Age-dependent and modality-specific changes in the phenotypic markers Nav1.8, ASIC3, P2X3 and TRPM8 in male rat primary sensory neurons during healthy aging.

The effects during healthy aging of the tetrodotoxin-resistant voltage-gated sodium channel 1.8 (Nav1.8), the acid-sensing ion channel-3 (ASIC3), the purinergic-receptor 2X3 (P2X3) and transient receptor potential of melastatin-8 (TRPM8) on responses to non-noxious stimuli are poorly understood. These effects will influence the transferability to geriatric subjects of findings obtained using young animals. To evaluate the involvement of these functional markers in mechanical and cold sensitivity to non-noxious stimuli and their underlying mechanisms, we used a combination of immunohistochemistry and quantitation of immunostaining in sub-populations of neurons of the dorsal root ganglia (DRG), behavioral tests, pharmacological interventions and Western-blot in healthy male Wistar rats from 3 to 24 months of age. We found significantly decreased sensitivity to mechanical and cold stimuli in geriatric rats. These behavioural alterations occurred simultaneously with differing changes in the expression of Nav1.8, ASIC3, P2X3 and TRPM8 in the DRG at different ages. Using pharmacological blockade in vivo we demonstrated the involvement of ASIC3 and P2X3 in normal mechanosensation and of Nav1.8 and ASIC3 in cold sensitivity. Geriatric rats also exhibited reductions in the number of A-like large neurons and in the proportion of peptidergic to non-peptidergic neurons. The changes in normal sensory physiology in geriatric rats we report here strongly support the inclusion of aged rodents as an important group in the design of pre-clinical studies evaluating pain treatments.

Cutaneous inflammation differentially regulates the expression and function of Angiotensin-II types 1 and 2 receptors in rat primary sensory neurons.

Neuropathic and inflammatory pain results from cellular and molecular changes in dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons. The type-2 receptor for Angiotensin-II (AT2R) has been involved in this type of pain. However, the underlying mechanisms are poorly understood, including the role of the type-1 receptor for Angiotensin-II (AT1R). Here, we used a combination of immunohistochemistry and immunocytochemistry, RT-PCR and in vitro and in vivo pharmacological manipulation to examine how cutaneous inflammation affected the expression of AT1R and AT2R in subpopulations of rat DRG neurons and studied their impact on inflammation-induced neuritogenesis. We demonstrated that AT2R-neurons express C- or A-neuron markers, primarily IB4, trkA, and substance-P. AT1R expression was highest in small neurons and co-localized significantly with AT2R. In vitro, an inflammatory soup caused significant elevation of AT2R mRNA, whereas AT1R mRNA levels remained unchanged. In vivo, we found a unique pattern of change in the expression of AT1R and AT2R after cutaneous inflammation. AT2R increased in small neurons at 1 day and in medium size neurons at 4 days. Interestingly, cutaneous inflammation increased AT1R levels only in large neurons at 4 days. We found that in vitro and in vivo AT1R and AT2R acted co-operatively to regulate DRG neurite outgrowth. In vivo, AT2R inhibition impacted more on non-peptidergic C-neurons neuritogenesis, whereas AT1R blockade affected primarily peptidergic nerve terminals. Thus, cutaneous-induced inflammation regulated AT1R and AT2R expression and function in different DRG neuronal subpopulations at different times. These findings must be considered when targeting AT1R and AT2R to treat chronic inflammatory pain. Cover Image for this issue: doi: 10.1111/jnc.14737.

Expression and cellular localization of the transcription factor NeuroD1 in the developing and adult rat pineal gland.

Circadian rhythms govern many aspects of mammalian physiology. The daily pattern of melatonin synthesis and secretion is one of the classic examples of circadian oscillations. It is mediated by a class of neuroendocrine cells known as pinealocytes which are not yet fully defined. An established method to evaluate functional and cytological characters is through the expression of lineage-specific transcriptional regulators. NeuroD1 is a basic helix-loop-helix transcription factor involved in the specification and maintenance of both endocrine and neuronal phenotypes. We have previously described developmental and adult regulation of NeuroD1 mRNA in the rodent pineal gland. However, the transcript levels were not influenced by the elimination of sympathetic input, suggesting that any rhythmicity of NeuroD1 might be found downstream of transcription. Here, we describe NeuroD1 protein expression and cellular localization in the rat pineal gland during development and the daily cycle. In embryonic and perinatal stages, protein expression follows the mRNA pattern and is predominantly nuclear. Thereafter, NeuroD1 is mostly found in pinealocyte nuclei in the early part of the night and in cytoplasm during the day, a rhythm maintained into adulthood. Additionally, nocturnal nuclear NeuroD1 levels are reduced after sympathetic disruption, an effect mimicked by the in vivo administration of α- and ß-adrenoceptor blockers. NeuroD1 phosphorylation at two sites, Ser(274) and Ser(336) , associates with nuclear localization in pinealocytes. These data suggest that NeuroD1 influences pineal phenotype both during development and adulthood, in an autonomic and phosphorylation-dependent manner.

Hypoxic preconditioning differentially affects GABAergic and glutamatergic neuronal cells in the injured cerebellum of the neonatal rat.

In this study we examined cerebellar alterations in a neonatal rat model of hypoxic-ischemic brain injury with or without hypoxic preconditioning (Pc). Between postnatal days 7 and 15, the cerebellum is still undergoing intense cellular proliferation, differentiation and migration, dendritogenesis and synaptogenesis. The expression of glutamate decarboxylase 1 (GAD67) and the differentiation factor NeuroD1 were examined as markers of Purkinje and granule cells, respectively. We applied quantitative immunohistochemistry to sagittal cerebellar slices, and Western blot analysis of whole cerebella obtained from control (C) rats and rats submitted to Pc, hypoxia-ischemia (L) and a combination of both treatments (PcL). We found that either hypoxia-ischemia or Pc perturbed the granule cells in the posterior lobes, affecting their migration and final placement in the internal granular layer. These effects were partially attenuated when the Pc was delivered prior to the hypoxia-ischemia. Interestingly, whole nuclear NeuroD1 levels in Pc animals were comparable to those in the C rats. However, a subset of Purkinje cells that were severely affected by the hypoxic-ischemic insult--showing signs of neuronal distress at the levels of the nucleus, cytoplasm and dendritic arborization--were not protected by Pc. A monoclonal antibody specific for GAD67 revealed a three-band pattern in cytoplasmic extracts from whole P15 cerebella. A ∼110 kDa band, interpreted as a potential homodimer of a truncated form of GAD67, was reduced in Pc and L groups while its levels were close to the control animals in PcL rats. Additionally we demonstrated differential glial responses depending on the treatment, including astrogliosis in hypoxiated cerebella and a selective effect of hypoxia-ischemia on the vimentin-immunolabeled intermediate filaments of the Bergmann glia. Thus, while both glutamatergic and GABAergic cerebellar neurons are compromised by the hypoxic-ischemic insult, the former are protected by a preconditioning hypoxia while the latter are not.

Sciatic nerve injury: a simple and subtle model for investigating many aspects of nervous system damage and recovery.

Sciatic nerve injury has been used for over a century to investigate the process of nerve damage, to assess the absolute and relative capacity of the central and peripheral nervous systems to recover after axotomy, and to understand the development of chronic pain in many pathologies. Here we provide a historical review of the contributions of this experimental model to our current understanding of fundamental questions in the neurosciences, and an assessment of its continuing capacity to address these and future problems. We describe the different degrees of nerve injury - neurapraxia, axonotmesis, neurotmesis - together with the consequences of selective damage to the different functional and anatomic components of this nerve. The varied techniques used to model different degrees of nerve injury and their relationship to the development of neuropathic pain states are considered. We also provide a detailed anatomical description of the sciatic nerve from the spinal cord to the peripheral branches in the leg. A standardized protocol for carrying out sciatic nerve axotomy is proposed, with guides to assist in the accurate and reliable dissection of the peripheral and central branches of the nerve. Functional, histological, and biochemical criteria for the validation of the injury are described. Thus, this paper provides a review of the principal features of sciatic nerve injury, presents detailed neuroanatomical descriptions of the rat's inferior limb and spine, compares different modes of injury, offers material for training purposes, and summarizes the immediate and longterm consequences of damage to the sciatic nerve.

The neuronal Arf GAP centaurin alpha1 modulates dendritic differentiation.

Centaurin alpha1 is an Arf GTPase-activating protein (GAP) that is highly expressed in the nervous system. In the current study, we show that endogenous centaurin alpha1 protein is localized in the synaptosome fraction, with peak expression in early postnatal development. In cultured dissociated hippocampal neurons, centaurin alpha1 localizes to dendrites, dendritic spines and the postsynaptic region. siRNA-mediated knockdown of centaurin alpha1 levels or overexpression of a GAP-inactive mutant of centaurin alpha1 leads to inhibition of dendritic branching, dendritic filopodia and spine-like protrusions in dissociated hippocampal neurons. Overexpression of wild-type centaurin alpha1 in cultured hippocampal neurons in early development enhances dendritic branching, and increases dendritic filopodia and lamellipodia. Both filopodia and lamellipodia have been implicated in dendritic branching and spine formation. Following synaptogenesis in cultured neurons, wild-type centaurin alpha1 expression increases dendritic filopodia and spine-like protrusions. Expression of a GAP-inactive mutant diminishes spine density in CA1 pyramidal neurons within cultured organotypic hippocampal slice cultures. These data support the conclusion that centaurin alpha1 functions through GAP-dependent Arf regulation of dendritic branching and spines that underlie normal dendritic differentiation and development.

Acute sublethal global hypoxia induces transient increase of GAP-43 immunoreactivity in the striatum of neonatal rats.

We assessed immunoreactivity (IR) in the cerebral cortex (CC), hippocampus (Hipp), and striatum (ST) of a growth-associated protein, GAP-43, and of proteins of the synaptic vesicle fusion complex: VAMP-2, Syntaxin-1, and SNAP-25 (SNARE proteins) throughout postnatal development of rats after submitting the animals to acute global postnatal hypoxia (6.5% O(2), 70 min) at postnatal day 4 (PND4). In the CC only the IR of the SNARE protein SNAP-25 increased significantly with age. The hypoxic animals showed the same pattern of IR for SNAP-25, although with lower levels at PND11, and also a significant increase of VAMP-2. SNAP-25 (control): PND11 P < 0.001 vs. PND18, 25, and 40, SNAP-25 (hypoxic): P < 0.001 vs. PND18, 25, and 40; VAMP-2 (hypoxic): P < 0.05 PND11 vs. PND18, and P < 0.01 vs. PND25 and PND40; one-way ANOVA and Bonferroni post-test. In the Hipp, SNAP-25 and syntaxin-1 increased significantly with age, reaching a plateau at PND25 through PND40 in control animals (one-way ANOVA: syntaxin-1: P = 0.043; Bonferroni: NS; SNAP-25: P = 0.013; Bonferroni: P < 0.01 PND11 vs. PND40). Hypoxic rats showed higher levels of significance in the one-way ANOVA than controls (syntaxin-1: P = 0.009; Bonferroni: P < 0.05 PND11 vs. PND25 and P < 0.001 PND11 vs. PND40). In the ST, GAP-43 differed significantly among hypoxic and control animals and the two-way ANOVA revealed significant differences with age (F = 3.23; P = 0.037) and treatment (F = 4.84; P = 0.036). VAMP-2 expression also reached statistical significance when comparing control and treated animals (F = 6.25, P = 0.018) without changes regarding to age. Elevated plus maze test performed at PND40 indicated a lower level of anxiety in the hypoxic animals. At adulthood (12 weeks) learning, memory and locomotor abilities were identical in both groups of animals. With these results, we demonstrate that proteins of the presynaptic structures of the ST are sensitive to acute disruption of homeostatic conditions, such as a temporary decrease of the O(2) concentration. Modifications in the activity of these proteins could contribute to the long term altered responses to stress due to acute hypoxic insult in the neonatal period.

Posttranslational protein S-palmitoylation and the compartmentalization of signaling molecules in neurons.

Protein domains play a fundamental role in the spatial and temporal organization of intracellular signaling systems. While protein phosphorylation has long been known to modify the interactions that underlie this organization, the dynamic cycling of lipids should now be included amongst the posttranslational processes determining specificity in signal transduction. The characteristics of this process are reminiscent of the properties of protein and lipid phosphorylation in determining compartmentalization through SH2 or PH domains. Recent studies have confirmed the functional importance of protein S-palmitoylation in the compartmentalization of signaling molecules that support normal physiological function in cell division and apoptosis, and synaptic transmission and neurite outgrowth. In neurons, S-palmitoylation and targeting of proteins to rafts are regulated differentially in development by a number of processes, including some related to synaptogenesis and synaptic plasticity. Alterations in the S-palmitoylation state of proteins substantially affect their cellular function, raising the possibility of new therapeutic targets in cancer and nervous system injury and disease.

Posttranslational protein S-palmitoylation and the compartmentalization of signaling molecules in neurons

Protein domains play a fundamental role in the spatial and temporal organization of intracellular signaling systems. While protein phosphorylation has long been known to modify the interactions that underlie this organization, the dynamic cycling of lipids should now be included amongst the posttranslational processes determining specificity in signal transduction. The characteristics of this process are reminiscent of the properties of protein and lipid phosphorylation in determining compartmentalization through SH2 or PH domains. Recent studies have confirmed the functional importance of protein S-palmitoylation in the compartmentalization of signaling molecules that support normal physiological function in cell division and apoptosis, and synaptic transmission and neurite outgrowth. In neurons, S-palmitoylation and targeting of proteins to rafts are regulated differentially in development by a number of processes, including some related to synaptogenesis and synaptic plasticity. Alterations in the S-palmitoylation state of proteins substantially affect their cellular function, raising the possibility of new therapeutic targets in cancer and nervous system injury and disease