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Bennett D, Nakamura J, Vinnakota C, Sokolenko E, Nithianantharajah J, van den Buuse M, Jones NC, Sundram S, Hill R. Mouse Behavior on the Trial-Unique Nonmatching-to-Location ( TUNL) Touchscreen Task Reflects a Mixture of Distinct Working Memory Codes and Response Biases. J Neurosci 2023; 43:5693-5709. [PMID: 37369587 PMCID: PMC10401633 DOI: 10.1523/jneurosci.2101-22.2023] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/28/2022] [Revised: 04/28/2023] [Accepted: 06/02/2023] [Indexed: 06/29/2023] Open
Abstract
The trial-unique nonmatching to location (TUNL) touchscreen task shows promise as a translational assay of working memory (WM) deficits in rodent models of autism, ADHD, and schizophrenia. However, the low-level neurocognitive processes that drive behavior in the TUNL task have not been fully elucidated. In particular, it is commonly assumed that the TUNL task predominantly measures spatial WM dependent on hippocampal pattern separation, but this proposition has not previously been tested. In this project, we tested this question using computational modeling of behavior from male and female mice performing the TUNL task (N = 163 across three datasets; 158,843 trials). Using this approach, we empirically tested whether TUNL behavior solely measured retrospective WM, or whether it was possible to deconstruct behavior into additional neurocognitive subprocesses. Overall, contrary to common assumptions, modeling analyses revealed that behavior on the TUNL task did not primarily reflect retrospective spatial WM. Instead, behavior was best explained as a mixture of response strategies, including both retrospective WM (remembering the spatial location of a previous stimulus) and prospective WM (remembering an anticipated future behavioral response) as well as animal-specific response biases. These results suggest that retrospective spatial WM is just one of a number of cognitive subprocesses that contribute to choice behavior on the TUNL task. We suggest that findings can be understood within a resource-rational framework, and use computational model simulations to propose several task-design principles that we predict will maximize spatial WM and minimize alternative behavioral strategies in the TUNL task.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT Touchscreen tasks represent a paradigm shift for assessment of cognition in nonhuman animals by automating large-scale behavioral data collection. Their main relevance, however, depends on the assumption of functional equivalence to cognitive domains in humans. The trial-unique, delayed nonmatching to location (TUNL) touchscreen task has revolutionized the study of rodent spatial working memory. However, its assumption of functional equivalence to human spatial working memory is untested. We leveraged previously untapped single-trial TUNL data to uncover a novel set of hierarchically ordered cognitive processes that underlie mouse behavior on this task. The strategies used demonstrate multiple cognitive approaches to a single behavioral outcome and the requirement for more precise task design and sophisticated data analysis in interpreting rodent spatial working memory.
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Affiliation(s)
- Daniel Bennett
- School of Psychological Sciences, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3180, Australia
| | - Jay Nakamura
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3180, Australia
- Laboratory for Molecular Mechanisms of Brain Development, RIKEN Center for Brain Science, Saitama, Japan, 351-0198
| | - Chitra Vinnakota
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3180, Australia
| | - Elysia Sokolenko
- Discipline of Anatomy and Pathology, School of Biomedicine, University of Adelaide, Adelaide, South Australia 5005, Australia
| | | | - Maarten van den Buuse
- School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Melbourne, Victoria 3086, Australia
| | - Nigel C Jones
- Department of Neuroscience, Central Clinical School, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3004, Australia
- Department of Neurology, Alfred Hospital, Commercial Road, Melbourne, Victoria 3004, Australia
- Department of Medicine, Royal Melbourne Hospital, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Victoria 3052, Australia
| | - Suresh Sundram
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3180, Australia
- Mental Health Program, Monash Health, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Rachel Hill
- Department of Psychiatry, Monash University, Melbourne, Victoria 3180, Australia
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Nakamura JP, Gillespie B, Gibbons A, Jaehne EJ, Du X, Chan A, Schroeder A, van den Buuse M, Sundram S, Hill RA. Maternal immune activation targeted to a window of parvalbumin interneuron development improves spatial working memory: Implications for autism. Brain Behav Immun 2021; 91:339-349. [PMID: 33096253 DOI: 10.1016/j.bbi.2020.10.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/15/2020] [Revised: 09/29/2020] [Accepted: 10/10/2020] [Indexed: 10/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Maternal immune activation (MIA) increases risk for neuropsychiatric disorders such as autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in offspring later in life through unknown causal mechanisms. Growing evidence implicates parvalbumin-containing GABAergic interneurons as a key target in rodent MIA models. We targeted a specific neurodevelopmental window of parvalbumin interneurons in a mouse MIA model to examine effects on spatial working memory, a key domain in ASD that can manifest as either impairments or improvements both clinically and in animal models. Pregnant dams received three consecutive intraperitoneal injections of Polyinosinic:polycytidylic acid (poly(I:C), 5 mg/kg) at gestational days 13, 14 and 15. Spatial working memory was assessed in young adult offspring using touchscreen operant chambers and the Trial-Unique Non-matching to Location (TUNL) task. Anxiety, novelty seeking and short-term memory were assessed using Elevated Plus Maze (EPM) and Y-maze novelty preference tasks. Fluorescent immunohistochemistry was used to assess hippocampal parvalbumin cell density, intensity and co-expression with perineuronal nets. qPCR was used to assess the expression of putatively implicated gene pathways. MIA targeting a window of parvalbumin interneuron development increased spatial working memory performance on the TUNL touchscreen task which was not influenced by anxiety or novelty seeking behaviour. The model reduced fetal mRNA levels of Gad1 and adult hippocampal mRNA levels of Pvalb and the distribution of low intensity parvalbumin interneurons was altered. We speculate a specific timing window for parvalbumin interneuron development underpins the apparently paradoxical improved spatial working memory phenotype found both across several rodent models of autism and clinically in ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jay P Nakamura
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Brendan Gillespie
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Andrew Gibbons
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Emily J Jaehne
- School of Psychology and Public Health, Department of Psychology, La Trobe University, Victoria 3086, Australia
| | - Xin Du
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Aaron Chan
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Anna Schroeder
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Maarten van den Buuse
- School of Psychology and Public Health, Department of Psychology, La Trobe University, Victoria 3086, Australia; Department of Pharmacology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Victoria 3010, Australia; The College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland 4811, Australia
| | - Suresh Sundram
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia
| | - Rachel A Hill
- Department of Psychiatry, School of Clinical Sciences, Monash University, Clayton, Victoria 3168, Australia.
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Sbisa AM, Gogos A, van den Buuse M. Spatial working memory in the touchscreen operant platform is disrupted in female rats by ovariectomy but not estrous cycle. Neurobiol Learn Mem 2017; 144:147-154. [PMID: 28729138 DOI: 10.1016/j.nlm.2017.07.010] [Citation(s) in RCA: 10] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2016] [Revised: 05/31/2017] [Accepted: 07/15/2017] [Indexed: 12/12/2022]
Abstract
Learning and memory deficits have been described in rats and mice after ovariectomy (OVX) and across the estrous cycle. Preclinical researchers therefore often avoid using female animals and, consequently, a large male bias exists in the preclinical cognitive literature. In the present study we examined the role of sex hormones in the touchscreen operant platform using the spatial working memory trial unique nonmatching-to-location (TUNL) task. Twenty-nine Long Evans rats were trained to acquire the TUNL task including three incremental spatial separations (S0, S1, S2). Following 20 consecutive days of training, subjects in experiment 1 (n=15) remained intact and immediately progressed to TUNL testing, while subjects in experiment 2 were OVX (n=6) or sham-operated (n=8) prior to testing. Subjects were tested on 4 spatial separations (S0-3) with a 1s or 6s delay between the sample and nonmatching stimuli. The estrous cycle of intact rats was monitored during the 4weeks of testing. The estrous cycle phase did not significantly affect performance. In contrast, compared to intact rats, OVX impaired performance at larger spatial separations (S2-3) during the 1s delay condition. Further, during the 6s delay, OVX impaired S2 performance, however not S3. Our results suggest a probable shift in cognitive strategy following OVX, when tested with a large and novel spatial separation. Our findings suggest that ovarian hormone deprivation following OVX, but not estrous cycle, impairs spatial working memory as measured by the TUNL task. This research is relevant for future studies utilising the touchscreen TUNL task and for cognitive testing of female rats.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alyssa M Sbisa
- Hormones in Psychiatry Laboratory, The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia
| | - Andrea Gogos
- Hormones in Psychiatry Laboratory, The Florey Institute of Neuroscience and Mental Health, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Maarten van den Buuse
- School of Psychology and Public Health, La Trobe University, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia; Department of Pharmacology, University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia; The College of Public Health, Medical and Veterinary Sciences, James Cook University, Queensland, Australia.
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Kumar G, Olley J, Steckler T, Talpos J. Dissociable effects of NR2A and NR2B NMDA receptor antagonism on cognitive flexibility but not pattern separation. Psychopharmacology (Berl) 2015; 232:3991-4003. [PMID: 26184010 DOI: 10.1007/s00213-015-4008-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 26] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/03/2015] [Accepted: 06/28/2015] [Indexed: 12/29/2022]
Abstract
RATIONALE N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors play crucial roles in learning and memory, but the role of each NMDA receptor subtype in a specific cognitive process is unclear. Non-selective blockers of NMDA receptor are used to model the cognitive impairment in schizophrenia and Alzheimer's disease. Counter-intuitively selective NR2A and 2B NMDA receptor antagonists are thought to have pro-cognitive properties. These seemingly contrasting findings might in part be the result of different compounds and behavioral measures used across studies. OBJECTIVE We compared the effect of NVP-AAM077 (NR2A antagonist), CP 101-606 (NR2B antagonist), and MK-801 (non-selective antagonist) in a series of touch screen tasks that can be used to measure spatial cognition and cognitive flexibility. METHODS NVP-AAM077, CP 101-606, and MK-801 were administered prior to testing, in adult male Lister-hooded rats trained in tasks of location discrimination, paired associate learning (PAL), and trial unique non-match to location (TUNL). RESULTS Results showed that MK-801 impaired performance on all the tasks. In contrast, CP 101-606 only impaired reversal learning in location discrimination and had minimal effect on working memory in TUNL and caused a modest improvement in accuracy in PAL and acquisition of a spatial discrimination. NVP-AAM077 had little effect on performance across tasks, although these data allude to a potential enhancement of acquisition of a spatial location and impairments in spatial reversal learning in a separation-dependent manner. CONCLUSIONS These data demonstrated that non-selective NMDA antagonism will disrupt numerous aspects of cognitive function. However, selective antagonism is capable of impairing or enhancing cognitive function in a task-dependent fashion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gaurav Kumar
- Janssen Research & Development, Turnhoutseweg 30, 2340, Beerse, Belgium.
| | - Joseph Olley
- Janssen Research & Development, Turnhoutseweg 30, 2340, Beerse, Belgium
| | - Thomas Steckler
- Janssen Research & Development, Turnhoutseweg 30, 2340, Beerse, Belgium
| | - John Talpos
- Janssen Research & Development, Turnhoutseweg 30, 2340, Beerse, Belgium
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