Articles

Genomic copy number variation analysis in multiple system atrophy

Genomic variation includes single-nucleotide variants, small insertions or deletions (indels), and copy number variants (CNVs). CNVs affect gene expression by altering the genome structure and transposable ele...

Authors: Yuka Hama, Masataka Katsu, Ichigaku Takigawa, Ichiro Yabe, Masaaki Matsushima, Ikuko Takahashi, Takayuki Katayama, Jun Utsumi and Hidenao Sasaki

Oxidative stress and cellular pathologies in Parkinson’s disease

Parkinson’s disease (PD) is a chronic and progressive neurodegeneration of dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra. The reason for the death of these neurons is unclear; however, studies have demonstrated the...

Authors: Lesly Puspita, Sun Young Chung and Jae-won Shim

Tanshinone I alleviates motor and cognitive impairments via suppressing oxidative stress in the neonatal rats after hypoxic-ischemic brain damage

Neonatal hypoxia-ischemia is one of the main reasons that cause neuronal damage and neonatal death. Several studies have shown that tanshinone I (TsI), one of the major ingredients of Danshen, exerts potential...

Authors: Chunfang Dai, Yannan Liu and Zhifang Dong

Direct interaction with 14–3-3γ promotes surface expression of Best1 channel in astrocyte

Bestrophin-1 (Best1) is a calcium-activated anion channel (CAAC) that is expressed broadly in mammalian tissues including the brain. We have previously reported that Best1 is expressed in hippocampal astrocyte...

Authors: Soo-Jin Oh, Junsung Woo, Young-Sun Lee, Minhee Cho, Eunju Kim, Nam-Chul Cho, Jae-Yong Park, Ae Nim Pae, C. Justin Lee and Eun Mi Hwang

Mechanistic target of rapamycin is necessary for changes in dendritic spine morphology associated with long-term potentiation

Alterations in the strength of excitatory synapses in the hippocampus is believed to serve a vital function in the storage and recall of new information in the mammalian brain. These alterations involve the re...

Authors: Fredrick E. Henry, William Hockeimer, Alex Chen, Shreesh P. Mysore and Michael A. Sutton

Light/dark phase-dependent spontaneous activity is maintained in dopamine-deficient mice

Dopamine is important for motor control and involved in the regulation of circadian rhythm. We previously found that dopamine-deficient (DD) mice became hyperactive in a novel environment 72 h after the last i...

Authors: Masayo Fujita, Yoko Hagino, Taishi Takeda, Shinya Kasai, Miho Tanaka, Yukio Takamatsu, Kazuto Kobayashi and Kazutaka Ikeda

Correction to: Leucine-Rich Repeat Kinase 2 (LRRK2) phosphorylates p53 and induces p21^WAF1/CIP1 expression

Authors: Dong Hwan Ho, Hyejung Kim, Jisun Kim, Hyuna Sim, Hyunjun Ahn, Janghwan Kim, Hyemyung Seo, Kwang Chul Chung, Bum-Joon Park, Ilhong Son and Wongi Seol

Abnormalities in perineuronal nets and behavior in mice lacking CSGalNAcT1, a key enzyme in chondroitin sulfate synthesis

Chondroitin sulfate (CS) is an important glycosaminoglycan and is mainly found in the extracellular matrix as CS proteoglycans. In the brain, CS proteoglycans are highly concentrated in perineuronal nets (PNNs...

Authors: Nozomu Yoshioka, Shinji Miyata, Atsushi Tamada, Yumi Watanabe, Asami Kawasaki, Hiroshi Kitagawa, Keizo Takao, Tsuyoshi Miyakawa, Kosei Takeuchi and Michihiro Igarashi

Novel miR-b2122 regulates several ALS-related RNA-binding proteins

Common pathological features of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) include cytoplasmic aggregation of several RNA-binding proteins. Out of these RNA-binding proteins, TDP-43, FUS/TLS and RGNEF have been shown...

Authors: Zachary C. E. Hawley, Danae Campos-Melo and Michael J. Strong

Role of GABA_A receptors in alcohol use disorders suggested by chronic intermittent ethanol (CIE) rodent model

GABAergic inhibitory transmission is involved in the acute and chronic effects of ethanol on the brain and behavior. One-dose ethanol exposure induces transient plastic changes in GABA_A receptor subunit levels, c...

Authors: Richard W. Olsen and Jing Liang

General anesthetics protects against cardiac arrest-induced brain injury by inhibiting calcium wave propagation in zebrafish

Cardiac arrest is a leading cause of death and disability worldwide. Although many victims are initially resuscitated, they often suffer from serious brain injury, even leading to a “persistent vegetative stat...

Authors: Dao-jie Xu, Bin Wang, Xuan Zhao, Yi Zheng, Jiu-lin Du and Ying-wei Wang

The DLGAP family: neuronal expression, function and role in brain disorders

The neurotransmitter glutamate facilitates neuronal signalling at excitatory synapses. Glutamate is released from the presynaptic membrane into the synaptic cleft. Across the synaptic cleft glutamate binds to ...

Authors: Andreas H. Rasmussen, Hanne B. Rasmussen and Asli Silahtaroglu

Suppression of cortical seizures by optic stimulation of the reticular thalamus in PV-mhChR2-YFP BAC transgenic mice

Deep brain stimulation in thalamic regions has been proposed as a treatment for epilepsy. The electrical current excites thalamocortical activity which is controlled by γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA)ergic interneu...

Authors: Wei Jen Chang, Wei Pang Chang and Bai Chuang Shyu

The ERM protein Moesin is essential for neuronal morphogenesis and long-term memory in Drosophila

Moesin is a cytoskeletal adaptor protein that plays an important role in modification of the actin cytoskeleton. Rearrangement of the actin cytoskeleton drives both neuronal morphogenesis and the structural ch...

Authors: Patrick S. Freymuth and Helen L. Fitzsimons

HIV-associated synaptic degeneration

Human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection induces neuronal injuries, with almost 50% of infected individuals developing HIV-associated neurocognitive disorders (HAND). Although highly activate antiretrovira...

Authors: Wenjuan Ru and Shao-Jun Tang

Genetic deletion of mGlu2 metabotropic glutamate receptors improves the short-term outcome of cerebral transient focal ischemia

We have recently shown that pharmacological blockade of mGlu2 metabotropic glutamate receptors protects vulnerable neurons in the 4-vessel occlusion model of transient global ischemia, whereas receptor activat...

Authors: Federica Mastroiacovo, Slavianka Moyanova, Milena Cannella, Anderson Gaglione, Remy Verhaeghe, Giovanna Bozza, Michele Madonna, Marta Motolese, Anna Traficante, Barbara Riozzi, Valeria Bruno, Giuseppe Battaglia, David Lodge and Ferdinando Nicoletti

The novel cannabinoid receptor GPR55 mediates anxiolytic-like effects in the medial orbital cortex of mice with acute stress

The G protein-coupled receptor 55 (GPR55) is a novel cannabinoid receptor, whose exact role in anxiety remains unknown. The present study was conducted to explore the possible mechanisms by which GPR55 regulat...

Authors: Qi-xin Shi, Liu-kun Yang, Wen-long Shi, Lu Wang, Shi-meng Zhou, Shao-yu Guan, Ming-gao Zhao and Qi Yang

A T-type channel-calmodulin complex triggers αCaMKII activation

Calmodulin (CaM) is an important signaling molecule that regulates a vast array of cellular functions by activating second messengers involved in cell function and plasticity. Low voltage-activated calcium cha...

Authors: Hadhimulya Asmara, Ileana Micu, Arsalan P. Rizwan, Giriraj Sahu, Brett A. Simms, Fang-Xiong Zhang, Jordan D. T. Engbers, Peter K. Stys, Gerald W. Zamponi and Ray W. Turner

An iTRAQ-based proteomic analysis reveals dysregulation of neocortical synaptopodin in Lewy body dementias

Lewy body dementias are the second most common cause of neurodegenerative dementia in the elderly after Alzheimer’s disease (AD). The two clinical subgroups of Lewy body dementias, namely, dementia with Lewy b...

Authors: Arnab Datta, Yuek Ling Chai, Jing Min Tan, Jasinda H. Lee, Paul T. Francis, Christopher P. Chen, Siu Kwan Sze and Mitchell K. P. Lai

The role of melatonin in the onset and progression of type 3 diabetes

Alzheimer’s disease (AD) is defined by the excessive accumulation of toxic peptides, such as beta amyloid (Aβ) plaques and intracellular neurofibrillary tangles (NFT). The risk factors associated with AD inclu...

Authors: Juhyun Song, Daniel J. Whitcomb and Byeong C. Kim

Increased biological activity of protein Kinase C gamma is not required in Spinocerebellar ataxia 14

Spinocerebellar ataxia (SCA) is an autosomal dominant neurodegenerative disorder characterized by slowly progressive cerebellar dysfunction. Currently, 42 SCA types are known, some of which are caused by CAG r...

Authors: Etsuko Shimobayashi and Josef P. Kapfhammer

Neuroscience in the third dimension: shedding new light on the brain with tissue clearing

For centuries analyses of tissues have depended on sectioning methods. Recent developments of tissue clearing techniques have now opened a segway from studying tissues in 2 dimensions to 3 dimensions. This par...

Authors: Robin J. Vigouroux, Morgane Belle and Alain Chédotal

O-GlcNAc regulation of autophagy and α-synuclein homeostasis; implications for Parkinson’s disease

Post-translational modification on protein Ser/Thr residues by O-linked attachment of ß-N-acetyl-glucosamine (O-GlcNAcylation) is a key mechanism integrating redox signaling, metabolism and stress responses. O...

Authors: Willayat Y. Wani, Xiaosen Ouyang, Gloria A. Benavides, Matthew Redmann, Stacey S. Cofield, John J. Shacka, John C. Chatham, Victor Darley-Usmar and Jianhua Zhang

Optimizing reproducibility of operant testing through reinforcer standardization: identification of key nutritional constituents determining reward strength in touchscreens

Reliable and reproducible assessment of animal learning and behavior is a central aim of basic and translational neuroscience research. Recent developments in automated operant chamber technology have led to t...

Authors: Eun Woo Kim, Benjamin U. Phillips, Christopher J. Heath, So Yeon Cho, Hyunjeong Kim, Jemeen Sreedharan, Ho-Taek Song, Jong Eun Lee, Timothy J. Bussey, Chul Hoon Kim, Eosu Kim and Lisa M. Saksida

SRF modulates seizure occurrence, activity induced gene transcription and hippocampal circuit reorganization in the mouse pilocarpine epilepsy model

A hallmark of temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is hippocampal neuronal demise and aberrant mossy fiber sprouting. In addition, unrestrained neuronal activity in TLE patients induces gene expression including immed...

Authors: Pascal Lösing, Cristina Elena Niturad, Merle Harrer, Christopher Meyer zu Reckendorf, Theresa Schatz, Daniela Sinske, Holger Lerche, Snezana Maljevic and Bernd Knöll

Mechano growth factor, a splice variant of IGF-1, promotes neurogenesis in the aging mouse brain

Mechano growth factor (MGF) is a splice variant of IGF-1 first described in skeletal muscle. MGF induces muscle cell proliferation in response to muscle stress and injury. In control mice we found endogenous e...

Authors: Jason J. Tang, Jewel L. Podratz, Miranda Lange, Heidi J. Scrable, Mi-Hyeon Jang and Anthony J. Windebank

Abnormal circadian oscillation of hippocampal MAPK activity and power spectrums in NF1 mutant mice

Studies have implied that the circadian oscillation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signal pathways is crucial for hippocampus-dependent memory. NF1 mouse models (Nf1 heterozygous null mutants; Nf1 ...

Authors: Lei Chen, Tatiana Serdyuk, Beimeng Yang, Shuai Wang, Shiqing Chen, Xixia Chu, Xu Zhang, Jinjing Song, Hechen Bao, Chengbin Zhou, Xiang Wang, Shuangle Dong, Lulu Song, Fujun Chen, Guang He, Lin He…

The role of 5-HT receptors in depression

Depression is a polygenic and highly complex psychiatric disorder that remains a major burden on society. Antidepressants, such as selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs), are some of the most commonly...

Authors: Christine N. Yohn, Mark M. Gergues and Benjamin Adam Samuels

Heme molecule functions as an endogenous agonist of astrocyte TLR2 to contribute to secondary brain damage after intracerebral hemorrhage

Toll-like receptor 2 (TLR2) was recently shown to contribute to secondary brain damage after intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), although the molecular mechanisms of this contribution are elusive. In this study, w...

Authors: Hyunjung Min, Boomin Choi, Yong Ho Jang, Ik-Hyun Cho and Sung Joong Lee

Synaptoimmunology - roles in health and disease

Mounting evidence suggests that the nervous and immune systems are intricately linked. Many proteins first identified in the immune system have since been detected at synapses, playing different roles in norma...

Authors: Robert Nisticò, Eric Salter, Celine Nicolas, Marco Feligioni, Dalila Mango, Zuner A. Bortolotto, Pierre Gressens, Graham L. Collingridge and Stephane Peineau

An updated assessment of microglia depletion: current concepts and future directions

Microglia are the principal resident immune cells in the central nervous system and are believed to be versatile players in both inflammatory and physiological contexts. On the one hand, in order to safeguard ...

Authors: Jinming Han, Robert A. Harris and Xing-Mei Zhang

Ketamine-induced apoptosis in the mouse cerebral cortex follows similar characteristic of physiological apoptosis and can be regulated by neuronal activity

The effects of general anesthetics on inducing neuronal apoptosis during early brain development are well-documented. However, since physiological apoptosis also occurs during this developmental window, it is ...

Authors: Qi Wang, Feng-yan Shen, Rong Zou, Jing-jing Zheng, Xiang Yu and Ying-wei Wang

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis patient iPSC-derived astrocytes impair autophagy via non-cell autonomous mechanisms

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a devastating neurodegenerative disease, is characterized by the progressive loss of motor neurons and the accumulation of misfolded protein aggregates. The latter suggests impai...

Authors: Martin Madill, Katya McDonagh, Jun Ma, Alice Vajda, Paul McLoughlin, Timothy O’Brien, Orla Hardiman and Sanbing Shen

Characterization of serotonin-induced inhibition of excitatory synaptic transmission in the anterior cingulate cortex

Excitatory synaptic transmission in central synapses is modulated by serotonin (5-HT). The anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) is an important cortical region for pain perception and emotion. ACC neurons receive i...

Authors: Zhen Tian, Manabu Yamanaka, Matteo Bernabucci, Ming-gao Zhao and Min Zhuo

TREM2 protects against cerebral ischemia/reperfusion injury

Although post-ischemic inflammation induced by the innate immune response is considered an essential step in the progression of cerebral ischemia injury, the role of triggering receptor expressed on myeloid ce...

Authors: Rong Wu, Xiangpen Li, Pengfei Xu, Likui Huang, Jinping Cheng, Xiaolong Huang, Jingru Jiang, Long-Jun Wu and Yamei Tang

ApoE isoforms differentially regulates cleavage and secretion of BDNF

Apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) is a major genetic risk factor for sporadic or late onset Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is decreased by 3 to 4-fold in the brains of AD patients a...

Authors: Abhik Sen, Thomas J. Nelson and Daniel L. Alkon

Propagation of Tau aggregates

Since 2009, evidence has accumulated to suggest that Tau aggregates form first in a small number of brain cells, from where they propagate to other regions, resulting in neurodegeneration and disease. Propagat...

Authors: Michel Goedert and Maria Grazia Spillantini

Turtle interacts with borderless in regulating glial extension and axon ensheathment

Proper recognition between axons and glial processes is required for the establishment of axon ensheathment in the developing nervous system. Recent studies have begun to reveal molecular events underlying dev...

Authors: Yixu Chen, Scott Cameron, Wen-Tzu Chang and Yong Rao

Cortical kainate receptors and behavioral anxiety

The study of glutamatergic synapses mainly focuses on the memory-related hippocampus. Recent studies in the cortical areas such as the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) show that excitatory synapses can undergo ...

Authors: Min Zhuo

Targeting metabotropic glutamate receptors for novel treatments of schizophrenia

Support for the N-methyl-d-aspartate receptor (NMDAR) hypofunction hypothesis of schizophrenia has led to increasing focus on restoring proper glutamatergic signaling as an approach for treatment of this devastat...

Authors: James Maksymetz, Sean P. Moran and P. Jeffrey Conn

Modeling environmental risk factors of autism in mice induces IBD-related gut microbial dysbiosis and hyperserotonemia

Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) is a range of neurodevelopmental conditions that are sharply increasing in prevalence worldwide. Intriguingly, ASD is often accompanied by an array of systemic aberrations includ...

Authors: Joon Seo Lim, Mi Young Lim, Yongbin Choi and GwangPyo Ko

Absence of neurological abnormalities in mice homozygous for the Polr3a G672E hypomyelinating leukodystrophy mutation

Recessive mutations in the ubiquitously expressed POLR3A gene cause one of the most frequent forms of childhood-onset hypomyelinating leukodystrophy (HLD): POLR3-HLD. POLR3A encodes the largest subunit of RNA Pol...

Authors: Karine Choquet, Sharon Yang, Robyn D. Moir, Diane Forget, Roxanne Larivière, Annie Bouchard, Christian Poitras, Nicolas Sgarioto, Marie-Josée Dicaire, Forough Noohi, Timothy E. Kennedy, Joseph Rochford, Geneviève Bernard, Martin Teichmann, Benoit Coulombe, Ian M. Willis…

Glucocorticoid receptor represses brain-derived neurotrophic factor expression in neuron-like cells

Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is involved in many functions such as neuronal growth, survival, synaptic plasticity and memorization. Altered expression levels are associated with many pathological s...

Authors: Hui Chen, Marc Lombès and Damien Le Menuet

Neuroligin 3 R451C mutation alters electroencephalography spectral activity in an animal model of autism spectrum disorders

Human studies demonstrate that sleep impairment is a concurrent comorbidity of autism spectrum disorders (ASD), but its etiology remains largely uncertain. One of the prominent theories of ASD suggests that an...

Authors: Jackie J. Liu, Kevin P. Grace, Richard L. Horner, Miguel A. Cortez, Yiwen Shao and Zhengping Jia

Comparative analysis of A-to-I editing in human and non-human primate brains reveals conserved patterns and context-dependent regulation of RNA editing

A-to-I RNA editing is an important process for generating molecular diversity in the brain through modification of transcripts encoding several proteins important for neuronal signaling. We investigated the re...

Authors: Richard T. O’Neil, Xiaojing Wang, Michael V. Morabito and Ronald B. Emeson

Molecules in pain and sex: a developing story

Microglia are dynamic immune cells with diverse roles in maintaining homeostasis of the central nervous system. Dysregulation of microglia has been critically implicated in the genesis of neuropathic pain. Per...

Authors: Josiane C. S. Mapplebeck, Simon Beggs and Michael W. Salter

Rapid and stable changes in maturation-related phenotypes of the adult hippocampal neurons by electroconvulsive treatment

Electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) is a highly effective and fast-acting treatment for depression. Despite a long history of clinical use, its mechanism of action remains poorly understood. Recently, a novel cell...

Authors: Yuki Imoto, Eri Segi-Nishida, Hidenori Suzuki and Katsunori Kobayashi

Proteasome impairment in neural cells derived from HMSN-P patient iPSCs

Hereditary motor and sensory neuropathy with proximal dominant involvement (HMSN-P) is caused by a heterozygous mutation (P285L) in Tropomyosin-receptor kinase Fused Gene (TFG), histopathologically characterized ...

Authors: Nagahisa Murakami, Keiko Imamura, Yuishin Izumi, Naohiro Egawa, Kayoko Tsukita, Takako Enami, Takuya Yamamoto, Toshitaka Kawarai, Ryuji Kaji and Haruhisa Inoue

Hypomethylation of intron1 of α-synuclein gene does not correlate with Parkinson’s disease

Deregulation of α-synuclein encoding gene (SNCA) is one of the important facets of Parkinson’s disease (PD) research. DNA methylation status of SNCA-intron1 has been shown to regulate the α-synuclein expression. ...

Authors: Subhrangshu Guhathakurta, Baggio A. Evangelista, Susmita Ghosh, Sambuddha Basu and Yoon-Seong Kim

TBK1: a new player in ALS linking autophagy and neuroinflammation

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is an adult-onset neurodegenerative disorder affecting motor neurons, resulting in progressive muscle weakness and death by respiratory failure. Protein and RNA aggregates a...

Authors: James A. Oakes, Maria C. Davies and Mark O. Collins