Ketogenic diet administration later in life improves memory by modifying the synaptic cortical proteome via the PKA signaling pathway in aging mice.

Aging compromises brain function leading to cognitive decline. A cyclic ketogenic diet (KD) improves memory in aged mice after long-term administration; however, short-term effects later in life and the molecular mechanisms that govern such changes remain unclear. Here, we explore the impact of a short-term KD treatment starting at elderly stage on brain function of aged mice. Behavioral testing and long-term potentiation (LTP) recordings reveal that KD improves working memory and hippocampal LTP. Furthermore, the synaptosome proteome of aged mice fed a KD long-term evidence changes predominantly at the presynaptic compartment associated to the protein kinase A (PKA) signaling pathway. These findings were corroborated in vivo by western blot analysis, with high BDNF abundance and PKA substrate phosphorylation. Overall, we show that a KD modifies brain function even when it is administered later in life and recapitulates molecular features of long-term administration, including the PKA signaling pathway, thus promoting synaptic plasticity at advanced age.

Mature iPSC-derived astrocytes of an ALS/FTD patient carrying the TDP43A90V mutation display a mild reactive state and release polyP toxic to motoneurons.

Astrocytes play a critical role in the maintenance of a healthy central nervous system and astrocyte dysfunction has been implicated in various neurodegenerative disorders, including amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). There is compelling evidence that mouse and human ALS and ALS/FTD astrocytes can reduce the number of healthy wild-type motoneurons (MNs) in co-cultures or after treatment with astrocyte conditioned media (ACM), independently of their genotype. A growing number of studies have shown that soluble toxic factor(s) in the ACM cause non-cell autonomous MN death, including our recent identification of inorganic polyphosphate (polyP) that is excessively released from mouse primary astrocytes (SOD1, TARDBP, and C9ORF72) and human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSC)-derived astrocytes (TARDBP) to kill MNs. However, others have reported that astrocytes carrying mutant TDP43 do not produce detectable MN toxicity. This controversy is likely to arise from the findings that human iPSC-derived astrocytes exhibit a rather immature and/or reactive phenotype in a number of studies. Here, we have succeeded in generating a highly homogenous population of functional quiescent mature astrocytes from control subject iPSCs. Using identical conditions, we also generated mature astrocytes from an ALS/FTD patient carrying the TDP43A90V mutation. These mutant TDP43 patient-derived astrocytes exhibit key pathological hallmarks, including enhanced cytoplasmic TDP-43 and polyP levels. Additionally, mutant TDP43 astrocytes displayed a mild reactive signature and an aberrant function as they were unable to promote synaptogenesis of hippocampal neurons. The polyP-dependent neurotoxic nature of the TDP43A90V mutation was further confirmed as neutralization of polyP in ACM derived from mutant TDP43 astrocytes prevented MN death. Our results establish that human astrocytes carrying the TDP43A90V mutation exhibit a cell-autonomous pathological signature, hence providing an experimental model to decipher the molecular mechanisms underlying the generation of the neurotoxic phenotype.

Prenatal fluoxetine impairs non-hippocampal but not hippocampal memory in adult male rat offspring.

Fluoxetine is often prescribed to treat depression during pregnancy. Rodent studies have shown that fluoxetine exposure during early development can induce persistent changes in the emotional behavior of the offspring. However, the effects of prenatal fluoxetine on memory have not been elucidated. This study evaluates the memory of adult male offspring from rat dams orally administered with a clinically relevant dose of 0.7 mg/kg fluoxetine from 9 weeks before pregnancy to 1 week before delivery. Hippocampal-dependent (Morris Water Maze, MWM) and non-hippocampal-dependent (Novel Object Recognition, NOR) memory paradigms were assessed. Anxiety- and depressive-like symptoms were also evaluated using the Open Field Test, Tail Suspension Test and Sucrose Preference Test. Male rats exposed to fluoxetine during gestation displayed NOR memory impairments during adulthood, as well as increased anxiety- and depressive-like symptoms. In the MWM, the offspring of fluoxetine-treated dams did not show learning deficits. However, a retention impairment was found on remote memory, 15 days after the end of training. Molecular analyses showed increased expression of NMDA subunit NR2B, and a decrease in NR2A-to- NR2B ratio in the temporal cortex, but not in the hippocampus, suggesting changes in NMDA receptor composition. These results suggest that in utero exposure to fluoxetine induces detrimental effects on non-hippocampal memory and in remote retention of hippocampal-dependent memory, which is believed to be stored in the temporal cortex, possibly due to changes in cortical NMDA receptor subunit stoichiometry. The present results warrant the need for studies on potential remote memory deficits in human offspring exposed to fluoxetine in utero.

Widespread loss of the silencing epigenetic mark H3K9me3 in astrocytes and neurons along with hippocampal-dependent cognitive impairment in C9orf72 BAC transgenic mice.

BACKGROUND: Hexanucleotide repeat expansions of the G4C2 motif in a non-coding region of the C9ORF72 gene are the most common genetic cause of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) and frontotemporal dementia (FTD). Tissues from C9ALS/FTD patients and from mouse models of ALS show RNA foci, dipeptide-repeat proteins, and notably, widespread alterations in the transcriptome. Epigenetic processes regulate gene expression without changing DNA sequences and therefore could account for the altered transcriptome profiles in C9ALS/FTD; here, we explore whether the critical repressive marks H3K9me2 and H3K9me3 are altered in a recently developed C9ALS/FTD BAC mouse model (C9BAC). RESULTS: Chromocenters that constitute pericentric constitutive heterochromatin were visualized as DAPI- or Nucblue-dense foci in nuclei. Cultured C9BAC astrocytes exhibited a reduced staining signal for H3K9me3 (but not for H3K9me2) at chromocenters that was accompanied by a marked decline in the global nuclear level of this mark. Similar depletion of H3K9me3 at chromocenters was detected in astrocytes and neurons of the spinal cord, motor cortex, and hippocampus of C9BAC mice. The alterations of H3K9me3 in the hippocampus of C9BAC mice led us to identify previously undetected neuronal loss in CA1, CA3, and dentate gyrus, as well as hippocampal-dependent cognitive deficits. CONCLUSIONS: Our data indicate that a loss of the repressive mark H3K9me3 in astrocytes and neurons in the central nervous system of C9BAC mice represents a signature during neurodegeneration and memory deficit of C9ALS/FTD.

Chronic Fluoxetine Treatment Induces Maturation-Compatible Changes in the Dendritic Arbor and in Synaptic Responses in the Auditory Cortex.

Fluoxetine is a selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) used to treat mood and anxiety disorders. Chronic treatment with this antidepressant drug is thought to favor functional recovery by promoting structural and molecular changes in several forebrain areas. At the synaptic level, chronic fluoxetine induces an increased size and density of dendritic spines and an increased ratio of GluN2A over GluN2B N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptor subunits. The "maturation"-promoting molecular changes observed after chronic fluoxetine should also induce structural remodeling of the neuronal dendritic arbor and changes in the synaptic responses. We treated adult rats with fluoxetine (0.7 mg/kg i.p. for 28 days) and performed a morphometric analysis using Golgi stain in limbic and nonlimbic cortical areas. Then, we focused especially on the auditory cortex, where we evaluated the dendritic morphology of pyramidal neurons using a 3-dimensional reconstruction of neurons expressing mRFP after in utero electroporation. With both methodologies, a shortening and decreased complexity of the dendritic arbors was observed, which is compatible with an increased GluN2A over GluN2B ratio. Recordings of extracellular excitatory postsynaptic potentials in the auditory cortex revealed an increased synaptic response after fluoxetine and were consistent with an enrichment of GluN2A-containing NMDA receptors. Our results confirm that fluoxetine favors maturation and refinement of extensive cortical networks, including the auditory cortex. The fluoxetine-induced receptor switch may decrease GluN2B-dependent toxicity and thus could be applied in the future to treat neurodegenerative brain disorders characterized by glutamate toxicity and/or by an aberrant network connectivity.

Superoxide generation via the NR2B-NMDAR/RasGRF1/NOX2 pathway promotes dendritogenesis.

N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors (NMDARs) that contain the NR2A and NR2B subunits play a critical role in neuronal plasticity and dendritogenesis. Gain-and-loss-of function studies indicate that NR2B, but not NR2A, promotes dendritic branching. Accumulating evidence indicates that stimulation of NMDARs activates NADPH oxidase (NOX2), thereby generating superoxide. However, the molecular underpinnings of this process are not understood. RasGRF1, a guanine nucleotide exchange factor, is key for several forms of neuronal plasticity and interacts directly with the tail of NR2B. We investigated whether the NR2B-NMDAR/RasGRF1 pathway regulates the activity of NOX2 and whether superoxide production is required for dendritogenesis. We measured superoxide production in developing primary cultures of hippocampal neurons from 3 to 25 days in vitro (DIV) with the probe dihydroethidium (dHE). We found the highest dHE levels at early and intermediate developmental stages (3-15 DIV), when the NR2B-NMDAR expression is abundant. During these early/intermediate developmental stages, but not in mature neurons (>15 DIV), NMDAR activity is required for superoxide production. We also found that disrupting the NR2B-RasGRF1 interaction led to reduced dHE fluorescence intensity and moreover inhibited dendritic branching in hippocampal neurons. Together, our data indicate that superoxide production is induced by the NR2B-NMDARs/RasGRF1/NOX2 pathway and promotes dendritogenesis.

PSD95 regulates morphological development of adult-born granule neurons in the mouse hippocampus.

In the adult hippocampus new neurons are generated in the dentate gyrus from neural progenitor cells. Adult-born neurons integrate into the hippocampal circuitry and contribute to hippocampal function. PSD95 is a major postsynaptic scaffold protein that is crucial for morphological maturation and synaptic development of hippocampal neurons. Here we study the function of PSD95 in adult hippocampal neurogenesis by downregulating PSD95 expression in newborn cells using retroviral-mediated RNA interference. Retroviruses coding for a control shRNA or an shRNA targeting PSD95 (shPSD95) were stereotaxically injected into the dorsal dentate gyrus of 2-month-old C57BL/6 mice. PSD95 knockdown did not affect neuronal differentiation of newborn cells into neurons, or migration of newborn neurons into the granule cell layer. Morphological analysis revealed that newborn neurons expressing shPSD95 showed increased dendritic length and increased number of high-order dendrites. Concomitantly, dendrites from shPSD95-expressing newborn granule neurons showed a reduction in the density of dendritic spines. These results suggest that PSD95 is required for proper dendritic and spine maturation of adult-born neurons, but not for early stages of neurogenesis in the hippocampus.

Epigenetic editing of the Dlg4/PSD95 gene improves cognition in aged and Alzheimer's disease mice.

The Dlg4 gene encodes for post-synaptic density protein 95 (PSD95), a major synaptic protein that clusters glutamate receptors and is critical for plasticity. PSD95 levels are diminished in ageing and neurodegenerative disorders, including Alzheimer's disease and Huntington's disease. The epigenetic mechanisms that (dys)regulate transcription of Dlg4/PSD95, or other plasticity genes, are largely unknown, limiting the development of targeted epigenome therapy. We analysed the Dlg4/PSD95 epigenetic landscape in hippocampal tissue and designed a Dlg4/PSD95 gene-targeting strategy: a Dlg4/PSD95 zinc finger DNA-binding domain was engineered and fused to effector domains to either repress (G9a, Suvdel76, SKD) or activate (VP64) transcription, generating artificial transcription factors or epigenetic editors (methylating H3K9). These epi-editors altered critical histone marks and subsequently Dlg4/PSD95 expression, which, importantly, impacted several hippocampal neuron plasticity processes. Intriguingly, transduction of the artificial transcription factor PSD95-VP64 rescued memory deficits in aged and Alzheimer's disease mice. Conclusively, this work validates PSD95 as a key player in memory and establishes epigenetic editing as a potential therapy to treat human neurological disorders.

In Vivo Sub-chronic Treatment with Dichlorvos in Young Rats Promotes Synaptic Plasticity and Learning by a Mechanism that Involves Acylpeptide Hydrolase Instead of Acetylcholinesterase Inhibition. Correlation with Endogenous ß-Amyloid Levels.

Acylpeptide hydrolase (APEH) is a serine hydrolase that displays two catalytic activities, acting both as an exopeptidase toward short N-acylated peptides and as an endopeptidase toward oxidized peptides or proteins. It has been demonstrated that this enzyme can degrade monomers, dimers, and trimers of the Aß1-40 peptide in the conditioned media of neuroblastoma cells. In a previous report, we showed that the specific inhibition of this enzyme by the organophosphate molecule dichlorvos (DDVP) triggers an enhancement of long-term potentiation in rat hippocampal slices. In this study, we demonstrate that the same effect can be accomplished in vivo by sub-chronic treatment of young rats with a low dose of DDVP (0.1 mg/kg). Besides exhibiting a significant enhancement of LTP, the treated animals also showed improvements in parameters of spatial learning and memory. Interestingly, higher doses of DDVP such as 2 mg/kg did not prove to be beneficial for synaptic plasticity or behavior. Due to the fact that at 2 mg/kg we observed inhibition of both APEH and acetylcholinesterase, we interpret that in order to achieve positive effects on the measured parameters only APEH inhibition should be obtained. The treatment with both DDVP doses produced an increase in the endogenous concentration of Aß1-40, although this was statistically significant only at the dose of 0.1 mg/kg. We propose that APEH represents an interesting pharmacological target for cognitive enhancement, acting through the modulation of the endogenous concentration of Aß1-40.

NMDA receptor subunit composition controls dendritogenesis of hippocampal neurons through CAMKII, CREB-P, and H3K27ac.

Dendrite arbor growth, or dendritogenesis, is choreographed by a diverse set of cues, including the NMDA receptor (NMDAR) subunits NR2A and NR2B. While NR1NR2B receptors are predominantly expressed in immature neurons and promote plasticity, NR1NR2A receptors are mainly expressed in mature neurons and induce circuit stability. How the different subunits regulate these processes is unclear, but this is likely related to the presence of their distinct C-terminal sequences that couple different signaling proteins. Calcium-calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) is an interesting candidate as this protein can be activated by calcium influx through NMDARs. CaMKII triggers a series of biochemical signaling cascades, involving the phosphorylation of diverse targets. Among them, the activation of cAMP response element-binding protein (CREB-P) pathway triggers a plasticity-specific transcriptional program through unknown epigenetic mechanisms. Here, we found that dendritogenesis in hippocampal neurons is impaired by several well-characterized constructs (i.e., NR2B-RS/QD) and peptides (i.e., tatCN21) that specifically interfere with the recruitment and interaction of CaMKII with the NR2B C-terminal domain. Interestingly, we found that transduction of NR2AΔIN, a mutant NR2A construct with increased interaction to CaMKII, reactivates dendritogenesis in mature hippocampal neurons in vitro and in vivo. To gain insights into the signaling and epigenetic mechanisms underlying NMDAR-mediated dendritogenesis, we used immunofluorescence staining to detect CREB-P and acetylated lysine 27 of histone H3 (H3K27ac), an activation-associated histone tail mark. In contrast to control mature neurons, our data shows that activation of the NMDAR/CaMKII/ERK-P/CREB-P signaling axis in neurons expressing NR2AΔIN is not correlated with increased nuclear H3K27ac levels.

Interfering of the Reelin/ApoER2/PSD95 Signaling Axis Reactivates Dendritogenesis of Mature Hippocampal Neurons.

Reelin, an extracellular glycoprotein secreted in embryonic and adult brain, participates in neuronal migration and neuronal plasticity. Extensive evidence shows that reelin via activation of the ApoER2 and VLDLR receptors promotes dendrite and spine formation during early development. Further evidence suggests that reelin signaling is needed to maintain a stable architecture in mature neurons, but, direct evidence is lacking. During activity-dependent maturation of the neuronal circuitry, the synaptic protein PSD95 is inserted into the postsynaptic membrane to induce structural refinement and stability of spines and dendrites. Given that ApoER2 interacts with PSD95, we tested if reelin signaling interference in adult neurons reactivates the dendritic architecture. Unlike findings in developing cultures, the presently obtained in vitro and in vivo data show, for the first time, that reelin signaling interference robustly increase dendritogenesis and reduce spine density in mature hippocampal neurons. In particular, the expression of a mutant ApoER2 form (ApoER2-tailless), which is unable to interact with PSD95 and hence cannot transduce reelin signaling, resulted in robust dendritogenesis in mature hippocampal neurons in vitro. These results indicate that reelin/ApoER2/PSD95 signaling is important for neuronal structure maintenance in mature neurons. Mechanistically, obtained immunofluorescent data indicate that reelin signaling impairment reduced synaptic PSD95 levels, consequently leading to synaptic re-insertion of NR2B-NMDARs. Our findings underscore the importance of reelin in maintaining adult network stability and reveal a new mode for reactivating dendritogenesis in neurological disorders where dendritic arbor complexity is limited, such as in depression, Alzheimer's disease, and stroke. J. Cell. Physiol. 232: 1187-1199, 2017. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

Reactive oxygen species trigger motoneuron death in non-cell-autonomous models of ALS through activation of c-Abl signaling.

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a fatal neurodegenerative disease in which pathogenesis and death of motor neurons are triggered by non-cell-autonomous mechanisms. We showed earlier that exposing primary rat spinal cord cultures to conditioned media derived from primary mouse astrocyte conditioned media (ACM) that express human SOD1(G93A) (ACM-hSOD1(G93A)) quickly enhances Nav channel-mediated excitability and calcium influx, generates intracellular reactive oxygen species (ROS), and leads to death of motoneurons within days. Here we examined the role of mitochondrial structure and physiology and of the activation of c-Abl, a tyrosine kinase that induces apoptosis. We show that ACM-hSOD1(G93A), but not ACM-hSOD1(WT), increases c-Abl activity in motoneurons, interneurons and glial cells, starting at 60 min; the c-Abl inhibitor STI571 (imatinib) prevents this ACM-hSOD1(G93A)-mediated motoneuron death. Interestingly, similar results were obtained with ACM derived from astrocytes expressing SOD1(G86R) or TDP43(A315T). We further find that co-application of ACM-SOD1(G93A) with blockers of Nav channels (spermidine, mexiletine, or riluzole) or anti-oxidants (Trolox, esculetin, or tiron) effectively prevent c-Abl activation and motoneuron death. In addition, ACM-SOD1(G93A) induces alterations in the morphology of neuronal mitochondria that are related with their membrane depolarization. Finally, we find that blocking the opening of the mitochondrial permeability transition pore with cyclosporine A, or inhibiting mitochondrial calcium uptake with Ru360, reduces ROS production and c-Abl activation. Together, our data point to a sequence of events in which a toxic factor(s) released by ALS-expressing astrocytes rapidly induces hyper-excitability, which in turn increases calcium influx and affects mitochondrial structure and physiology. ROS production, mediated at least in part through mitochondrial alterations, trigger c-Abl signaling and lead to motoneuron death.

Two Chronic Stress Models Based on Movement Restriction in Rats Respond Selectively to Antidepressant Drugs: Aldolase C As a Potential Biomarker.

BACKGROUND: Clinically depressed individuals respond to different types of antidepressants, suggesting that different neurobiological mechanisms may be responsible for their depression. However, animal models to characterize this are not yet available. METHODS: We induced depressive-like behaviors in rats using 2 different chronic stress models: restraint in small cages or immobilization in adaptable plastic cones. Both models increased anxiety responses evaluated by novelty-suppressed feeding and the elevated plus-maze; increased learned helplessness evaluated by the tail suspension and forced swimming tests; and increased anhedonia evaluated by the sucrose preference test. RESULTS: We assessed the ability of 2 different types of antidepressants to ameliorate depressive-like behaviors. We administered the serotonin reuptake inhibitor fluoxetine or the noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor reboxetine once daily for 28 days to rats that received either chronic restraint or immobilization stress, or no stress. Behavioral analysis revealed that fluoxetine ameliorated depressive-like behaviors when induced by chronic restraint stress, whereas reboxetine ameliorated these behaviors when induced by chronic immobilization stress. To further test biological differences between both models, we evaluated the levels of Aldolase C, an enzyme expressed by forebrain astrocytes that is regulated by antidepressant treatment, in the cerebrospinal fluid: chronic restraint stress, but not immobilization stress, increased the levels of Aldolase C. Moreover, the presence of astrocyte-derived Aldolase C-GFP in the cerebrospinal fluid indicates its central origin. CONCLUSIONS: Two stress paradigms induced depressive-like behaviors that were sensitive to different antidepressant treatments. Biomarkers such as Aldolase C could help determine optimal antidepressant treatments for clinically depressed patients.

Pathogenicity of lupus anti-ribosomal P antibodies: role of cross-reacting neuronal surface P antigen in glutamatergic transmission and plasticity in a mouse model.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether autoantibodies against ribosomal P (anti-P), which are possibly pathogenic in neuropsychiatric systemic lupus erythematosus (NPSLE), alter glutamatergic synaptic transmission and to what extent the cross-reacting neuronal surface P antigen (NSPA) is involved. METHODS: We analyzed glutamatergic transmission and long-term potentiation (LTP) mediated by AMPA receptor (AMPAR) and N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) by field excitatory postsynaptic potential (EPSP) at the CA3-CA1 synapse. AMPAR activation by patch-clamp recordings in primary ventral spinal cord neurons was analyzed. In primary hippocampal neurons, NSPA distribution was assessed by double immunofluorescence, and intracellular calcium changes were evaluated using Fura-2 AM. NSPA-LacZ reporter-knockin mice expressing a truncated NSPA were used to assess NSPA expression pattern and function in the brain using ß-galactosidase staining and comparative electrophysiology, calcium responses, and water maze memory tests. RESULTS: NSPA was expressed in the brain in hippocampal CA1, dentate gyrus and ventral, but not dorsal, CA3 regions, encompassing postsynaptic regions and partial colocalization with NMDAR. Notably, NSPA-LacZ reporter-knockin mice showed impaired memory, and decreased NMDAR activity and LTP, with neurons insensitive to anti-P autoantibodies. Anti-P autoantibodies enhanced CA1 postsynaptic transmission, increasing AMPAR and NMDAR activity and leading to LTP abrogation after prolonged (20-minute) incubation. CONCLUSION: Our findings indicate that the neuronal cell surface target of anti-P, NSPA, is involved in glutamatergic synaptic transmission and plasticity related to memory in the hippocampus, and mediates the deleterious effects of anti-P on these processes. Cognitive impairment, as well as other diffuse NPSLE manifestations, may develop when anti-P autoantibodies have access to brain regions coexpressing NSPA, AMPAR, and NMDAR.

Long-term fluoxetine treatment induces input-specific LTP and LTD impairment and structural plasticity in the CA1 hippocampal subfield.

Antidepressant drugs are usually administered for several weeks for the treatment of major depressive disorder. However, they are also prescribed in several additional psychiatric conditions as well as during long-term maintenance treatments. Antidepressants induce adaptive changes in several forebrain structures which include modifications at glutamatergic synapses. We recently found that repetitive administration of the selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor (SSRI) fluoxetine to naïve adult male rats induced an increase of mature, mushroom-type dendritic spines in several forebrain regions. This was associated with an increase of GluA2-containing α-amino-3-hydroxy-5-methylisoxazole-4-propionate receptors (AMPA-Rs) in telencephalic postsynaptic densities. To unravel the functional significance of such a synaptic re-arrangement, we focused on glutamate neurotransmission in the hippocampus. We evaluated the effect of four weeks of 0.7 mg/kg fluoxetine on long-term potentiation (LTP) and long-term depression (LTD) in the CA1 hippocampal subfield. Recordings in hippocampal slices revealed profound deficits in LTP and LTD at Schaffer collateral-CA1 synapses associated to increased spine density and enhanced presence of mushroom-type spines, as revealed by Golgi staining. However, the same treatment had neither an effect on spine morphology, nor on LTP and LTD at perforant path-CA1 synapses. Cobalt staining and immunohistochemical experiments revealed decreased AMPA-R Ca(2+) permeability in the stratum radiatum (s.r.) together with increased GluA2-containing Ca(2+) impermeable AMPA-Rs. Therefore, 4 weeks of fluoxetine treatment promoted structural and functional adaptations in CA1 neurons in a pathway-specific manner that were selectively associated with impairment of activity-dependent plasticity at Schaffer collateral-CA1 synapses.

Repetitive fluoxetine treatment affects long-term memories but not learning.

Fluoxetine is currently being administered for long-term maintenance and for prophylactic reasons following the remission of depressive symptoms and several other psychiatric and neurological conditions. We have previously found that in naïve adult male rats, repetitive administration of fluoxetine induced maturation of telencephalic dendritic spines. This finding was associated with the presence of a higher proportion of GluA2- and GluN2A-containing glutamate receptors. To gain further insight into the possible consequences of such synaptic re-organization on learning and memory processes, we evaluated hippocampal- and non-hippocampal-dependent memories following administration of 0.7 mg/kg fluoxetine for four weeks. Standard behavioral tasks were used: the Morris Water Maze (MWM) and Object Location Memory (OLM) tasks to assess spatial memory and the Novel Object Recognition (NOR) task to assess recognition memory. We found that treated rats showed normal learning and short-term memory (1 h post-learning). However, either recent (24 h) or remote (17 days) memories were impaired depending upon the task. Interestingly, spatial memory impairment spontaneously reverted after 6 weeks of fluoxetine withdrawal.

Status epilepticus induces region-specific changes in dendritic spines, dendritic length and TrkB protein content of rat brain cortex.

Induction of status epilepticus (SE) with kainic acid results in a large reorganization of neuronal brain circuits, a phenomenon that has been studied primarily in the hippocampus. The neurotrophin BDNF, by acting through its receptor TrkB, has been implicated in such reorganization. In the present work we investigated, by Western blot and immunohistochemistry, whether regional changes of TrkB expression within the rat brain cortex are correlated with altered neuronal morphology and/or with apoptotic cell death. We found that the full-length TrkB protein decreased within the cortex when measured 24 h to 1 week after induction of SE. Analysis by immunohistochemistry revealed that TrkB staining diminished within layer V of the retrosplenial granular b (RSGb) and motor cortices, but not within the auditory cortex. In layer II/III, differential changes were also observed: TrkB decreased in the motor cortex, did not change within the RSGb but increased within the auditory cortex. Reduced TrkB was associated with dendritic atrophy and decreased spine density in pyramidal neurons within layer V of the RSGb. No correlation was observed between regional and cellular changes of TrkB protein and apoptosis, measured by the TdT-mediated dUTP nick end labeling (TUNEL) method. The global decrease of TrkB within the neocortex and the associated dendritic atrophy may counteract seizure propagation in the epileptic brain but may also underlie cognitive impairment after seizures.

Somatostatin inhibition of fictive respiration is modulated by pH.

We studied the respiratory effects of the tetradecapeptide somatostatin (SST) upon fictive respiration using the in vitro brain stem spinal cord preparation from new-born mouse. We found that SST inhibits respiration, an effect that was potentiated when the chemical drive to respiration was increased. SST inhibited fictive respiration decreasing both the frequency and amplitude in a dose-dependent way. SST inhibition was not antagonized by cyclosomatostatin (cyclo [7-aminoheptanoyl-Phe-D-Trp-Lys-Thr(Bzl)]), a putative SST antagonist, which in contrast behaved as a partial agonist. When the chemical drive to respiration was increased, by lowering the pH of the brain stem superfusion medium from 7.4 to 7.3, the inhibitory effect of SST on respiratory frequency was potentiated. These results suggest an interaction between SST and respiratory central chemoreception in new-born mouse.

In vitro approach to the chemical drive of breathing

Since its introduction two decades ago, the isolated brain stem-spinal cord preparation of neonatal rodents has been the preferred method used to reveal the mystery underlying the genesis of the respiratory rhythm. Little research using this in vitro approach has focused on the study of the central respiratory chemosensitivity. Some unexpected findings obtained with the brain stem-spinal cord preparation have added new questions that challenge our previous theoretic framework. Some of these findings are addressed here.