The Social Component of Environmental Enrichment Is a Pro-neurogenic Stimulus in Adult c57BL6 Female Mice

Pro-resilient effects of environmental enrichment on social isolation: Behavioural and cytochrome c oxidase brain analysis in Wistar adult rats

The COVID-19 pandemic has underscored the impact of social isolation on mental well-being. This study aims to evaluate the emotional and cerebral consequences of social isolation and assess whether prior environmental enrichment can mitigate the adverse effects. For that purpose, four groups were established: Behaviour group (Beh), n=8, subjected to a 4 % sucrose consumption test and the elevated zero maze (EZM) to assess anhedonia and unconditioned anxiety; Social isolation (SI) + Behaviour group, n=8, subjected to 4 consecutive weeks of social isolation followed by the behavioural testing; Environmental enrichment: EE+SI + Behaviour group, n = 8, subjected to EE prior to SI followed by behavioural assessment; and Basal group (BG), n = 8, used to determine the baseline of cytochrome c-oxidase (CCO). After behavioural testing, brain tissue from the prefrontal cortex (PFC), dorsal and ventral hippocampus (vHIP), nucleus accumbens (NAc), and ventral tegmental area (VTA) were analysed for CCO activity. Results show that SI serves as a significant stressor, increasing anxiety and anhedonic responses in the SI group. However, pre-exposure to EE significantly reduced these responses. Regarding CCO activity, the SI group exhibited elevated levels across all brain regions compared to the EE+SI group. Moreover, the EE+SI group maintained CCO activity levels similar to those of the Basal group, suggesting that prior EE exposure mitigates the metabolic impact of social isolation across most brain regions, except for the vHIP. These results indicate that pre-exposure to an EE may buffer the adverse effects of SI, supporting enhanced resilience.

Environmental enrichment: a neurostimulatory approach to aging and ischemic stroke recovery and rehabilitation

Environmental enrichment (EE) represents a robust experimental framework exploring the intricate interplay between genes and the environment in shaping brain development and function. EE is recognized as a non-invasive intervention, easily translatable to elderly human cohorts, and extrapolated from research on animal aging models. Age is the most important risk factor for ischemic stroke. Research indicates that EE, characterized by increased sensory, cognitive, and social stimulation, leads to structural changes in the brain, such as enhanced dendritic complexity and synaptic density, particularly in the hippocampus and cortex. Tailored EE interventions for elderly stroke survivors include cognitively stimulating activities and participation in social groups. These interventions enhance cognitive function and support recovery by promoting neural repair. Additionally, EE helps to mitigate sensory deficits commonly observed in older adults, ultimately improving mental performance and quality of life. EE has shown promise in preventing relapse, enhancing attention, reducing anxiety, forestalling age-related DNA methylation alterations, and amplifying neurogenesis through heightened neural progenitor cell (NPC) populations. Aligning preclinical studies with clinical trials can enhance neurorehabilitation conditions for stroke patients, thereby optimizing the environments in which they recover. This can be achieved through the concerted efforts of multidisciplinary teams working collaboratively. This review explores how EE specifically impacts the aging brain and ischemic stroke, a major age-related neurological disorder with global health implications. The potential of enviro-mimetics and relevant clinical studies on EE's effects on ischemic stroke survivors are discussed. This review enhances our understanding of the effects of EE on aging and ischemic stroke, motivating further research aimed at refining strategies for stroke management and recovery.

Enriched environment prevents hypernociception and depression-like behavior in a psychiatric disorder and neuropathic pain comorbidity experimental condition

Pain is a multifactorial debilitating condition associated with some psychiatric comorbidities such as generalized anxiety and depression. Concerning pharmacological treatment, which is often inefficient or associated with intense side effects, the physical and social context may be fundamental for patient's health improvement. In this sense, we sought to assess the impact of an enriched environment (EE) on neuropathic pain (NP) and depression comorbid. For this purpose, mice exposed to EE or non-enriched conditions for three weeks were submitted to either a chronic constriction injury (CCI) of the ischiadicus nervus or a sham procedure. After three weeks of EE or non-enriched exposition, allodynia (recorded by von Frey and acetone tests), hyperalgesia (recorded by hot plate test), despair behavioral response (recorded by tail suspension test), and apathy (recorded by sucrose spray test) were evaluated. Mice submitted to CCI procedure showed increased rates of hyperalgesia and allodynia, as well as depression-like behaviors compared to the sham procedure-submitted mice. Exposure to EE significantly increased pain thresholds and significantly diminished depression-related behaviors. These findings suggest that the sensory, physical, and social context can be an extra tool for controlling not only sensory-discriminative pain but also emotional pain-related psychiatric comorbidities, such as depression.

Relations of temporoparietal connectivity with neighborhood social fragmentation in youth at clinical high-risk for psychosis

Temporoparietal brain areas comprise a candidate set of regions for interrogating the brain functional correlates of socioenvironmental factors in people at clinical high-risk for psychosis (CHR-P). Temporal lobe abnormalities have been shown to be common among people with schizophrenia spectrum conditions. Further, temporoparietal brain regions are implicated in tasks relevant to psychosocial outcomes, including coherent autobiographical memory recall and multimodal integration. This report examined relations of hippocampal-temporoparietal functional connectivity with neighborhood-level social fragmentation, a composite of area-level characteristics that measures social cohesion, among youth at CHR-P and healthy comparisons in the second wave of the North American Prodrome Longitudinal Study (n = 146, age = 19.9 ± 3.9, 47 % female). This study also examined whether those relations were moderated by individual-level social engagement in desirable activities. Significant positive relations of neighborhood-level social fragmentation and hippocampal functional connectivity with the superior temporal pole were observed among participants at CHR-P. Moderation analyses demonstrated that those relations were significant only at low and mean levels of individual-level social engagement in participants at CHR-P. Findings contribute to the literature indicating that adverse environmental factors are associated with deviant patterns of brain connectivity. This exploratory research also contributes to future theorizing about neurobiological mechanisms underlying therapeutic interventions involving social engagement that have demonstrated improved functional outcomes for people with psychotic disorders.

Anxiety-like behaviors in rats exposed to the single and combined program of running exercise and environmental enrichment

Exercise (Ex) and environmental enrichment (EE) as the nondrug solutions have positive effects on cognitive behaviors and also increase the ability to cope with anxiety, fear, and stress. In this research, we decided to investigate the simultaneous effect of Ex and EE on anxiety-like behaviors and hippocampal neurogenesis markers in healthy rats. A total of 40 male Wistar rats were divided into four treatment groups: control, EE, Ex, and EE + Ex. Animals in EE groups were housed in large cages (50 × 50 × 50 cm) equipped with toys and objects of different shapes for 3 weeks. Ex-animals were forced to run on a treadmill once a day for 3 consecutive weeks. Open field (OF) and elevated plus maze (EPM) tests were used to evaluate anxiety behaviors. The hippocampal expression of early neurogenesis markers, doublecortin, and sex determining region Y-box 2, were measured using real-time-PCR. Ex and EE animals separately did not show any significant performance in reducing anxiety levels, neither in EPM nor in OF compared with the control group. When animals were treated with EE and Ex simultaneously, they showed significantly reduced anxiety in both EPM and OF tests compared with the control as well as Ex and EE groups separately. Both treatments in combination were also more effective than individual groups in increasing the neurogenesis molecular markers within the hippocampus. This study proposes that Ex in combination with cognitive engagement is more efficient in alleviating anxiety responses and that can develop a nonpharmacological and multidomain policy that may prevent or delay psychophysiological symptoms.

Environmental enrichment and the combined interventions of EE and metformin enhance hippocampal neuron survival and hippocampal-dependent memory in type 2 diabetic rats under stress through the BDNF-TrkB signaling pathways

BACKGROUND

Type 2 diabetes (T2D) with depression causes severe cognitive impairments. The devastating conditions will further compromise the overall quality of life. The overconsumption of high-fat and high-sucrose (HFS) diet is one of the modifiable risk factors for T2D, depression, and cognitive impairments. Thus, it is essential to identify effective therapeutic strategies to overcome the cognitive impairments in T2D with depression. We proposed environmental enrichment (EE) which encompasses social, cognitive, and physical components as the alternative treatment for such impairments. We also investigated the potential neuroprotective properties of the antidiabetic drug metformin. This study aimed to investigate the effects of EE and metformin interventions on hippocampal neuronal death, and hippocampal-dependent memory impairment in T2D rats under stress.

METHODS

Thirty-two male rats (200-250 g) were divided into four groups: C group (standard diet + conventional cage), DS group [HFS-induced T2D + restraint stress (RS)], DSE group [HFS-induced T2D + RS + EE] and DSEM group [HFS + RS + EE + metformin]. Serum corticosterone (CORT) was measured to evaluate stress levels. The serum Free Oxygen Radicals Testing (FORT) and Free Oxygen Radicals Defence Test (FORD) were measured to evaluate the systemic oxidative status (OS). Serum brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and T-maze tasks were performed to evaluate cognitive functions. Rats were humanely sacrificed to collect brains for histological, morphometric, and hippocampal gene expression studies.

RESULTS

The CORT and the serum FORT levels in the DSE and DSEM groups were lower than in the DS group. Meanwhile, the serum BDNF, T-maze scores, histological, and morphometric analysis were improved in the DSE and DSEM groups than in the DS group. These findings supported that EE and the combined interventions of EE and metformin had neuroprotective properties. The hippocampal gene expression analysis revealed that the DSE and DSEM groups showed improved regulation of BDNF-TrkB signalling pathways, including the BDNF/TrkB binding, PI3K - Akt pathway, Ras-MAPK pathway, PLCγ-Ca2+ pathway, and CREB transcription.

CONCLUSION

EE and the combined interventions of EE and metformin improved hippocampal neuron survival and hippocampal-dependent memory in T2D rats under stress by enhancing gene expression regulation of neurogenesis and synaptic plasticity.

Panicolytic-like effects of environment enrichment on male mice threatened by Bothrops jararaca lancehead pit vipers

Environment enrichment (EE) is a well-known eustress model showing beneficial effects in different psychiatric diseases, but its positive properties in panic disorders are not yet established. The confrontation between prey and predator in complex arenas has been validated as a putative panic attack model. The principal aim of this work was to investigate the role of the EE on panic-like defensive responses elicited by mice threatened by venomous snakes. After 6 weeks of exposure either to an enriched or standard environments, 36 male mice were habituated in a complex polygonal arena for snakes containing an artificial burrow and elevated platforms for escape. The animals were confronted by Bothrops jararaca for 5 min, and the following antipredatory responses were recorded: defensive attention, stretched attend posture, flat back approach, prey versus predator interaction, oriented escape behavior, time spent in a safe place, and number of crossings. Mice threatened by snakes displayed several antipredatory reactions as compared to the exploratory behavior of those animals submitted to a nonthreatening situation (toy snake) in the same environment. Notably, EE causes anxiolytic- and panicolytic-like effects significantly decreasing the defensive attention and time spent in safe places and significantly increasing both prey versus predator interaction and exploratory behavior. In conclusion, our data demonstrate that EE can alter the processing of fear modulation regarding both anxiety- and panic-like responses in a dangerous condition, significantly modifying the decision-making defensive strategy.

Environmental Enrichment Cage for Laboratory Mice: A Downloadable Alternative

Environmentally enriched housing (EE) provides a stimulating and species-typical environment that enhances brain plasticity and cognition, while reducing disease severity in laboratory animals. However, standardizing EE protocols has been challenging due to issues such as variability, high pricing, or limited laboratory space. To address these challenges, we present a replicable and cost-efficient cage protocol that is accessible to researchers with limited resources and space constraints. The protocol is designed to provide a stimulating and species-typical environment for the animals. It incorporates elements such as social interaction, physical exercise, cognitive stimulation, manipulable objects, environmental variability, and sensory stimulation. As evidenced in our previous studies using our protocol, users can expect to observe similar neuroplastic and health-wise benefits that accompany EE experimental paradigms. These included straightforward step-by-step guide, which allows for construction of functional EE cages in under 8 hr. Basic knowledge of 3D printing and laser cutting is required, but no advanced skills are necessary. The protocol enables researchers to create stimulating and replicable environments that promote animal welfare, enhance brain plasticity, and yield valuable experimental results for low cost. © 2024 Wiley Periodicals LLC. Basic Protocol: An effective and cost-efficient environmental enrichment cage designed to encourage standardization amongst laboratory protocols.

Environmental enrichment improves hippocampus-dependent spatial learning in female C57BL/6 mice in novel IntelliCage sweet reward-based behavioral tests

The IntelliCage is an automated home-cage system that allows researchers to investigate the spontaneous behavior and learning abilities of group-housed mice. The IntelliCage enables us to increase the standardization and reproducibility of behavioral outcomes by the omission of experimenter-mouse interactions. Although the IntelliCage provides a less stressful environment for animals, standard IntelliCage protocols use controlled water access as the motivational driver for learning. To overcome possible water restrictions in slow learners, we developed a series of novel protocols based on appetitive learning, in which mice had permanent access to plain water but were additionally rewarded with sweetened water upon solving the task. C57BL/6NCrl female mice were used to assess the efficacy of these sweet reward-based protocols in a series of learning tasks. Compared to control mice tested with standard protocols, mice motivated with a sweet reward did equal to or better in operant performance and place learning tasks. Learning of temporal rules was slower than that in controls. When faced with a combined temporal x spatial working memory task, sweet-rewarded mice learned little and chose plain water. In a second set of experiments, the impact of environmental enrichment on appetitive learning was tested. Mice kept under enriched environment (EE) or standard housing (SH) conditions prior to the IntelliCage experiments performed similarly in the sweet-rewarded place learning task. EE mice performed better in the hippocampus-dependent spatial working memory task. The improved performance of EE mice in the hippocampus-dependent spatial working memory task might be explained by the observed larger volume of their mossy fibers. Our results confirm that environmental enrichment increases complex spatial learning abilities and leads to long-lasting morphological changes in the hippocampus. Furthermore, simple standard IntelliCage protocols could easily be adapted to sweet rewards, which improve animal welfare by removing the possibility of water restriction. However, complex behavioral tasks motivated by sweet reward-based learning need further adjustments to reach the same efficacy as standard protocols.

One day away from mum has lifelong consequences on brain and behaviour

This chapter presents a brief overview of attachment theory and discusses the importance of the neonatal period in shaping an individual's physiological and behavioural responses to stress later in life, with a focus on the role of the parent-infant relationship, particularly in rodents. In rodents, the role of maternal behaviours goes far beyond nutrition, thermoregulation and excretion, acting as hidden regulators of the pup's physiology and development. In this review, we will discuss the inhibitory role of specific maternal behaviours on the ACTH and corticosterone (CORT) stress response. The interest of our group to explore the long-term consequences of maternal deprivation for 24 h (DEP) at different ages (3 days and 11 days) in rats was sparked by its opposite effects on ACTH and CORT levels. In early adulthood, DEP3 animals (males and females alike) show greater negative impact on affective behaviours and stress related parameters than DEP11, indicating that the latter is more resilient in tests of anxiety-like behaviour. These findings create an opportunity to explore the neurobiological underpinnings of vulnerability and resilience to stress-related disorders. The chapter also provides a brief historical overview and highlights the relevance of attachment theory, and how DEP helps to understand the effects of childhood parental loss as a risk factor for depression, schizophrenia, and PTSD in both childhood and adulthood. Furthermore, we present the concept of environmental enrichment (EE), its effects on stress responses and related behavioural changes and its benefits for rats previously subjected to DEP, along with the clinical implications of DEP and EE.

Social enrichment on the job: Complex work with people improves episodic memory, promotes brain reserve, and reduces the risk of dementia

Individuals with more complex jobs experience better cognitive function in old age and a lower risk of dementia, yet complexity has multiple dimensions. Drawing on the Social Networks in Alzheimer Disease study, we examine the association between occupational complexity and cognition in a sample of older adults (N = 355). A standard deviation (SD) increase in complex work with people is associated with a 9% to 12% reduction in the probability of mild cognitive impairment or dementia, a 0.14-0.19 SD increase in episodic memory, and a 0.18-0.25 SD increase in brain reserve, defined as the gap (residual) between global cognitive function and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) indicators of brain atrophy. In contrast, complexity with data or things is rarely associated with cognitive outcomes. We discuss the clinical and methodological implications of these findings, including the need to complement data-centered activities (e.g., Sudoku puzzles) with person-centered interventions that increase social complexity.

Loss of individualized behavioral trajectories in adult neurogenesis-deficient cyclin D2 knockout mice

There is still limited mechanistic insight into how the interaction of individuals with their environment results in the emergence of individuality in behavior and brain structure. Nevertheless, the idea that personal activity shapes the brain is implicit in strategies for healthy cognitive aging as well as in the idea that individuality is reflected in the brain's connectome. We have shown that even isogenic mice kept in a shared enriched environment (ENR) developed divergent and stable social and exploratory trajectories. As these trajectories-measured as roaming entropy (RE)-positively correlated with adult hippocampal neurogenesis, we hypothesized that a feedback between behavioral activity and adult hippocampal neurogenesis might be a causal factor in brain individualization. We used cyclin D2 knockout mice with constitutively extremely low levels of adult hippocampal neurogenesis and their wild-type littermates. We housed them for 3 months in a novel ENR paradigm, consisting of 70 connected cages equipped with radio frequency identification antennae for longitudinal tracking. Cognitive performance was evaluated in the Morris Water Maze task (MWM). With immunohistochemistry we confirmed that adult neurogenesis correlated with RE in both genotypes and that D2 knockout mice had the expected impaired performance in the reversal phase of the MWM. But whereas the wild-type animals developed stable exploratory trajectories with increasing variance, correlating with adult neurogenesis, this individualizing phenotype was absent in D2 knockout mice. Here the behaviors started out more random and revealed less habituation and low variance. Together, these findings suggest that adult neurogenesis contributes to experience-dependent brain individualization.

Environmental enrichment alleviates cognitive and psychomotor alterations and increases adult hippocampal neurogenesis in cocaine withdrawn mice

Cocaine is a widely used psychostimulant drug whose repeated exposure induces persistent cognitive/emotional dysregulation, which could be a predictor of relapse in users. However, there is scarce evidence on effective treatments to alleviate these symptoms. Environmental enrichment (EE) has been shown to be associated with improved synaptic function and cellular plasticity changes related to adult hippocampal neurogenesis (AHN), resulting in cognitive enhancement. Therefore, EE could mitigate the negative impact of chronic administration of cocaine in mice and reduce the emotional and cognitive symptoms present during cocaine abstinence. In this study, mice were chronically administered with cocaine for 14 days, and control mice received saline. After the last cocaine or saline dose, mice were submitted to control or EE housing conditions, and they stayed undisturbed for 28 days. Subsequently, mice were evaluated with a battery of behavioural tests for exploratory activity, emotional behaviour, and cognitive performance. EE attenuated hyperlocomotion, induced anxiolytic-like behaviour and alleviated cognitive impairment in spatial memory in the cocaine-abstinent mice. The EE protocol notably upregulated AHN in both control and cocaine-treated mice, though cocaine slightly reduced the number of immature neurons. Altogether, these results demonstrate that EE could enhance hippocampal neuroplasticity ameliorating the behavioural and cognitive consequences of repeated administration of cocaine. Therefore, environmental stimulation may be a useful strategy in the treatment cocaine addiction.

The Molecular Effects of Environmental Enrichment on Alzheimer's Disease

Environmental enrichment (EE) is an environmental paradigm encompassing sensory, cognitive, and physical stimulation at a heightened level. Previous studies have reported the beneficial effects of EE in the brain, particularly in the hippocampus. EE improves cognitive function as well as ameliorates depressive and anxiety-like behaviors, making it a potentially effective neuroprotective strategy against neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer's disease (AD). Here, we summarize the current evidence for EE as a neuroprotective strategy as well as the potential molecular pathways that can explain the effects of EE from a biochemical perspective using animal models. The effectiveness of EE in enhancing brain activity against neurodegeneration is explored with a view to differences present in early and late life EE exposure, with its potential application in human being discussed. We discuss EE as one of the non pharmacological approaches in preventing or delaying the onset of AD for future research.

In the pursuit of new social neurons. Neurogenesis and social behavior in mice: A systematic review

Social behaviors have become more relevant to our understanding of the human nervous system because relationships with our peers may require and modulate adult neurogenesis. Here, we review the pieces of evidence we have to date for the divergence of social behaviors in mice by modulation of adult neurogenesis or if social behaviors and the social environment can drive a change in neurogenic processes. Social recognition and memory are deeply affected by antimitotic drugs and irradiation, while NSC transgenic mice may run with lower levels of social discrimination. Interestingly, social living conditions can create a big impact on neurogenesis. Social isolation and social defeat reduce the number of new neurons, while social dominance and enrichment of the social environment increase their number. These new “social neurons” trigger functional modifications with amazing transgenerational effects. All of these suggest that we are facing two bidirectional intertwined variables, and the great challenge now is to understand the cellular and genetic mechanisms that allow this relationship to be used therapeutically.

5 Hz of repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation improves cognition and induces modifications in hippocampal neurogenesis in adult female Swiss Webster mice

Adult hippocampal neurogenesis is regulated by several stimuli to promote the creation of a reserve that may facilitate coping with environmental challenges. In this regard, repetitive transcranial magnetic stimulation (rTMS), a neuromodulation therapy, came to our attention because in clinical studies it reverts behavioral and cognitive alterations related to changes in brain plasticity. Some preclinical studies emphasize the need to understand the underlying mechanism of rTMS to induce behavioral modifications. In this study, we investigated the effects of rTMS on cognition, neurogenic-associated modifications, and neuronal activation in the hippocampus of female Swiss Webster mice. We applied 5 Hz of rTMS twice a day for 14 days. Three days later, mice were exposed to the behavioral battery. Then, brains were collected and immunostained for Ki67-positive cells, doublecortin-positive (DCX+)-cells, calbindin, c-Fos and FosB/Delta-FosB in the dentate gyrus. Also, we analyzed mossy fibers and CA3 with calbindin immunostaining. Mice exposed to rTMS exhibited cognitive improvement, an increased number of proliferative cells, DCX cells, DCX cells with complex dendrite morphology, c-Fos and immunoreactivity of FosB/Delta-FosB in the granular cell layer. The volume of the granular cell layer, mossy fibers and CA3 in rTMS mice also increased. Interestingly, cognitive improvement correlated with DCX cells with complex dendrite morphology. Also, those DCX cells and calbindin immunoreactivity correlated with c-Fos in the granular cell layer. Our results suggest that 5 Hz of rTMS applied twice a day modify cell proliferation, doublecortin cells, mossy fibers and enhance cognitive behavior in healthy female Swiss Webster mice.

Environmental enrichment: dissociated effects between physical activity and changing environmental complexity on anxiety and neurogenesis in adult male Balb/C mice

Several factors, including environmental modifications, stimulate neuroplasticity. One type of neuroplasticity consists in the generation of new neurons in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus. Neurogenesis is modulated by environmental enrichment (ENR, tunnels plus running wheel) and affected by the time of exposure to ENR. Despite the wide use of ENR to stimulate neuroplasticity, the degree to which ENR variations modeled by temporally changing the level of environmental complexity affect hippocampal neurogenesis and anxiety is still unclear. Thus, we investigated the effects of five housing conditions on young adult male Balb/C mice exposed for 42 days. The groups were as follows: standard conditions without ENR, constant ENR complexity, gradual increase of ENR complexity followed by a gradual decrease of ENR complexity, gradual increase of ENR complexity followed by constant ENR complexity, and constant ENR complexity followed by a gradual decrease of ENR complexity. On day 44, mice were exposed to the elevated plus-maze to evaluate anxiety. Further, we analyzed neurogenesis and quantified corticosterone levels. In an additional experiment, we explored the effect of voluntary physical activity on anxiety, neurogenesis, and corticosterone during the variations in ENR complexity. Our results showed that any change in ENR complexity over time reduced anxiety. Also, voluntary physical activity alone or in the context of a complex environment increased doublecortin cell maturation in the granular cell layer of the hippocampus. Finally, our study supports that physical activity acts proneurogenic, whereas any change in environmental complexity decreases anxiety-like behavior. However, the decrease in corticosterone levels elicited by physical activity was lower than the decrease produced by the decrement in environmental complexity.

Larger striatal volume is associated with increased adult psychopathy

Prior studies have inconsistently reported increased volumes of the striatum in adults with psychopathy. A meta-analysis presented here indicates an overall effect size of d = 0.44. Nevertheless, variability in findings exist, and questions remain on confounding clinical conditions and generalizability to females. This study tests the hypothesis that striatal volumes are increased in adults with psychopathic traits, and that this relationship is mediated by stimulation-seeking and impulsivity. Striatal volume was assessed using magnetic resonance imaging in 108 adult community-dwelling males alongside psychopathy using the Psychopathy Checklist - Revised. Subsidiary, exploratory analyses were conducted on a small sample of females. Correlational analyses showed that increased striatal volumes were associated with more psychopathic traits (p = .001). Effects were observed for all striatal regions, controlling for age, substance dependence and abuse, antisocial personality disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, social adversity, and total brain volume. An analysis of 18 psychopathic individuals showed that striatal volumes were increased 9.4% compared with 18 matched controls (p = .01). Psychopathy in females was also significantly associated with increased striatal volume (p = .02). Stimulation-seeking and impulsivity partly mediated the striatal-psychopathy relationship, accounting for 49.4% of this association. Findings from these two samples replicate and build on initial studies indicating striatal enlargement in adults with psychopathy, yielding an updated effect size of d = 0.48. Results are consistent with the notion that striatal abnormalities in individuals with psychopathy partly reflect increased sensation-seeking and impulsivity, and support the hypothesis of abnormal reward processing in psychopathy.

An Indicator of environmental enrichment to measure physical, social and cognitive activities in human daily life

BACKGROUND

The concept of environmental enrichment (EE) encompasses complex physical, social, cognitive, motor, and somatosensory stimuli to which individuals are differentially exposed. An indicator of EE comprising these elements would facilitate the study of the impact of EE in diverse clinical settings by allowing an easy and comparable measurement. This study aimed to create and test such an EE indicator based on the Florida Cognitive Activities Scale (FCAS), the Multidimensional Social Integration in Later Life Scale (SILLS), and the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ).

METHODS

Participants with major depression and control subjects were recruited in this cross-sectional comparative study. Depressive symptom severity was assessed with the Hamilton Depression Rating Scale (HAM-D). The EE indicator was used to evaluate cognitive, social, and physical activity. We divided the sample into three levels of cognitive and social activities to construct an EE indicator and compared the obtained scores between participants with major depression and control subjects.

RESULTS

40 patients suffering from major depression and 50 control subjects were included. Higher HAM-D scores were associated with lower EE levels. Cognitive and social items exhibited adequate reliability. Control subjects reported higher scores in all three activities evaluated, except for some items of physical activities. This indicator of EE clearly differentiated between participants with major depression from control subjects.

CONCLUSIONS

FCAS, SILLS, and IPAQ used together are valid to evaluate EE. This EE indicator may be a useful tool during clinical practice. The cross-sectional design and the small sample size are limitations of the present study.

What Is Adult Hippocampal Neurogenesis Good for?

Adult hippocampal neurogenesis is a unique and exceptional process in the mammalian brain that in a lifelong and activity-dependent way generates new excitatory principal neurons. A comprehensive view on their function in greater contexts has now emerged, revealing to which extent the hippocampus (and hence brain and mind) depend on these neurons. Due to a postmitotic period of heightened synaptic plasticity they bias incoming excitation to the dentate gyrus to non-overlapping subnetworks, resulting in pattern separation and the avoidance of catastrophic interference. Temporally, this promotes the flexible integration of novel information into familiar contexts and contributes to episodic memory, which in humans would be critical for autobiographic memory. Together these local effects represent a unique strategy to solve the plasticity-stability dilemma that all learning neuronal networks are facing. Neurogenesis-dependent plasticity also improves memory consolidation. This relates to the surprising involvement of adult neurogenesis in forgetting, which is also hypothesized to be critically relevant for negative plasticity, for example in post-traumatic stress disorder. In addition, adult-born neurons also directly mediate stress-resilience and take part in affective behaviors. Finally, the activity- and experience-dependent plasticity that is contributed by adult neurogenesis is associated with an individualization of the hippocampal circuitry. While a solid and largely consensual understanding of how new neurons contribute to hippocampal function has been reached, an overarching unifying theory that embeds neurogenesis-dependent functionality and effects on connectomics is still missing. More sophisticated multi-electrode electrophysiology, advanced ethologically relevant behavioral tests, and next-generation computational modeling will let us take the next steps.

Enriched environment for offspring improves learning and memory impairments induced by sevoflurane exposure during the second trimester of pregnancy

Studies in animals indicate that sevoflurane exposure in the second trimester of pregnancy has harmful effects on the learning and memory of offspring. Whether an enriched environment can reverse the damage of sevoflurane exposure in the second trimester of pregnancy on the learning and memory of rat offspring remains unclear. In this study, rats at 14 days of pregnancy were exposed to 3.5% sevoflurane for 2 hours and their offspring were treated with an enriched environment for 20 successive days. We found that the enriched environment for offspring increased nestin and Ki67 levels in hippocampal tissue, increased hippocampal neurogenesis, inhibited glycogen synthase kinase 3β activity, and increased the expression of cell proliferation-related β-catenin and apoptosis-related Bcl-2, indicating that an enriched environment reduces sevoflurane-induced damage by increasing the proliferation of stem cells in the hippocampus. These findings suggest that an enriched environment can reverse the effects of sevoflurane inhaled by rats during the second trimester of pregnancy on learning and memory of offspring. This study was approved by the Animal Ethics Committee of Shengjing Hospital of China Medical University (approval No. 2018PS07K) on January 2, 2018.

Enhancing Effects of Environmental Enrichment on the Functions of Natural Killer Cells in Mice

The environment of an organism can convey a powerful influence over its biology. Environmental enrichment (EE), as a eustress model, has been used extensively in neuroscience to study neurogenesis and brain plasticity. EE has also been used as an intervention for the treatment and prevention of neurological and psychiatric disorders with limited clinical application. By contrast, the effects of EE on the immune system are relatively less investigated. Recently, accumulating evidence has demonstrated that EE can robustly impact immune function. In this review, we summarize the major components of EE, the impact of EE on natural killer (NK) cells, EE's immunoprotective roles in cancer, and the underlying mechanisms of EE-induced NK cell regulation. Moreover, we discuss opportunities for translational application based on insights from animal research of EE-induced NK cell regulation.

Behavioral impact of experience based on environmental enrichment: Influence of age and duration of exposure in male NMRI mice

Prior studies have suggested that short periods of exposure to environmental enrichment (EE) in rodents induce physiological and behavioral effects. In the present study, our aim was to evaluate if the impact of experiences based on EE could be modulated by the age of onset and the developmental period of exposure. NMRI male mice (n = 64) were exposed to EE or standard environment (SE) and behavioral changes (anxiety, exploration, memory and social interaction) were evaluated. Groups compared were: (a) SE: exposure to SE on post-natal day (PND) 28 and lasting 6 months; (b) EE-6: exposure to EE on PND 28 and lasting 6 months; (c) EE-4: exposure to EE on PND 91 and lasting 4 months; (d) EE-2: exposure to EE on PND 154 and lasting 2 months. Results indicated that in the hole-board task the decrease in exploratory behavior reached significance when EE was initiated at adolescence whereas anxiolytic effects in the elevated plus-maze tend to diminish after a longer period of EE. No significant effects of EE on aggressive behavior or novel object recognition were obtained. Taking these results into account, further studies are needed in order to determine the possible modulating role of age and duration of exposure to enriched environments on behavior. Results obtained could explain some discrepancies reported in previous studies, providing new evidence that could contribute to the design of future research related to the benefits of complex and enriched environments.

Application of stem cell biology in treating neurodegenerative diseases

BACKGROUND

The appropriate strategies are needed for stimulating the endogenous neurogenesis or introducing extrinsic neural progenitors, which could be harnessed as the regenerative resources for cueing the neurodegenerations. Adult neurogenesis is the endogenous continuing physiology in limited brain regions such as hippocampus, olfactory system, and hypothalamus. Besides adult neurogenesis, induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) induced functional neurons could be another option for regenerative therapies.

OBJECTIVE

Current studies are trying to improve the adult neurogenesis and enable the iPSCs induced neurons into neural regeneration. Methods: Here in this review, we mainly introduced the recent progress in neural stem cell biology and its application in the treatment of the neurodegenerations. We main separated the strategy in summarizing the mediators and potential targets to promoting endogenous neural regeneration and transplantation of neural progenitors.

CONCLUSION

By collecting and comparing the advantages disadvantages between above-mentioned two strategies, we will offer the insight on future development of stem cell therapy in treating neurodegenerative patients.

Differential impact of stress and environmental enrichment on corticolimbic circuits

Stress exposure can produce profound changes in physiology and behavior that can impair health and well-being. Of note, stress exposure is linked to anxiety disorders and depression in humans. The widespread impact of these disorders warrants investigation into treatments to mitigate the harmful effects of stress. Pharmacological treatments fail to help many with these disorders, so recent work has focused on non-pharmacological alternatives. One of the most promising of these alternatives is environmental enrichment (EE). In rodents, EE includes social, physical, and cognitive stimulation for the animal, in the form of larger cages, running wheels, and toys. EE successfully reduces the maladaptive effects of various stressors, both as treatment and prophylaxis. While we know that EE can have beneficial effects under stress conditions, the morphological and molecular mechanisms underlying these behavioral effects are still not well understood. EE is known to alter neurogenesis, dendrite development, and expression of neurotrophic growth factors, effects that vary by type of enrichment, age, and sex. To add to this complexity, EE has differential effects in different brain regions. Understanding how EE exerts its protective effects on morphological and molecular levels could hold the key to developing more targeted pharmacological treatments. In this review, we summarize the literature on the morphological and molecular consequences of EE and stress in key emotional regulatory pathways in the brain, the hippocampus, prefrontal cortex, and amygdala. The similarities and differences among these regions provide some insight into stress-EE interaction that may be exploited in future efforts toward prevention of, and intervention in, stress-related diseases.

Physical Activity Ameliorates Impaired Hippocampal Neurogenesis in the Tg4-42 Mouse Model of Alzheimer's Disease

There is growing evidence from epidemiological studies that especially midlife physical activity might exert a positive influence on the risk and progression of Alzheimer’s disease. In this study, the Tg4-42 mouse model of Alzheimer’s disease has been utilized to assess the effect of different housing conditions on structural changes in the hippocampus. Focusing on the dentate gyrus, we demonstrate that 6-month-old Tg4-42 mice have a reduced number of newborn neurons in comparison to age-matched wild-type mice. Housing these mice for 4 months with either unlimited or intermittent access to a running wheel resulted in a significant rescue of dentate gyrus neurogenesis. Although neither dentate gyrus volume nor neuron number could be modified in this Alzheimer’s disease mouse model, unrestricted access to a running wheel significantly increased dentate gyrus volume and granule cell number in wild-type mice.

An enriched environment increases the expression of fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 and brain-derived neurotrophic factor in the cerebral cortex of the ischemic mouse brain

Many studies have shown that fibronectin type III domain-containing protein 5 (FDNC5) and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) play vital roles in plasticity after brain injury. An enriched environment refers to an environment that provides animals with multi-sensory stimulation and movement opportunities. An enriched environment has been shown to promote the regeneration of nerve cells, synapses, and blood vessels in the animal brain after cerebral ischemia; however, the exact mechanisms have not been clarified. This study aimed to determine whether an enriched environment could improve neurobehavioral functions after the experimental inducement of cerebral ischemia and whether neurobehavioral outcomes were associated with the expression of FDNC5 and BDNF. This study established ischemic mouse models using permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) on the left side. On postoperative day 1, the mice were randomly assigned to either enriched environment or standard housing condition groups. Mice in the standard housing condition group were housed and fed under standard conditions. Mice in the enriched environment group were housed in a large cage, containing various toys, and fed with a standard diet. Sham-operated mice received the same procedure, but without artery occlusion, and were housed and fed under standard conditions. On postoperative days 7 and 14, a beam-walking test was used to assess coordination, balance, and spatial learning. On postoperative days 16–20, a Morris water maze test was used to assess spatial learning and memory. On postoperative day 15, the expression levels of FDNC5 and BDNF proteins in the ipsilateral cerebral cortex were analyzed by western blot assay. The results showed that compared with the standard housing condition group, the motor balance and coordination functions (based on beam-walking test scores 7 and 14 days after operation), spatial learning abilities (based on the spatial learning scores from the Morris water maze test 16–19 days after operation), and memory abilities (based on the memory scores of the Morris water maze test 20 days after operation) of the enriched environment group improved significantly. In addition, the expression levels of FDNC5 and BDNF proteins in the ipsilateral cerebral cortex increased in the enriched environment group compared with those in the standard housing condition group. Furthermore, the Pearson correlation coefficient showed that neurobehavioral functions were positively associated with the expression levels of FDNC5 and BDNF (r = 0.587 and r = 0.840, respectively). These findings suggest that an enriched environment upregulates FDNC5 protein expression in the ipsilateral cerebral cortex after cerebral ischemia, which then activates BDNF protein expression, improving neurological function. BDNF protein expression was positively correlated with improved neurological function. The experimental protocols were approved by the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee of Fudan University, China (approval Nos. 20160858A232, 20160860A234) on February 24, 2016.

Experience-Dependent Structural Plasticity of Adult-Born Neurons in the Aging Hippocampus

Synaptic modification in cortical structures underlies the acquisition of novel information that results in learning and memory formation. In the adult dentate gyrus, circuit remodeling is boosted by the generation of new granule cells (GCs) that contribute to specific aspects of memory encoding. These forms of plasticity decrease in the aging brain, where both the rate of adult neurogenesis and the speed of morphological maturation of newly generated neurons decline. In the young-adult brain, a brief novel experience accelerates the integration of new neurons. The extent to which such degree of plasticity is preserved in the aging hippocampus remains unclear. In this work, we characterized the time course of functional integration of adult-born GCs in middle-aged mice. We performed whole-cell recordings in developing GCs from Ascl1CreERT2;CAGfloxStopTom mice and found a late onset of functional excitatory synaptogenesis, which occurred at 4 weeks (vs. 2 weeks in young-adult mice). Overall mature excitability and maximal glutamatergic connectivity were achieved at 10 weeks. In contrast, large mossy fiber boutons (MFBs) in CA3 displayed mature morphological features including filopodial extensions at 4 weeks, suggesting that efferent connectivity develops faster than afference. Notably, new GCs from middle-aged mice exposed to enriched environment for 7 days showed an advanced degree of maturity at 3 weeks, revealed by the high frequency of excitatory postsynaptic responses, complex dendritic trees, and large size of MFBs with filopodial extensions. These findings demonstrate that adult-born neurons act as sensors that transduce behavioral stimuli into major network remodeling in the aging brain.