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Bastos CR, Bevilacqua LM, Mendes LFB, Xavier J, Gruhn K, Kaster MP, Ghisleni G. Amygdala-specific changes in Cacna1c, Nfat5, and Bdnf expression are associated with stress responsivity in mice: A possible mechanism for psychiatric disorders. J Psychiatr Res 2024; 175:259-270. [PMID: 38754148 DOI: 10.1016/j.jpsychires.2024.05.019] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2023] [Revised: 03/11/2024] [Accepted: 05/07/2024] [Indexed: 05/18/2024]
Abstract
The CACNA1C gene encodes the alpha-1c subunit of the Cav1.2 calcium channel, a regulator of neuronal calcium influx involved in neurotransmitter release and synaptic plasticity. Genetic data show a role for CACNA1C in depressive symptoms underlying different psychiatric diagnoses. However, the mechanisms involved still require further exploration. This study aimed to investigate sex and region-specific changes in the Cacna1c gene and behavioral outcomes in mice exposed to chronic stress. Moreover, we evaluated the Nuclear factor of activated T-cells 5 (Nfat5) and the Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (Bdnf) as potential upstream and downstream Cacna1c targets and their correlation in stressed mice and humans with depression. Male and female Swiss mice were exposed to chronic unpredictable stress (CUS) for 21 days. Animal-integrated emotionality was assessed using the sucrose splash test, the tail suspension, the open-field test, and the elevated-plus-maze. Gene expression analysis was performed in the amygdala, prefrontal cortex, and hippocampus. Human data for in silico analysis was obtained from the Gene Expression Omnibus. CUS-induced impairment in integrated emotional regulation was observed in males. Gene expression analysis showed decreased levels of Cacna1c and Nfat5 and increased levels of Bdnf transcripts in the amygdala of stressed male mice. In contrast, there were no major changes in behavioral responses or gene expression in female mice after stress. The expression of the three genes was significantly correlated in the amygdala of mice and humans. The strong and positive correlation between Canac1c and Nfat5 suggests a potential role for this transcription factor in Canac1c expression. These changes could impact amygdala reactivity and emotional responses, making them a potential target for psychiatric intervention.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clarissa Ribeiro Bastos
- Laboratory of Translational Neuroscience, Department of Biochemistry, Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), Florianopolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil; Department of Life and Health Sciences, Catholic University of Pelotas (UCPel), Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Laura Menegatti Bevilacqua
- Laboratory of Translational Neuroscience, Department of Biochemistry, Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), Florianopolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil
| | - Luiz Filipe Bastos Mendes
- Center of Oxidative Stress Research, Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Basic Health Sciences (ICBS), Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, Brazil
| | - Janaina Xavier
- Department of Life and Health Sciences, Catholic University of Pelotas (UCPel), Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Karen Gruhn
- Department of Life and Health Sciences, Catholic University of Pelotas (UCPel), Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil
| | - Manuella Pinto Kaster
- Laboratory of Translational Neuroscience, Department of Biochemistry, Federal University of Santa Catarina (UFSC), Florianopolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil.
| | - Gabriele Ghisleni
- Department of Life and Health Sciences, Catholic University of Pelotas (UCPel), Pelotas, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil.
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McCallum RT, Thériault RK, Manduca JD, Russell ISB, Culmer AM, Doost JS, Martino TA, Perreault ML. Nrf2 activation rescues stress-induced depression-like behaviour and inflammatory responses in male but not female rats. Biol Sex Differ 2024; 15:16. [PMID: 38350966 PMCID: PMC10863247 DOI: 10.1186/s13293-024-00589-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/26/2023] [Accepted: 01/31/2024] [Indexed: 02/15/2024] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Major depressive disorder (MDD) is a recurring affective disorder that is two times more prevalent in females than males. Evidence supports immune system dysfunction as a major contributing factor to MDD, notably in a sexually dimorphic manner. Nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor 2 (Nrf2), a regulator of antioxidant signalling during inflammation, is dysregulated in many chronic inflammatory disorders; however, its role in depression and the associated sex differences have yet to be explored. Here, we investigated the sex-specific antidepressant and immunomodulatory effects of the potent Nrf2 activator dimethyl fumarate (DMF), as well as the associated gene expression profiles. METHODS Male and female rats were treated with vehicle or DMF (25 mg/kg) whilst subjected to 8 weeks of chronic unpredictable stress. The effect of DMF treatment on stress-induced depression- and anxiety-like behaviours, as well as deficits in recognition and spatial learning and memory were then assessed. Sex differences in hippocampal (HIP) microglial activation and gene expression response were also evaluated. RESULTS DMF treatment during stress exposure had antidepressant effects in male but not female rats, with no anxiolytic effects in either sex. Recognition learning and memory and spatial learning and memory were impaired in chronically stressed males and females, respectively, and DMF treatment rescued these deficits. DMF treatment also prevented stress-induced HIP microglial activation in males. Conversely, females displayed no HIP microglial activation associated with stress exposure. Last, chronic stress elicited sex-specific alterations in HIP gene expression, many of which were normalized in animals treated with DMF. Of note, most of the differentially expressed genes in males normalized by DMF were related to antioxidant, inflammatory or immune responses. CONCLUSIONS Collectively, these findings support a greater role of immune processes in males than females in a rodent model of depression. This suggests that pharmacotherapies that target Nrf2 have the potential to be an effective sex-specific treatment for depression.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan T McCallum
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd. E., Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Rachel-Karson Thériault
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd. E., Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Joshua D Manduca
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd. E., Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Isaac S B Russell
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd. E., Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Angel M Culmer
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd. E., Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Janan Shoja Doost
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd. E., Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Tami A Martino
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd. E., Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada
| | - Melissa L Perreault
- Department of Biomedical Sciences, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Rd. E., Guelph, ON, N1G 2W1, Canada.
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Zubov AS, Ivleva IS, Pestereva NS, Tiutiunnik TV, Traktirov DS, Karpenko MN. Glibenclamide alters serotonin and dopamine levels in the rat striatum and hippocampus, reducing cognitive impairment. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2022; 239:2787-2798. [PMID: 35545702 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-022-06159-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/21/2021] [Accepted: 05/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE Glibenclamide (GD) is a widely used medical drug; therefore, identifying the mechanisms underlying its pleiotropic effects in the central nervous system is urgent. OBJECTIVES The aim of this work was to determine the ability of GD to modulate serotonin (5-hydroxytryptamine, 5-HT) and dopamine (DA) transmission and to assess the dose-dependent effect of GD on cognitive function in rats during natural ageing. METHODS In Experiment 1, rats received 10, 25, or 50 μg/kg GD intraperitoneally for 10 days. In Experiment 2, rats received 50 μg/kg GD intraperitoneally for 30 days. Spatial and working memory was assessed in the MWM and Y-maze tests, respectively. In both experiments, the levels of DA and 5-HT, their metabolites, and turnover rate were analysed by HPLC-ED in the rat hippocampus and striatum. RESULTS Changes in DA and 5-HT levels occurred only with a dose of 50 μg/kg GD. Therefore, in the second experiment, we administered a dose of 50 μg/kg GD. At this dose, GD prevented the development of impairments in spatial and working memory. The hippocampal concentrations of DA and DOPAC decreased, and the striatal concentrations of DA, DOPAC, 5-HT, and 5-HIAA increased. CONCLUSION One of the possible mechanisms of the precognitive effect of GD is its ability to modulate monoamine transmission. Thus, in translating our results to humans, GD can be recommended as a prophylactic agent for natural ageing to reduce the risk of developing cognitive impairments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexander S Zubov
- I.P. Pavlov Department of Physiology, Federal State Budget Scientific Institution "Institute of Experimental Medicine", St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Irina S Ivleva
- I.P. Pavlov Department of Physiology, Federal State Budget Scientific Institution "Institute of Experimental Medicine", St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Nina S Pestereva
- I.P. Pavlov Department of Physiology, Federal State Budget Scientific Institution "Institute of Experimental Medicine", St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Tatiana V Tiutiunnik
- I.P. Pavlov Department of Physiology, Federal State Budget Scientific Institution "Institute of Experimental Medicine", St. Petersburg, Russia
| | - Dmitrtii S Traktirov
- I.P. Pavlov Department of Physiology, Federal State Budget Scientific Institution "Institute of Experimental Medicine", St. Petersburg, Russia.
| | - Marina N Karpenko
- I.P. Pavlov Department of Physiology, Federal State Budget Scientific Institution "Institute of Experimental Medicine", St. Petersburg, Russia
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Qiu X, Wang Q, Hou L, Zhang C, Wang Q, Zhao X. Inhibition of NLRP3 inflammasome by glibenclamide attenuated dopaminergic neurodegeneration and motor deficits in paraquat and maneb-induced mouse Parkinson's disease model. Toxicol Lett 2021; 349:1-11. [PMID: 34052309 DOI: 10.1016/j.toxlet.2021.05.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/14/2020] [Revised: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 05/25/2021] [Indexed: 01/24/2023]
Abstract
Pesticides exposure can lead to damage of dopaminergic neurons, which are associated with increased risk of Parkinson's disease (PD). However, the etiology of PD remains poorly understood and no therapeutic strategy is available. Previous studies suggested the involvement of NLRP3 inflammasome in the onset of PD. This study was designed to investigate whether glibenclamide, an inhibitor of NLRP3 inflammasome, could offer a reliable protective strategy for PD in a mouse PD model induced by paraquat and maneb. We found that glibenclamide exerted potent neuroprotection against paraquat and maneb-induced upregulation of α-synuclein, dopaminergic neurodegeneration and motor impairment in brain of mice. Mechanistically, glibenclamide treatment blocked NLRP3 inflammasome activation evidenced by reduced expressions of NLRP3, activated caspase-1 and mature interleukin-1β in glibenclamide co-treated mice compared with those in paraquat and maneb group mice. Furthermore, glibenclamide treatment mitigated paraquat and maneb-induced microglial M1 proinflammatory response and nuclear factor-κB activation in mice. Finally, the increased superoxide production, lipid peroxidation, protein levels of NADPH oxidase 2 (NOX2) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) induced by paraquat and maneb were all attenuated by glibenclamide. Overall, our findings demonstrated that glibenclamide protected dopaminergic neurons in a mouse PD model induced by combined exposures of paraquat and maneb through suppression of NLRP3 inflammasome activation, microglial M1 polarization and oxidative stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaofei Qiu
- Qingdao Municipal Center for Disease Control & Prevention, Qingdao Institute of Preventive Medicine, Qingdao, 266033, China; School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, 250012, China
| | - Qinghui Wang
- Department of Anesthesiology, Affiliated Zhongshan Hospital of Dalian University, Dalian, 116023, China
| | - Liyan Hou
- School of Public Health, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China
| | - Cuili Zhang
- School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, 250012, China
| | - Qingshan Wang
- School of Public Health, Dalian Medical University, Dalian, 116044, China.
| | - Xiulan Zhao
- School of Public Health, Cheeloo College of Medicine, Shandong University, Jinan, 250012, China.
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