Choline supplementation in early life improves and low levels of choline can impair outcomes in a mouse model of Alzheimer's disease

Maternal choline supplementation (MCS) improves cognition in Alzheimer's disease (AD) models. However, effects of MCS on neuronal hyperexcitability in AD are unknown. We investigated effects of MCS in a well-established mouse model of AD with hyperexcitability, the Tg2576 mouse. The most common type of hyperexcitability in Tg2576 mice, and many other mouse models and AD patients, are generalized EEG spikes (interictal spikes; IIS). Hyperexcitability is also reflected by elevated expression of the transcription factor ΔFosB in the granule cells (GCs) of the dentate gyrus (DG), which are the principal cell type. We also studied the hilus of the DG because hilar neurons regulate GC excitability. We found reduced expression of the neuronal marker NeuN within hilar neurons in Tg2576 mice, which other studies have shown is a sign of oxidative stress or other pathology. Tg2576 breeding pairs received a diet with a relatively low, intermediate or high concentration of choline. After weaning, all mice received the intermediate diet. In offspring of mice fed the high choline diet, IIS frequency declined, GC ΔFosB expression was reduced, and NeuN expression was restored. Spatial memory improved using the novel object location task. In contrast, offspring exposed to the relatively low choline diet had several adverse effects, such as increased mortality. They had the weakest hilar NeuN immunoreactivity and greatest GC ΔFosB. However, their IIS frequency was low, which was surprising. The results provide new evidence that a diet high in choline in early life can improve outcomes in a mouse model of AD, and relatively low choline can have mixed effects. This is the first study showing that dietary choline can regulate hyperexcitability, hilar neurons, ΔFosB and spatial memory in an animal model of AD.

Increasing adult neurogenesis protects mice from epilepsy

Neurogenesis occurs in the adult brain in the hippocampal dentate gyrus, an area that contains neurons which are vulnerable to insults and injury, such as severe seizures. Previous studies showed that increasing adult neurogenesis reduced neuronal damage after these seizures. Because the damage typically is followed by chronic lifelong seizures (epilepsy), we asked if increasing adult neurogenesis would prevent epilepsy. Adult neurogenesis was selectively increased by deleting the pro-apoptotic gene Bax from Nestin-expressing progenitors. Tamoxifen was administered at 6 weeks of age to conditionally delete Bax in Nestin-CreERT2Baxfl/fl mice. Six weeks after tamoxifen administration, severe seizures (status epilepticus; SE) were induced by injection of the convulsant pilocarpine. Mice with increased adult neurogenesis exhibited fewer chronic seizures. Postictal depression was reduced also. These results were primarily female mice, possibly because they were the more affected by Bax deletion than males, consistent with sex differences in Bax in development. The female mice with enhanced adult neurogenesis also showed less neuronal loss of hilar mossy cells and hilar somatostatin-expressing neurons than wild type females or males, which is notable because these two cell types are implicated in epileptogenesis. The results suggest that increasing adult neurogenesis in the normal adult brain can reduce experimental epilepsy, and the effect shows a striking sex difference. The results are surprising in light of past studies showing that suppressing adult-born neurons can also reduce chronic seizures.

Enhanced excitability of the hippocampal CA2 region and its contribution to seizure activity in a mouse model of temporal lobe epilepsy

The hippocampal CA2 region, an area important for social memory, has been suspected to play a role in temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) because of its resistance to degeneration observed in neighboring CA1 and CA3 regions in both humans and rodent models of TLE. However, little is known about whether alterations in CA2 properties promote seizure generation or propagation. Here, we addressed the role of CA2 using the pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus model of TLE. Ex vivo electrophysiological recordings from acute hippocampal slices revealed a set of coordinated changes that enhance CA2 PC intrinsic excitability, reduce CA2 inhibitory input, and increase CA2 excitatory output to its major CA1 synaptic target. Moreover, selective chemogenetic silencing of CA2 pyramidal cells caused a significant decrease in the frequency of spontaneous seizures measured in vivo. These findings provide the first evidence that CA2 actively contributes to TLE seizure activity and may thus be a promising therapeutic target.

An Excitatory and Epileptogenic Effect of Dentate Gyrus Mossy Cells in a Mouse Model of Epilepsy

The sparse activity of hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) granule cells (GCs) is thought to be critical for cognition and behavior, whereas excessive DG activity may contribute to disorders such as temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE). Glutamatergic mossy cells (MCs) of the DG are potentially critical to normal and pathological functions of the DG because they can regulate GC activity through innervation of GCs or indirectly through GABAergic neurons. Here, we test the hypothesis that MC excitation of GCs is normally weak, but under pathological conditions, MC excitation of GCs is dramatically strengthened. We show that selectively inhibiting MCs during severe seizures reduced manifestations of those seizures, hippocampal injury, and chronic epilepsy. In contrast, selectively activating MCs was pro-convulsant. Mechanistic in vitro studies using optogenetics further demonstrated the unanticipated ability of MC axons to excite GCs under pathological conditions. These results demonstrate an excitatory and epileptogenic effect of MCs in the DG.

Adult neurogenesis in the mouse dentate gyrus protects the hippocampus from neuronal injury following severe seizures

Previous studies suggest that reducing the numbers of adult-born neurons in the dentate gyrus (DG) of the mouse increases susceptibility to severe continuous seizures (status epilepticus; SE) evoked by systemic injection of the convulsant kainic acid (KA). However, it was not clear if the results would be the same for other ways to induce seizures, or if SE-induced damage would be affected. Therefore, we used pilocarpine, which induces seizures by a different mechanism than KA. Also, we quantified hippocampal damage after SE. In addition, we used both loss-of-function and gain-of-function methods in adult mice. We hypothesized that after loss-of-function, mice would be more susceptible to pilocarpine-induced SE and SE-associated hippocampal damage, and after gain-of-function, mice would be more protected from SE and hippocampal damage after SE. For loss-of-function, adult neurogenesis was suppressed by pharmacogenetic deletion of dividing radial glial precursors. For gain-of-function, adult neurogenesis was increased by conditional deletion of pro-apoptotic gene Bax in Nestin-expressing progenitors. Fluoro-Jade C (FJ-C) was used to quantify neuronal injury and video-electroencephalography (video-EEG) was used to quantify SE. Pilocarpine-induced SE was longer in mice with reduced adult neurogenesis, SE had more power and neuronal damage was greater. Conversely, mice with increased adult-born neurons had shorter SE, SE had less power, and there was less neuronal damage. The results suggest that adult-born neurons exert protective effects against SE and SE-induced neuronal injury.

Hilar granule cells of the mouse dentate gyrus: effects of age, septotemporal location, strain, and selective deletion of the proapoptotic gene BAX

The dentate gyrus (DG) principal cells are glutamatergic granule cells (GCs), and they are located in a compact cell layer. However, GCs are also present in the adjacent hilar region, but have been described in only a few studies. Therefore, we used the transcription factor prospero homeobox 1 (Prox1) to quantify GCs at postnatal day (PND) 16, 30, and 60 in a common mouse strain, C57BL/6J mice. At PND16, there was a large population of Prox1-immunoreactive (ir) hilar cells, with more in the septal than temporal hippocampus. At PND30 and 60, the size of the hilar Prox1-ir cell population was reduced. Similar numbers of hilar Prox1-expressing cells were observed in PND30 and 60 Swiss Webster mice. Prox1 is usually considered to be a marker of postmitotic GCs. However, many Prox1-ir hilar cells, especially at PND16, were not double-labeled with NeuN, a marker typically found in mature neurons. Most hilar Prox1-positive cells at PND16 co-expressed doublecortin (DCX) and calretinin, markers of immature GCs. Double-labeling with a marker of actively dividing cells, Ki67, was not detected. These results suggest that, surprisingly, a large population of cells in the hilus at PND16 are immature GCs (Type 2b and Type 3 cells). We also asked whether hilar Prox1-ir cell numbers are modifiable. To examine this issue, we conditionally deleted the proapoptotic gene BAX in Nestin-expressing cells at a time when there are numerous immature GCs in the hilus, PND2-8. When these mice were examined at PND60, the numbers of Prox1-ir hilar cells were significantly increased compared to control mice. However, deletion of BAX did not appear to change the proportion that co-expressed NeuN, suggesting that the size of the hilar Prox1-expressing population is modifiable. However, deleting BAX, a major developmental disruption, does not appear to change the proportion that ultimately becomes neurons.

Interictal spikes during sleep are an early defect in the Tg2576 mouse model of β-amyloid neuropathology

It has been suggested that neuronal hyperexcitability contributes to Alzheimer's disease (AD), so we asked how hyperexcitability develops in a common mouse model of β-amyloid neuropathology - Tg2576 mice. Using video-EEG recordings, we found synchronized, large amplitude potentials resembling interictal spikes (IIS) in epilepsy at just 5 weeks of age, long before memory impairments or β-amyloid deposition. Seizures were not detected, but they did occur later in life, suggesting that IIS are possibly the earliest stage of hyperexcitability. Interestingly, IIS primarily occurred during rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep, which is notable because REM is associated with increased cholinergic tone and cholinergic impairments are implicated in AD. Although previous studies suggest that cholinergic antagonists would worsen pathophysiology, the muscarinic antagonist atropine reduced IIS frequency. In addition, we found IIS occurred in APP51 mice which overexpress wild type (WT)-APP, although not as uniformly or as early in life as Tg2576 mice. Taken together with results from prior studies, the data suggest that surprising and multiple mechanisms contribute to hyperexcitability. The data also suggest that IIS may be a biomarker for early detection of AD.

Interictal spike frequency varies with ovarian cycle stage in a rat model of epilepsy

In catamenial epilepsy, seizures exhibit a cyclic pattern that parallels the menstrual cycle. Many studies suggest that catamenial seizures are caused by fluctuations in gonadal hormones during the menstrual cycle, but this has been difficult to study in rodent models of epilepsy because the ovarian cycle in rodents, called the estrous cycle, is disrupted by severe seizures. Thus, when epilepsy is severe, estrous cycles become irregular or stop. Therefore, we modified kainic acid (KA)- and pilocarpine-induced status epilepticus (SE) models of epilepsy so that seizures were rare for the first months after SE, and conducted video-EEG during this time. The results showed that interictal spikes (IIS) occurred intermittently. All rats with regular 4-day estrous cycles had IIS that waxed and waned with the estrous cycle. The association between the estrous cycle and IIS was strong: if the estrous cycles became irregular transiently, IIS frequency also became irregular, and when the estrous cycle resumed its 4-day pattern, IIS frequency did also. Furthermore, when rats were ovariectomized, or males were recorded, IIS frequency did not show a 4-day pattern. Systemic administration of an estrogen receptor antagonist stopped the estrous cycle transiently, accompanied by transient irregularity of the IIS pattern. Eventually all animals developed severe, frequent seizures and at that time both the estrous cycle and the IIS became irregular. We conclude that the estrous cycle entrains IIS in the modified KA and pilocarpine SE models of epilepsy. The data suggest that the ovarian cycle influences more aspects of epilepsy than seizure susceptibility.

Suppression of adult neurogenesis increases the acute effects of kainic acid

Adult neurogenesis, the generation of new neurons in the adult brain, occurs in the hippocampal dentate gyrus (DG) and the olfactory bulb (OB) of all mammals, but the functions of these new neurons are not entirely clear. Originally, adult-born neurons were considered to have excitatory effects on the DG network, but recent studies suggest a net inhibitory effect. Therefore, we hypothesized that selective removal of newborn neurons would lead to increased susceptibility to the effects of a convulsant. This hypothesis was tested by evaluating the response to the chemoconvulsant kainic acid (KA) in mice with reduced adult neurogenesis, produced either by focal X-irradiation of the DG, or by pharmacogenetic deletion of dividing radial glial precursors. In the first 4 hrs after KA administration, when mice have the most robust seizures, mice with reduced adult neurogenesis had more severe convulsive seizures, exhibited either as a decreased latency to the first convulsive seizure, greater number of convulsive seizures, or longer convulsive seizures. Nonconvulsive seizures did not appear to change or they decreased. Four-21 hrs after KA injection, mice with reduced adult neurogenesis showed more interictal spikes (IIS) and delayed seizures than controls. Effects were greater when the anticonvulsant ethosuximide was injected 30 min prior to KA administration; ethosuximide allows forebrain seizure activity to be more easily examined in mice by suppressing seizures dominated by the brainstem. These data support the hypothesis that reduction of adult-born neurons increases the susceptibility of the brain to effects of KA.

Spike-wave discharges in adult Sprague-Dawley rats and their implications for animal models of temporal lobe epilepsy

Spike-wave discharges (SWDs) are thalamocortical oscillations that are often considered to be the EEG correlate of absence seizures. Genetic absence epilepsy rats of Strasbourg (GAERS) and Wistar Albino Glaxo rats from Rijswijk (WAG/Rij) exhibit SWDs and are considered to be genetic animal models of absence epilepsy. However, it has been reported that other rat strains have SWDs, suggesting that SWDs may vary in their prevalence, but all rats have a predisposition for them. This is important because many of these rat strains are used to study temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE), where it is assumed that there is no seizure-like activity in controls. In the course of other studies using the Sprague-Dawley rat, a common rat strain for animal models of TLE, we found that approximately 19% of 2- to 3-month-old naive female Sprague-Dawley rats exhibited SWDs spontaneously during periods of behavioral arrest, which continued for months. Males exhibited SWDs only after 3 months of age, consistent with previous reports (Buzsáki et al., 1990). Housing in atypical lighting during early life appeared to facilitate the incidence of SWDs. Spike-wave discharges were often accompanied by behaviors similar to stage 1-2 limbic seizures. Therefore, additional analyses were made to address the similarity. We observed that the frequency of SWDs was similar to that of hippocampal theta rhythm during exploration for a given animal, typically 7-8 Hz. Therefore, activity in the frequency of theta rhythm that occurs during frozen behavior may not reflect seizures necessarily. Hippocampal recordings exhibited high frequency oscillations (>250 Hz) during SWDs, suggesting that neuronal activity in the hippocampus occurs during SWDs, i.e., it is not a passive structure. The data also suggest that high frequency oscillations, if rhythmic, may reflect SWDs. We also confirmed that SWDs were present in a common animal model of TLE, the pilocarpine model, using female Sprague-Dawley rats. Therefore, damage and associated changes to thalamic, hippocampal, and cortical neurons do not prevent SWDs, at least in this animal model. The results suggest that it is possible that SWDs occur in rodent models of TLE and that investigators mistakenly assume that they are stage 1-2 limbic seizures. We discuss the implications of the results and ways to avoid the potential problems associated with SWDs in animal models of TLE.