Distinct neurochemical influences on fMRI response polarity in the striatum.

The striatum, known as the input nucleus of the basal ganglia, is extensively studied for its diverse behavioral roles. However, the relationship between its neuronal and vascular activity, vital for interpreting functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) signals, has not received comprehensive examination within the striatum. Here, we demonstrate that optogenetic stimulation of dorsal striatal neurons or their afferents from various cortical and subcortical regions induces negative striatal fMRI responses in rats, manifesting as vasoconstriction. These responses occur even with heightened striatal neuronal activity, confirmed by electrophysiology and fiber-photometry. In parallel, midbrain dopaminergic neuron optogenetic modulation, coupled with electrochemical measurements, establishes a link between striatal vasodilation and dopamine release. Intriguingly, in vivo intra-striatal pharmacological manipulations during optogenetic stimulation highlight a critical role of opioidergic signaling in generating striatal vasoconstriction. This observation is substantiated by detecting striatal vasoconstriction in brain slices after synthetic opioid application. In humans, manipulations aimed at increasing striatal neuronal activity likewise elicit negative striatal fMRI responses. Our results emphasize the necessity of considering vasoactive neurotransmission alongside neuronal activity when interpreting fMRI signal.

Antipsychotic Behavioral Phenotypes in the Mouse Collaborative Cross Recombinant Inbred Inter-Crosses (RIX).

Schizophrenia is an idiopathic disorder that affects approximately 1% of the human population, and presents with persistent delusions, hallucinations, and disorganized behaviors. Antipsychotics are the standard pharmacological treatment for schizophrenia, but are frequently discontinued by patients due to inefficacy and/or side effects. Chronic treatment with the typical antipsychotic haloperidol causes tardive dyskinesia (TD), which manifests as involuntary and often irreversible orofacial movements in around 30% of patients. Mice treated with haloperidol develop many of the features of TD, including jaw tremors, tongue protrusions, and vacuous chewing movements (VCMs). In this study, we used genetically diverse Collaborative Cross (CC) recombinant inbred inter-cross (RIX) mice to elucidate the genetic basis of antipsychotic-induced adverse drug reactions (ADRs). We performed a battery of behavioral tests in 840 mice from 73 RIX lines (derived from 62 CC strains) treated with haloperidol or placebo in order to monitor the development of ADRs. We used linear mixed models to test for strain and treatment effects. We observed highly significant strain effects for almost all behavioral measurements investigated (P < 0.001). Further, we observed strong strain-by-treatment interactions for most phenotypes, particularly for changes in distance traveled, vertical activity, and extrapyramidal symptoms (EPS). Estimates of overall heritability ranged from 0.21 (change in body weight) to 0.4 (VCMs and change in distance traveled) while the portion attributable to the interactions of treatment and strain ranged from 0.01 (for change in body weight) to 0.15 (for change in EPS). Interestingly, close to 30% of RIX mice exhibited VCMs, a sensitivity to haloperidol exposure, approximately similar to the rate of TD in humans chronically exposed to haloperidol. Understanding the genetic basis for the susceptibility to antipsychotic ADRs may be possible in mouse, and extrapolation to humans could lead to safer therapeutic approaches for schizophrenia.

Characterization of Single Gene Copy Number Variants in Schizophrenia.

BACKGROUND: Genetic studies of schizophrenia have implicated numerous risk loci including several copy number variants (CNVs) of large effect and hundreds of loci of small effect. In only a few cases has a specific gene been clearly identified. Rare CNVs affecting a single gene offer a potential avenue to discovering schizophrenia risk genes. METHODS: CNVs were generated from exome sequencing of 4913 schizophrenia cases and 6188 control subjects from Sweden. We integrated two CNV calling methods (XHMM and ExomeDepth) to expand our set of single-gene CNVs and leveraged two different approaches for validating these variants (quantitative polymerase chain reaction and NanoString). RESULTS: We found a significant excess of all rare CNVs (deletions: p = .0004, duplications: p = .0006) and single-gene CNVs (deletions: p = .04, duplications: p = .03) in schizophrenia cases compared with control subjects. An expanded set of CNVs generated from integrating multiple approaches showed a significant burden of deletions in 11 of 21 gene sets previously implicated in schizophrenia and across all genes in those sets (p = .008), although no tests survived correction. We performed an extensive validation of all deletions in the significant set of voltage-gated calcium channels among CNVs called from both exome sequencing and genotyping arrays. In total, 4 exonic, single-gene deletions were validated in schizophrenia cases and none in control subjects (p = .039), of which all were identified by exome sequencing. CONCLUSIONS: These results point to the potential contribution of single-gene CNVs to schizophrenia, indicate that the utility of exome sequencing for CNV calling has yet to be maximized, and note that single-gene CNVs should be included in gene-focused studies using other classes of variation.

Hip region muscular dystrophy and emergence of motor deficits in dysferlin-deficient Bla/J mice.

The identification of a dysferlin-deficient animal model that accurately displays both the physiological and behavior aspects of human dysferlinopathy is critical for the evaluation of potential therapeutics. Disease progression in dysferlin-deficient mice is relatively mild, compared to the debilitating human disease which manifests in impairment of particular motor functions. Since there are no other known models of dysferlinopathy in other species, locomotor proficiency and muscular anatomy through MRI (both lower leg and hip region) were evaluated in dysferlin-deficient B6.A-Dysfprmd /GeneJ (Bla/J) mice to define disease parameters for therapeutic assessment. Despite the early and progressive gluteal muscle dystrophy and significant fatty acid accumulation, the emergence of significant motor function deficits was apparent at approximately 1 year of age for standard motor challenges including the rotarod, a marble bury test, grip strength, and swimming speed. Earlier observations of decreased performance for Bla/J mice were evident during extended monitoring of overall exploration and rearing activity. Comprehensive treadmill gait analyses of the Bla/J model indicated significant differences in paw placement angles and stance in relation to speed and platform slope. At 18 months of age, there was no significant difference in the life expectancy of Bla/J mice compared to wild type. Consistent with progressive volume loss and fatty acid accumulation in the hip region observed by MRI, mass measurement of individual muscles confirmed gluteal and psoas muscles were the only muscles demonstrating a significant decrease in muscle mass, which is analogous to hip-girdle weakness observed in human dysferlin-deficient patients. Collectively, this longitudinal analysis identifies consistent disease parameters that can be indicators of efficacy in studies developing treatments for human dysferlin deficiency.

The Mouse Universal Genotyping Array: From Substrains to Subspecies.

Genotyping microarrays are an important resource for genetic mapping, population genetics, and monitoring of the genetic integrity of laboratory stocks. We have developed the third generation of the Mouse Universal Genotyping Array (MUGA) series, GigaMUGA, a 143,259-probe Illumina Infinium II array for the house mouse (Mus musculus). The bulk of the content of GigaMUGA is optimized for genetic mapping in the Collaborative Cross and Diversity Outbred populations, and for substrain-level identification of laboratory mice. In addition to 141,090 single nucleotide polymorphism probes, GigaMUGA contains 2006 probes for copy number concentrated in structurally polymorphic regions of the mouse genome. The performance of the array is characterized in a set of 500 high-quality reference samples spanning laboratory inbred strains, recombinant inbred lines, outbred stocks, and wild-caught mice. GigaMUGA is highly informative across a wide range of genetically diverse samples, from laboratory substrains to other Mus species. In addition to describing the content and performance of the array, we provide detailed probe-level annotation and recommendations for quality control.

Analyses of allele-specific gene expression in highly divergent mouse crosses identifies pervasive allelic imbalance.

Complex human traits are influenced by variation in regulatory DNA through mechanisms that are not fully understood. Because regulatory elements are conserved between humans and mice, a thorough annotation of cis regulatory variants in mice could aid in further characterizing these mechanisms. Here we provide a detailed portrait of mouse gene expression across multiple tissues in a three-way diallel. Greater than 80% of mouse genes have cis regulatory variation. Effects from these variants influence complex traits and usually extend to the human ortholog. Further, we estimate that at least one in every thousand SNPs creates a cis regulatory effect. We also observe two types of parent-of-origin effects, including classical imprinting and a new global allelic imbalance in expression favoring the paternal allele. We conclude that, as with humans, pervasive regulatory variation influences complex genetic traits in mice and provide a new resource toward understanding the genetic control of transcription in mammals.

The antipsychotic olanzapine interacts with the gut microbiome to cause weight gain in mouse.

The second-generation antipsychotic olanzapine is effective in reducing psychotic symptoms but can cause extreme weight gain in human patients. We investigated the role of the gut microbiota in this adverse drug effect using a mouse model. First, we used germ-free C57BL/6J mice to demonstrate that gut bacteria are necessary and sufficient for weight gain caused by oral delivery of olanzapine. Second, we surveyed fecal microbiota before, during, and after treatment and found that olanzapine potentiated a shift towards an "obesogenic" bacterial profile. Finally, we demonstrated that olanzapine has antimicrobial activity in vitro against resident enteric bacterial strains. These results collectively provide strong evidence for a mechanism underlying olanzapine-induced weight gain in mouse and a hypothesis for clinical translation in human patients.

Repetitive behavior profile and supersensitivity to amphetamine in the C58/J mouse model of autism.

Restricted repetitive behaviors are core symptoms of autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). The range of symptoms encompassed by the repetitive behavior domain includes lower-order stereotypy and self-injury, and higher-order indices of circumscribed interests and cognitive rigidity. Heterogeneity in clinical ASD profiles suggests that specific manifestations of repetitive behavior reflect differential neuropathology. The present studies utilized a set of phenotyping tasks to determine a repetitive behavior profile for the C58/J mouse strain, a model of ASD core symptoms. In an observational screen, C58/J demonstrated overt motor stereotypy, but not over-grooming, a commonly-used measure for mouse repetitive behavior. Amphetamine did not exacerbate motor stereotypy, but had enhanced stimulant effects on locomotion and rearing in C58/J, compared to C57BL/6J. Both C58/J and Grin1 knockdown mice, another model of ASD-like behavior, had marked deficits in marble-burying. In a nose poke task for higher-order repetitive behavior, C58/J had reduced holeboard exploration and preference for non-social, versus social, olfactory stimuli, but did not demonstrate cognitive rigidity following familiarization to an appetitive stimulus. Analysis of available high-density genotype data indicated specific regions of divergence between C58/J and two highly-sociable strains with common genetic lineage. Strain genome comparisons identified autism candidate genes, including Cntnap2 and Slc6a4, located within regions divergent in C58/J. However, Grin1, Nlgn1, Sapap3, and Slitrk5, genes linked to repetitive over-grooming, were not in regions of divergence. These studies suggest that specific repetitive phenotypes can be used to distinguish ASD mouse models, with implications for divergent underlying mechanisms for different repetitive behavior profiles.

Prosocial effects of oxytocin in two mouse models of autism spectrum disorders.

Clinical evidence suggests that oxytocin treatment improves social deficits and repetitive behavior in autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). However, the neuropeptide has a short plasma half-life and poor ability to penetrate the blood-brain barrier. In order to facilitate the development of more bioavailable oxytocinergic compounds as therapeutics to treat core ASD symptoms, small animal models must be validated for preclinical screens. This study examined the preclinical utility of two inbred mouse strains, BALB/cByJ and C58/J, that exhibit phenotypes relevant to core ASD symptoms. Mice from both strains were intraperitoneally administered oxytocin, using either acute or sub-chronic regimens. Acute oxytocin did not increase sociability in BALB/cByJ; however, sub-chronic oxytocin had significant prosocial effects in both BALB/cByJ and C58/J. Increased sociability was observed 24 h following the final oxytocin dose in BALB/cByJ, while prosocial effects of oxytocin emerged 1-2 weeks post-treatment in C58/J. Furthermore, acute oxytocin decreased motor stereotypy in C58/J and did not induce hypoactivity or anxiolytic-like effects in an open field test. This study demonstrates that oxytocin administration can attenuate social deficits and repetitive behavior in mouse models of ASD, dependent on dose regimen and genotype. These findings provide validation of the BALB/cByJ and C58/J models as useful platforms for screening novel drugs for intervention in ASDs and for elucidating the mechanisms contributing to the prosocial effects of oxytocin.

Behavioral deficits in an Angelman syndrome model: effects of genetic background and age.

Angelman syndrome (AS) is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder associated with disruption of maternally inherited UBE3A (ubiquitin protein ligase E3A) expression. At the present time, there is no effective treatment for AS. Mouse lines with loss of maternal Ube3a (Ube3a(m-/p+)) recapitulate multiple aspects of the clinical AS profile, including impaired motor coordination, learning deficits, and seizures. Thus, these genetic mouse models could serve as behavioral screens for preclinical efficacy testing, a critical component of drug discovery for AS intervention. However, the severity and consistency of abnormal phenotypes reported in Ube3a(m-/p+) mice can vary, dependent upon age and background strain, which is problematic for the detection of beneficial drug effects. As part of an ongoing AS drug discovery initiative, we characterized Ube3a(m-/p+) mice on either a 129S7/SvEvBrd-Hprt(b-m2) (129) or C57BL/6J (B6) background across a range of functional domains and ages to identify reproducible and sufficiently large phenotypes suitable for screening therapeutic compounds. The results from the study showed that Ube3a(m-/p+) mice have significant deficits in acquisition and reversal learning in the Morris water maze. The findings also demonstrated that Ube3a(m-/p+) mice exhibit motor impairment in a rotarod task, hypoactivity, reduced rearing and marble-burying, and deficient fear conditioning. Overall, these profiles of abnormal phenotypes can provide behavioral targets for evaluating effects of novel therapeutic strategies relevant to AS.

A Gαs DREADD mouse for selective modulation of cAMP production in striatopallidal neurons.

Here, we describe a newly generated transgenic mouse in which the Gs DREADD (rM3Ds), an engineered G protein-coupled receptor, is selectively expressed in striatopallidal medium spiny neurons (MSNs). We first show that in vitro, rM3Ds can couple to Gαolf and induce cAMP accumulation in cultured neurons and HEK-T cells. The rM3Ds was then selectively and stably expressed in striatopallidal neurons by creating a transgenic mouse in which an adenosine2A (adora2a) receptor-containing bacterial artificial chromosome was employed to drive rM3Ds expression. In the adora2A-rM3Ds mouse, activation of rM3Ds by clozapine-N-oxide (CNO) induces DARPP-32 phosphorylation, consistent with the known consequence of activation of endogenous striatal Gαs-coupled GPCRs. We then tested whether CNO administration would produce behavioral responses associated with striatopallidal Gs signaling and in this regard CNO dose-dependently decreases spontaneous locomotor activity and inhibits novelty induced locomotor activity. Last, we show that CNO prevented behavioral sensitization to amphetamine and increased AMPAR/NMDAR ratios in transgene-expressing neurons of the nucleus accumbens shell. These studies demonstrate the utility of adora2a-rM3Ds transgenic mice for the selective and noninvasive modulation of Gαs signaling in specific neuronal populations in vivo.This unique tool provides a new resource for elucidating the roles of striatopallidal MSN Gαs signaling in other neurobehavioral contexts.

Disruption of social approach by MK-801, amphetamine, and fluoxetine in adolescent C57BL/6J mice.

Autism is a severe neurodevelopmental disorder, diagnosed on the basis of core behavioral symptoms. Although the mechanistic basis for the disorder is not yet known, genetic analyses have suggested a role for abnormal excitatory/inhibitory signaling systems in brain, including dysregulation of glutamatergic neurotransmission. In mice, the constitutive knockdown of NMDA receptors leads to social deficits, repetitive behavior, and self-injurious responses that reflect aspects of the autism clinical profile. However, social phenotypes differ with age: mice with reduced NMDA-receptor function exhibit hypersociability in adolescence, but markedly deficient sociability in adulthood. The present studies determined whether acute disruption of NMDA neurotransmission leads to exaggerated social approach, similar to that observed with constitutive disruption, in adolescent C57BL/6J mice. The effects of MK-801, an NMDA receptor antagonist, were compared with amphetamine, a dopamine agonist, and fluoxetine, a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor, on performance in a three-chamber choice task. Results showed that acute treatment with MK-801 led to social approach deficits at doses without effects on entry numbers. Amphetamine also decreased social preference, but increased number of entries at every dose. Fluoxetine (10 mg/kg) had selective effects on social novelty preference. Withdrawal from a chronic ethanol regimen decreased activity, but did not attenuate sociability. Low doses of MK-801 and amphetamine were also evaluated in a marble-burying assay for repetitive behavior. MK-801, at a dose that did not disrupt sociability or alter entries, led to a profound reduction in marble-burying. Overall, these findings demonstrate that moderate alteration of NMDA, dopamine, or serotonin function can attenuate social preference in wild type mice.

Remote control of neuronal activity in transgenic mice expressing evolved G protein-coupled receptors.

Examining the behavioral consequences of selective CNS neuronal activation is a powerful tool for elucidating mammalian brain function in health and disease. Newly developed genetic, pharmacological, and optical tools allow activation of neurons with exquisite spatiotemporal resolution; however, the inaccessibility to light of widely distributed neuronal populations and the invasiveness required for activation by light or infused ligands limit the utility of these methods. To overcome these barriers, we created transgenic mice expressing an evolved G protein-coupled receptor (hM3Dq) selectively activated by the pharmacologically inert, orally bioavailable drug clozapine-N-oxide (CNO). Here, we expressed hM3Dq in forebrain principal neurons. Local field potential and single-neuron recordings revealed that peripheral administration of CNO activated hippocampal neurons selectively in hM3Dq-expressing mice. Behavioral correlates of neuronal activation included increased locomotion, stereotypy, and limbic seizures. These results demonstrate a powerful chemical-genetic tool for remotely controlling the activity of discrete populations of neurons in vivo.

Impaired sociability and cognitive function in Nrcam-null mice.

NRCAM (Neuronal Cell Adhesion Molecule) has an important role in axonal guidance and the organization of neural circuitry during brain development. Association analyses in human populations have identified NRCAM as a candidate gene for autism susceptibility. In the present study, we evaluated Nrcam-null mice for sociability, social novelty preference, and reversal learning as a model for the social deficits, repetitive behavior, and cognitive rigidity characteristic of autism. Prepulse inhibition of acoustic startle responses was also measured, to reflect sensorimotor-gating deficits in autism spectrum disorders. Assays for anxiety-like behavior in an elevated plus maze and open field, motor coordination, and olfactory ability in a buried food test were conducted to provide control measures for the interpretation of results. Overall, the loss of Nrcam led to behavioral alterations in sociability, acquisition of a spatial task, and reversal learning, dependent on sex. In comparison to male wild type mice, male Nrcam-null mutants had significantly decreased sociability in a three-chambered choice task. Low sociability in the male null mutants was not associated with changes in anxiety-like behavior, activity, or motor coordination. Male, but not female, Nrcam-null mice had small decreases in prepulse inhibition. Nrcam deficiency in female mice led to impaired acquisition of spatial learning in the Morris water maze task. Reversal learning deficits were observed in both male and female Nrcam-null mice. These results provide evidence that NRCAM mediates domains of function relevant to symptoms observed in autism.

Deficient NRG1-ERBB signaling alters social approach: relevance to genetic mouse models of schizophrenia.

Growth factor Neuregulin 1 (NRG1) plays an essential role in development and organization of the cerebral cortex. NRG1 and its receptors, ERBB3 and ERBB4, have been implicated in genetic susceptibility for schizophrenia. Disease symptoms include asociality and altered social interaction. To investigate the role of NRG1-ERBB signaling in social behavior, mice heterozygous for an Nrg1 null allele (Nrg1+/-), and mice with conditional ablation of Erbb3 or Erbb4 in the central nervous system, were evaluated for sociability and social novelty preference in a three-chambered choice task. Results showed that deficiencies in NRG1 or ERBB3 significantly enhanced sociability. All of the mutant groups demonstrated a lack of social novelty preference, in contrast to their respective wild-type controls. Effects of NRG1, ERBB3, or ERBB4 deficiency on social behavior could not be attributed to general changes in anxiety-like behavior, activity, or loss of olfactory ability. Nrg1+/- pups did not exhibit changes in isolation-induced ultrasonic vocalizations, a measure of emotional reactivity. Overall, these findings provide evidence that social behavior is mediated by NRG1-ERBB signaling.

Social approach and repetitive behavior in eleven inbred mouse strains.

Core symptoms of autism include deficits in social interaction, impaired communication, and restricted, repetitive behaviors. The repetitive behavior domain encompasses abnormal motoric stereotypy, an inflexible insistence on sameness, and resistance to change. In recent years, many genetic mouse models of autism and related disorders have been developed, based on candidate genes for disease susceptibility. The present studies are part of an ongoing initiative to develop appropriate behavioral tasks for the evaluation of mouse models relevant to autism. We have previously reported profiles for sociability, preference for social novelty, and resistance to changes in a learned pattern of behavior, as well as other functional domains, for 10 inbred mouse strains of divergent genetic backgrounds. The present studies extend this multi-component behavioral characterization to several additional strains: C58/J, NOD/LtJ, NZB/B1NJ, PL/J, SJL/J, SWR/J, and the wild-derived PERA/EiJ. C58/J, NOD/LtJ, NZB/B1NJ, SJL/J, and PERA/EiJ demonstrated low sociability, measured by time spent in proximity to an unfamiliar conspecific, with 30-60% of mice from these strains showing social avoidance. In the Morris water maze, NZB/B1NJ had a persistent bias for the quadrant where the hidden platform was located during acquisition, even after 9 days of reversal training. A particularly interesting profile was found for C58/J, which had low social preference, poor performance in the T-maze, and overt motoric stereotypy. Overall, this set of tasks and observational methods provides a strategy for evaluating novel mouse models in behavioral domains relevant to the autism phenotype.

Development of a mouse test for repetitive, restricted behaviors: relevance to autism.

Repetitive behavior, a core symptom of autism, encompasses stereotyped responses, restricted interests, and resistance to change. These studies investigated whether different components of the repetitive behavior domain could be modeled in the exploratory hole-board task in mice. Four inbred mouse strains, C57BL/6J, BALB/cByJ, BTBR T+tf/J, and FVB/NJ, and mice with reduced expression of Grin1, leading to NMDA receptor hypofunction (NR1neo/neo mice), were tested for exploration and preference for olfactory stimuli in an activity chamber with a 16-hole floor-board. Reduced exploration and high preference for holes located in the corners of the chamber were observed in BALB/cByJ and BTBR T+tf/J mice. All inbred strains had initial high preference for a familiar olfactory stimulus (clean cage bedding). BTBR T+tf/J was the only strain that did not demonstrate a shift in hole preference towards an appetitive olfactory stimulus (cereal or a chocolate chip), following home cage exposure to the food. The NR1neo/neo mice showed lower hole selectivity and aberrant olfactory stimulus preference, in comparison to wildtype controls. The results indicate that NR1neo/neo mice have repetitive nose poke responses that are less modified by environmental contingencies than responses in wildtype mice. 25-30% of NMDA receptor hypomorphic mice also show self-injurious responses. Findings from the olfactory studies suggest that resistance to change and restricted interests might be modeled in mice by a failure to alter patterns of hole preference following familiarization with an appetitive stimulus, and by high preference persistently demonstrated for one particular olfactory stimulus. Further work is required to determine the characteristics of optimal mouse social stimuli in the olfactory hole-board test.