Molecular brain
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Fear is one of the most potent emotional experiences and is an adaptive component of response to potentially threatening stimuli. Cumulative evidence suggests that the amygdala plays a central role in the acquisition, storage and expression of fear memory. We previously showed that the selective ablation of striatal neurons in the adult brain impairs the long-term, but not short-term, memory for auditory fear conditioning with a lower-intensity footshock. This finding raises an intriguing possibility that long-term auditory fear memory may be consolidated in the striatum. ⋯ These results suggest that NMDA receptors and de novo protein synthesis in the striatum are crucial for the consolidation of auditory fear memory formed with a low-intensity unconditioned stimulus.
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GABAA receptors are ligand-gated Cl- channels, and the intracellular Cl- concentration governs whether GABA function is excitatory or inhibitory. During early brain development, GABA undergoes functional switch from excitation to inhibition: GABA depolarizes immature neurons but hyperpolarizes mature neurons due to a developmental decrease of intracellular Cl- concentration. This GABA functional switch is mainly mediated by the up-regulation of KCC2, a potassium-chloride cotransporter that pumps Cl- outside neurons. However, the upstream factor that regulates KCC2 expression is unclear. ⋯ Our data suggest that in addition to its conventional role as a cell adhesion molecule to regulate GABAergic synaptogenesis, NL2 also regulates KCC2 to modulate GABA functional switch and even glutamatergic synapses. Therefore, NL2 may serve as a master regulator in balancing excitation and inhibition in the brain.
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Although the cortex has been extensively studied in long-term memory storage, less emphasis has been placed on immediate cortical contributions to fear memory formation. AMPA receptor plasticity is strongly implicated in learning and memory, and studies have identified calcium permeable AMPA receptors (CP-AMPARs) as mediators of synaptic strengthening. Trace fear learning engages the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), but whether plastic events occur within the ACC in response to trace fear learning, and whether GluN2B subunits are required remains unknown. ⋯ Furthermore, intra-ACC injections of the CP-AMPAR channel antagonist, 1-naphthylacetyl spermine (NASPM) immediately following trace fear conditioning blocked 24 h fear memory retrieval. Accordingly, whole cell patch clamp recordings from c-fos positive and c-fos negative neurons within the ACC in response to trace fear learning revealed an increased sensitivity to NASPM in recently activated neurons that was reversed by reconsolidation update extinction. Our results suggest that trace fear learning is mediated through rapid GluN2B dependent trafficking of CP-AMPARs, and present in vivo evidence that CP-AMPAR activity within the ACC immediately after conditioning is necessary for subsequent memory consolidation processes.
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The medial prefrontal cortex (mPFC) serves major executive functions. mPFC output to subcortical brain areas such as the amygdala controls emotional processing and plays an important role in fear extinction. Impaired mPFC function correlates with extinction deficits in anxiety disorders such as PTSD and with cognitive decision-making deficits in neuropsychiatric disorders and persistent pain. Controlling mPFC output is a desirable therapeutic goal in neuropsychiatric disorders but functional differences of cell types (pyramidal cells and interneurons) and regions (infralimbic and prelimbic) represent a challenge. This electrophysiological study used optogenetics for the cell- and region-specific modulation of mPFC pyramidal output in the intact anesthetized animal. ⋯ The novelty of our study is the analysis of optogenetic effects on background and evoked activity of defined cell types in different mPFC regions. The electrophysiological in vivo results directly demonstrate the optogenetic modulation of mPFC activity in a region- and cell type-specific manner, which is significant in conditions of impaired mPFC output.
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It has been reported that remarkable and sustained activation of astrocytes and/or microglia occurs in cancer induced pain (CIP), which is different from neuropathic and inflammatory pain. The present study was designed to investigate the role of spinal Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) induced glial neuroinflammation in cancer induced pain using a modified rat model of bone cancer. The rat model of CIP consisted of unilateral intra-tibial injection with Walker 256 mammary gland carcinoma. ⋯ Naloxone (a nonstereoselective TLR4 signaling blocker, 60 μg, i.t.) also significantly alleviated mechanical allodynia and simultaneously blocked the increased inflammatory cytokine mRNA. The results suggested that spinal TLR4 might play an important role in the sustained glial activation that critically contributed to the robust and sustained spinal neuroinflammation in CIP. This result could potentially help clinicians and researchers to better understand the mechanism of complicated cancer pain.