT neurons with Pet-1-based transgenic tools have now been used for flow cytometry, whole cell electrophysiological recordings, progenitor fate mapping, and live time lapse imaging of these neurons. Additional tools provide multiple strategies for conditional temporal targeting of gene expression in 5-HT neurons at different stages of life. Pet-1-based approaches have led to advances in understanding the role of 5-HT neurons in respiration, thermoregulation, emotional behaviors, maternal behavior, and the mechanism of antipsychotic drug actions. In addition, these approaches have begun to reveal the molecular basis of 5-HT neuron heterogeneity and the transcriptional mechanisms that direct 5-HT neuron-type identity, maturation, and maintenance.
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Affiliation(s)
- E S Deneris
- Case Western Reserve University, School of Medicine, Department of Neurosciences, Cleveland, OH 44106, USA.
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38
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Cummings KJ, Commons KG, Hewitt JC, Daubenspeck JA, Li A, Kinney HC, Nattie EE. Failed heart rate recovery at a critical age in 5-HT-deficient mice exposed to episodic anoxia: implications for SIDS. J Appl Physiol (1985) 2011; 111:825-33. [PMID: 21680874 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00336.2011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 63] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Mice deficient in the transcription factor Pet-1⁻/⁻ have a ∼70% deficiency of brainstem serotonin [5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT)] neurons and exhibit spontaneous bradycardias in room air at postnatal day (P)5 and P12 and delayed gasping in response to a single episode of anoxia at P4.5 and P9.5 (Cummings KJ, Li A, Deneris ES, Nattie EE. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 298: R1333-R1342, 2010; and Erickson JT, Sposato BC. J Appl Physiol 106: 1785-1792, 2009). We hypothesized that at a critical age Pet-1⁻/⁻ mice will fail to autoresuscitate during episodic anoxia, ultimately dying from a failure of gasping to restore heart rate (HR). We exposed P5, P8, and P12 Pet-1⁻/⁻ mice and wild-type littermates (WT) to four 30-s episodes of anoxia (97% N₂-3% CO₂), separated by 5 min of room air. We observed excess mortality in Pet-1⁻/⁻ only at P8: 43% of Pet-1⁻/⁻ animals survived past the third episode of anoxia while ∼95% of WT survived all four episodes (P = 0.004). No deaths occurred at P5 and at P12, and one of six Pet-1⁻/⁻ mice died after the fourth episode, while all WT animals survived. At P8, dying Pet-1⁻/⁻ animals had delayed gasping, recovery of HR, and eupnea after the first two episodes of anoxia (P < 0.001 for each); death ultimately occurred when gasping failed to restore HR. Both high- and low-frequency components of HR variability were abnormally elevated in dying Pet-1⁻/⁻ animals following the first episode of anoxia. Dying P8 Pet-1⁻/⁻ animals had significantly fewer 5-HT neurons in the raphe magnus than surviving animals (P < 0.001). Our data indicate a critical developmental window at which a brainstem 5-HT deficiency increases the risk of death during episodes of anoxia. They may apply to the sudden infant death syndrome, which occurs at a critical age and is associated with 5-HT deficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kevin J Cummings
- Department of Physiology and Neurobiology, Dartmouth Medical School, Lebanon, New Hampshire, USA.
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39
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Kinney HC, Broadbelt KG, Haynes RL, Rognum IJ, Paterson DS. The serotonergic anatomy of the developing human medulla oblongata: implications for pediatric disorders of homeostasis. J Chem Neuroanat 2011; 41:182-99. [PMID: 21640183 DOI: 10.1016/j.jchemneu.2011.05.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 48] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/23/2011] [Revised: 04/25/2011] [Accepted: 05/06/2011] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
The caudal serotonergic (5-HT) system is a critical component of a medullary "homeostatic network" that regulates protective responses to metabolic stressors such as hypoxia, hypercapnia, and hyperthermia. We define anatomically the caudal 5-HT system in the human medulla as 5-HT neuronal cell bodies located in the raphé (raphé obscurus, raphé magnus, and raphé pallidus), extra-raphé (gigantocellularis, paragigantocellularis lateralis, intermediate reticular zone, lateral reticular nucleus, and nucleus subtrigeminalis), and ventral surface (arcuate nucleus). These 5-HT neurons are adjacent to all of the respiratory- and autonomic-related nuclei in the medulla where they are positioned to modulate directly the responses of these effector nuclei. In the following review, we highlight the topography and development of the caudal 5-HT system in the human fetus and infant, and its inter-relationships with nicotinic, GABAergic, and cytokine receptors. We also summarize pediatric disorders in early life which we term "developmental serotonopathies" of the caudal (as well as rostral) 5-HT domain and which are associated with homeostatic imbalances. The delineation of the development and organization of the human caudal 5-HT system provides the critical foundation for the neuropathologic elucidation of its disorders directly in the human brain.
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Affiliation(s)
- Hannah C Kinney
- Department of Pathology, Children's Hospital Boston and Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA 02115, United States
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40
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Viemari JC, Garcia AJ, Doi A, Ramirez JM. Activation of alpha-2 noradrenergic receptors is critical for the generation of fictive eupnea and fictive gasping inspiratory activities in mammals in vitro. Eur J Neurosci 2011; 33:2228-37. [PMID: 21615559 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2011.07706.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 31] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
Biogenic amines are not just 'modulators', they are often essential for the execution of behaviors. Here, we explored the role of biogenic amines acting on the pre-Bötzinger complex (pre-BötC), an area located in the ventrolateral medulla which is critical for the generation of different forms of breathing. Isolated in transverse slices from mice, this region continues to spontaneously generate rhythmic activities that resemble normal (eupneic) inspiratory activity in normoxia and gasping in hypoxia. We refer to these as 'fictive eupneic' and 'fictive gasping' activity. When exposed to hypoxia, the pre-BötC transitions from a network state relying on calcium-activated nonspecific cation currents (I(CAN)) and persistent sodium currents (I(Nap)) to one that primarily depends on the I(Nap) current. Here we show that in inspiratory neurons I(Nap)-dependent bursting, blocked by riluzole, but not I(CAN) -dependent bursting, required endogenously released norepinephrine acting on alpha2-noradrenergic receptors (α2-NR). At the network level, fictive eupneic activity persisted while fictive gasping ceased following the blockade of α2-NR. Blockade of α2-NR eliminated fictive gasping even in slice preparations as well as in inspiratory island preparations. Blockade of fictive gasping by α2-NR antagonists was prevented by activation of 5-hydroxytryptamine type 2A receptors (5-HT2A). Our data suggest that gasping depends on the converging aminergic activation of 5-HT2AR and α2-NR acting on riluzole-sensitive mechanisms that have been shown to be crucial for gasping.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jean-Charles Viemari
- Laboratoire Plasticité et Physio-Pathologie de la motricité, CNRS UMR 6196, 31 Chemin Joseph Aiguier, 13402 Marseille Cedex 20, France.
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41
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Pearlstein E, Bras H, Deneris ES, Vinay L. Contribution of 5-HT to locomotion - the paradox of Pet-1(-/-) mice. Eur J Neurosci 2011; 33:1812-22. [PMID: 21501257 DOI: 10.1111/j.1460-9568.2011.07679.x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/06/2023]
Abstract
Serotonin (5-HT) plays a critical role in locomotor pattern generation by modulating the rhythm and the coordinations. Pet-1, a transcription factor selectively expressed in the raphe nuclei, controls the differentiation of 5-HT neurons. Surprisingly, inactivation of Pet-1 (Pet-1(-/-) mice) that causes a 70% reduction in the number of 5-HT-positive neurons in the raphe does not impair locomotion in adult mice. The goal of the present study was to investigate the operation of the locomotor central pattern generator (CPG) in neonatal Pet-1(-/-) mice. We first confirmed, by means of immunohistochemistry, that there is a marked reduction of 5-HT innervation in the lumbar spinal cord of Pet-1(-/-) mice. Fictive locomotion was induced in the in vitro neonatal mouse spinal cord preparation by bath application of N-methyl-d,l-Aspartate (NMA) alone or together with dopamine and 5-HT. A locomotor pattern characterized by left-right and flexor-extensor alternations was observed in both conditions. Increasing the concentration of 5-HT from 0.5 to 5 μm impaired the pattern in Pet-1(-/-) mice. We tested the role of endogenous 5-HT in the NMA-induced fictive locomotion. Application of 5-HT(2) or 5-HT(7) receptor antagonists affected the NMA-induced fictive locomotion in both heterozygous and homozygous mice although the effects were weaker in the latter strain. This may be, at least partly, explained by the reduced expression of 5-HT(2A) R as observed by means of immunohistochemistry. These results suggest that compensatory mechanisms take place in Pet-1(-/-) mice that make locomotion less dependent upon 5-HT.
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Affiliation(s)
- E Pearlstein
- Laboratoire Plasticité et Physio-Pathologie de la Motricité (P3M), CNRS & Université de la Méditerranée, UMR 6196, CNRS, 31 Chemin Joseph Aiguier, F-13402 Marseille Cedex 20, France.
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Leiter JC. Serotonin, gasping, autoresuscitation, and SIDS--a contrarian view. J Appl Physiol (1985) 2009; 106:1761-2. [PMID: 19359615 DOI: 10.1152/japplphysiol.00329.2009] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
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