GABAA receptor modulation of temperature sensitive neurons in the diagonal band of Broca in vitro

Several regions of the brain, including the horizontal limb of the diagonal band of Broca (HDB), contain neurons that are responsive to changes in local temperature. These neurons are hypothesized to participate in thermoregulation and sleep-wake control. The HDB contains a large number of gamma-aminobutyric acid (GABA) terminals, and it has many neurons that utilize GABA as a neurotransmitter. Therefore, in this study we characterized the in vitro effects of the GABAA receptor agonist muscimol (0.5, 0.25, 0.1 and 0.0625 microM doses) and the GABAA receptor antagonist bicuculline (3.0 and 1.0 microM doses) on the firing rate and thermosensitivity of HDB neurons. Of the 51 neurons recorded in a submerged slice chamber, 53% were warm sensitive, 45% were temperature insensitive and 2% were cold sensitive. All neurons exposed to bath applied muscimol exhibited reductions in both firing rate and thermosensitivity. Muscimol induced reductions were maintained for at least 20 min after washout. Neurons exposed to bicuculline had no change in firing rate or thermosensitivity. However, after bicuculline washout there were reductions in both firing rate and thermosensitivity. These findings support the hypothesis that GABAA receptor induced inhibition of HDB thermosensitive neurons can modulate both thermoregulation and sleep-wake control.

Motoneuron development after deafferentation: II. dorsal rhizotomy does not block estrogen-supported growth in the dorsolateral nucleus (DLN)

The lumbar spinal cord of the rat contains two sexually dimorphic motor nuclei, the spinal nucleus of the bulbocavernosus (SNB) and the dorsolateral nucleus (DLN). Postnatally, SNB and DLN motoneurons grow substantially and reach their adult morphology by 7 weeks of age. The masculinization of SNB and DLN motoneuron dendrites depends upon steroid hormones. After early castration, the growth of SNB and DLN dendrites is markedly attenuated, but testosterone replacement restores this growth. In the SNB, initial dendritic growth is also supported in castrates treated with estrogen. By using castration and hormone replacement techniques, we examined the development of DLN motoneuron morphology in estrogen-treated castrated rats to determine if estrogen also supports the growth of DLN motoneurons. In addition, given that dorsal root ganglia may be a site of estrogen action, we tested the hypothesis that estrogen acts at primary afferents to support DLN dendritic growth. Thus, we attempted to block the potential trophic effect of estrogen by performing unilateral dorsal rhizotomies in estrogen-treated castrates. DLN motoneuron morphology was analyzed at 4 and 7 weeks of age by using cholera toxin horseradish peroxidase (BHRP) histochemistry. As found for SNB motoneurons, estrogen treatment transiently supported development. DLN motoneurons in estrogen-treated castrates developed normally through 4 weeks of age, but by 7 weeks, DLN motoneuron morphology in estrogen-treated castrates was no longer different from that in oil-treated castrates. Moreover, deafferentation via unilateral dorsal rhizotomy did not inhibit estrogen's ability to masculinize the early development of DLN motoneurons. Thus, the trophic effect of estrogen did not appear to act via the dorsal root ganglia to support the early postnatal development of DLN motoneurons.

Induction of obesity by group housing in female Syrian hamsters

We examined the effects of group housing on body weight in adult female Syrian hamsters. Over a 10-week period, female hamsters housed in groups of 5 per cage increased their body weight by 61% compared with an 18% increase in body weight for female hamsters housed individually. The divergence in body weight between females housed in groups and females housed individually was evident as early as 2 weeks after the start of the experiment. At the end of the 10 weeks, group-housed females were significantly longer, had a higher percentage of body fat, and larger adrenal glands compared with these measures from individually housed hamsters. These results demonstrate that housing conditions can have a powerful effect on body weight and body composition in female Syrian hamsters. These effects are discussed in the context of social stress mediating obesity in Syrian hamsters, and offer the possibility for a socially based animal model of obesity.