Chemokine ligand 28 (CCL28) negatively regulates trabecular bone mass by suppressing osteoblast and osteoclast activities.

INTRODUCTION: Bone metabolism imbalances cause bone metabolism diseases, like osteoporosis, through aging. Although some chemokines are known to be involved in bone mass regulation, many have not been investigated. Thus, the present study aimed to investigate the role of chemokine ligand 28 (CCL28) on bone metabolism. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To investigate the role of CCL28 on bone metabolism, 10-week-old male wild-type and Ccl28 knockout (Ccl28 KO) mice were analyzed. Microcomputed tomography analysis and bone tissue morphometry were used to investigate the effect of Ccl28 deficiency on the bone. CCL28 localization in bone tissue was assumed by immunohistochemistry. Osteoblast and osteoclast markers were evaluated by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and quantitative reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction. Finally, in vitro experiments using MC3T3-E1 and bone marrow macrophages revealed the direct effect of CCL28 on osteoblast and osteoclast. RESULTS: This study showed that Ccl28 deficiency significantly increased bone mass and the number of mature osteoblasts. Immunoreactivity for CCL28 was observed in osteoblasts and osteoclasts on bone tissue. Additionally, Ccl28 deficiency promoted osteoblast and osteoclast maturation. Moreover, CCL28 treatment decreased osteoblast and osteoclast activities but did not affect differentiation. CONCLUSION: In summary, this study indicated that CCL28 is one of the negative regulators of bone mass by suppressing osteoblast and osteoclast activities. These results provide important insights into bone immunology and the selection of new osteoporosis treatments.

Pup exposure facilitates retrieving behavior via the oxytocin neural system in female mice.

Parental behavior in mammals is innate, but it is also facilitated by social experience, specifically social interactions between the parent and infant. Social interactions with infants also induce the alloparental behavior of virgin animals. Oxytocin (OT) plays an important role in mediating alloparental behavior. Although parental behavior is modulated by the medial preoptic area (MPOA) and adjacent regions, it is unclear how OT acts in these regions as a control mechanism of alloparental behavior promoted by adult-pup interaction. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of OT for facilitating effects of adult-pup interactions on alloparental behavior via neural activity of preoptic area (POA), including MPOA and adjacent area. For this purpose, we conducted behavioral tests and examined the neural activity of the OT system in POA. Virgin female mice that were repeatedly exposed to pups showed shorter retrieving latencies and higher number of c-Fos expressing neurons in POA, particular in lateral preoptic area (LPO) compared to control animals that were exposed to pups only one time. In addition, repeated pup exposure increased the proportion of OT neurons and OTR neurons expressing c-Fos in POA. The concentration of OT also significantly increased in the POA. Finally, infusion of an OT antagonist into the POA area blocked the facilitating effects of repeated pup exposure on retrieving behavior. These results demonstrated that the facilitating effects of repeated pup exposure on alloparental behavior occurred via an organizational role of the OT system.

Caspr3-Deficient Mice Exhibit Low Motor Learning during the Early Phase of the Accelerated Rotarod Task.

Caspr3 (Contactin-associated protein-like 3, Cntnap3) is a neural cell adhesion molecule belonging to the Caspr family. We have recently shown that Caspr3 is expressed abundantly between the first and second postnatal weeks in the mouse basal ganglia, including the striatum, external segment of the globus pallidus, subthalamic nucleus, and substantia nigra. However, its physiological role remains largely unknown. In this study, we conducted a series of behavioral analyses on Capsr3-knockout (KO) mice and equivalent wild-type (WT) mice to investigate the role of Caspr3 in brain function. No significant differences were observed in most behavioral traits between Caspr3-KO and WT mice, but we found that Caspr3-KO mice performed poorly during the early phase of the accelerated rotarod task in which latency to falling off a rod rotating with increasing velocity was examined. In the late phase, the performance of the Caspr3-KO mice caught up to the level of WT mice, suggesting that the deletion of Caspr3 caused a delay in motor learning. We then examined changes in neural activity after training on the accelerated rotarod by conducting immunohistochemistry using antibody to c-Fos, an indirect marker for neuronal activity. Experience of the accelerated rotarod task caused increases in the number of c-Fos-positive cells in the dorsal striatum, cerebellum, and motor cortex in both Caspr3-KO and WT mice, but the number of c-Fos-positive cells was significantly lower in the dorsal striatum of Caspr3-KO mice than in that of WT mice. The expression of c-Fos in the ventral striatum of Caspr3-KO and WT mice was not altered by the training. Our findings suggest that reduced activation of neural cells in the dorsal striatum in Caspr3-KO mice leads to a decline in motor learning in the accelerated rotarod task.

Cell adhesion molecule contactin-associated protein 3 is expressed in the mouse basal ganglia during early postnatal stages.

Cell adhesion molecules play important roles in the development of the nervous system. Among the contactin-associated protein (Caspr; also known as Cntnap) family, which belongs to the neurexin superfamily of proteins, Caspr and Caspr2 are indispensable for the formation and maintenance of myelinated nerves. In contrast, a physiological role for Caspr3 remains to be elucidated. This study examines the expression and localization of Caspr3 in the mouse brain using newly generated Caspr3 antibodies. Caspr3 was expressed abundantly between the first and the second postnatal weeks. During this period, Caspr3 was localized especially to the basal ganglia, including the striatum, external segment of the globus pallidus, and substantia nigra, and no gross abnormalities were apparent in the basal ganglia of Caspr3 knockout mice. In the striatum, Caspr3 was expressed by a subpopulation of medium spiny neurons that constitute the direct and indirect pathways. Caspr3 immunostaining was observed as punctate around the cell bodies as well as in the soma. These Caspr3 signals did not, however, overlap with those of synaptic markers. Our findings suggest that Caspr3 may play an important role in basal ganglia development during early postnatal stages.