Book of abstracts - British Neuroscience Association

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52.04 Stress and adult neurogenesis Glasper E Department of Psychology, Program in Neuroscience, Princeton University, Princeton NJ 08544 The hippocampus of adult mammals continues to add new granule neurons throughout life. Adult neurogenesis in the hippocampus is modulated by hormones and experience. Several studies indicate that stress, during development or in adulthood, decreases cell proliferation and immature neuron in the dentate gyrus of adult rodents and primates. Some evidence links these effects to stress-induced elevations in glucocorticoids. However, other studies suggest that the motivational valence of the stressor is important for mediating stress effects on neurogenesis – positive stressors like running and sexual experience do not inhibit adult neurogenesis and indeed, can increase the number of new neurons. The mechanisms which serve to buffer the brain from high levels of glucocorticoids under conditions of “positive stress” remain unexplored. 53.01 Subcortical loops through the basal ganglia. Redgrave P The architecture of cortico-basal ganglia-cortical connections is characterised by parallel, largely segregated, closed-loop projections. Evidence will be considered suggesting that such loops involving the neocortex are neither novel nor the first evolutionary example of closedloop architecture involving the basal ganglia. The specific proposal will be that a phylogenetically older, closed-loop series of subcortical connections exist between the basal ganglia and brainstem sensorimotor structures, a good example of which is the midbrain superior colliculus. Insofar as this organisation represents a general feature of brain architecture, cortical and subcortical inputs to the basal ganglia may act independently, cooperatively, or competitively to influence the mechanisms of action selection. 53.02 Behavioural roles of the pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus Winn P School of Psychology, St Andrews University, St Andrews, Fife KY16 9JP The pedunculopontine tegmental nucleus (PPTg), in the mesopontine tegmentum, has a structure and pattern of connectivity consistent across vertebrate species. It has intimate connections with the basal ganglia, both ascending and descending. It is a target of outflow from pallidum, subthalamic nucleus (STn) and substantia nigra reticulata, while PPTg neurons innervate pallidum, STn and provide excitatory input to dopamine containing neurons in substantia nigra compacta and the ventral tegmental area. Growing recognition that the PPTg can be considered as part of the basal ganglia family has been accompanied by re-assessment of its behavioural functions. An older literature emphasizes roles for the PPTg in locomotion and behavioural state control, but recent research has played down the importance of the PPTg in regard to these and instead emphasized roles in other processes. We have conducted research over the last several years using excitotoxins to lesion the whole PPTg. In rats, bilateral lesions of the entire PPTg produce no deficits in locomotion, sleep regulation (in non-deprived conditions), or "emotional" behaviour. There are however, profound disturbances in tests of learning, memory and attention, higher-order functions associated with corticostriatal systems. These studies show that the PPTg has more complex functions than previously suspected. Having established this, the key tasks now are (i) to better characterize the behavioural deficits – are they all related to a core dysfunction, perhaps in association learning (ii) To define better the internal structure of the PPTg such that specific functions of component parts (identified neurochemically and hodologically) can be identified. 53.03 Physiological analyses of cholinergic and non-cholinergic neurons in the PPN that innervate the basal ganglia Mena-Segovia J, Sims H M, Magill P J, Bolam J P. MRC Anatomical Neuropharmacology Unit, Mansfield Road, , Oxford OX1 3TH, United Kingdom, Previous studies have shown that neurons of the pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) are highly interconnected with the basal ganglia. The PPN, once considered a predominantly cholinergic structure, is now recognised as a neurochemically heterogeneous nucleus, with populations of GABAergic and glutamatergic neurons. Electrophysiological studies show a high degree of heterogeneity among PPN neurons. To define the characteristics of the neurons that innervate the basal ganglia, we recorded the activity of single cells in vivo and then labelled them by the juxtacellular method to define their location within the PPN and define their morphological and neurochemical properties. Identified cholinergic neurons fired in association with the cortical gamma oscillations during both slow wave activity, and the activated state. Their axons projected to the basal ganglia (substantia nigra pars compacta and reticulata, and subthalamic nucleus), and they also had ascending and descending collaterals (towards the thalamus and colliculi, and lower brainstem, respectively). In contrast, identified non-cholinergic neurons showed more heterogeneous electrophysiological characteristics: their firing was correlated with cortical activity or independent of it, in which case the pattern of firing was tonic, bursty or nearly silent. Non-cholinergic neurons also have differences in their branching pattern: they have a single collateral projecting towards the basal ganglia, a single ascending collateral projecting towards the inferior and superior colliculi, or two collaterals projecting to basal ganglia and thalamus. The PPN thus contains neurochemically distinct populations of neurons that have distinct electrophysiological properties and distinct connections with the basal ganglia. Supported by the Parkinson’s Disease Society and MRC. Page 76/101 - 10/05/2013 - 11:11:03
53.04 The role of the pedunculopontine nucleus in Parkinson’s disease Nandi D, Jenkinson E, Stein J F, Aziz T Z Oxford Functional Neurosurgery Gait freezing and poor balance are two of the most crippling and drug resistant symptoms of advanced Parkinson’s disease (PD) and also of other untreatable disorders such as MSA and PSP. The pedunculopontine nucleus (PPN) has been implicated in these symptoms. The PPN is in the upper brain stem. The major inhibitory input is from the medial pallidum and SN reticulata and bilateral output is to the SN compacta, thalamus and spinal cord. Stimulation of the PPN in the decerebrate rat, cat and dog induced gait-like movements. In autopsy studies in PD, MSA, PSP and the DYT-1 dystonic brain, the PPN is degenerate. Autoradiography of the MPTP-parkinsonian primate shows excessive inhibition in the PPN. Lesions of the PPN in the normal primate induced PD-type bradykinesia which was persistent with bilateral lesions. In the MPTPprimate model, microinjections of the GABA antagonist bicuculine into the PPN reversed Parkinsonian akinesia implying that stimulation of this region might have a therapeutic role in drug resistant PD [1]. Low frequency (5-10Hz) stimulation of the PPN in the same model reversed akinesia [2] independently of L-Dopa; moreover, L-Dopa and stimulation effects were additive [3,4], implying separate pathways. Clinical reports in PD patients by Mazzone [5] and other groups (Bristol, Toronto, Brisbane) showed that PPN stimulation did have the beneficial effects that were predicted by the primate studies. This research demonstrates the validity of the MPTP-primate model of Parkinsonism and the role of the PPN in akinesia. Long term effects PPN stimulation need to be monitored. 54.0 Neurotrophins in development and diseases Barde Y-A Biozentrum, University of Basel Switzerland The neurotrophin gene family comprises 4 members with structural and functional similarities. While nerve growth factor was the founding member of the family, it is brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) that is expressed at the highest levels in all areas in the adult brain. These levels increase substantially post-natally and mouse models have been generated allowing the role of BDNF to be examined in the adult nervous system. Elaborate animal models of complete BDNF deprivation compatible with survival of adult animals are all the more desirable that in humans, gene polymorphisms and inactivation have been identified that significantly impact the behaviour of affected individuals. Most of the trophic actions of BDNF can be explained by its ability to activate the tyrosine kinase receptor TrkB. However, it has been clear for some time that the neurotrophin signalling system also comprises another pathway activated by the neurotrophin receptor p75. Its recruitment explains many of the “regressive” events associated with the neurotrophins and their receptors, including cell death in their most radical manifestation, as well as the limitation of axonal elongation and branching of dendrites. As the signalling events downstream of this receptor are still poorly understood, we recently begun to use neurons derived from embryonic stem cells to explore novel pathways activated by p75. We recently found that p75 transcriptionally increases the levels of an endogenous lectin which causes the degeneration of processes and that interfering with the activity of this lectin prevents the degeneration of neurons and of axons. 55.0 In vivo voltammetry: real-time monitoring of brain chemistry Lowry J P Sensors Development & Neurochemistry Research Units, BioAnalytics Laboratory, Department of Chemistry, National University of Ireland, Maynooth, Co. Kildare, Ireland. The importance of chemical signalling between cells in the functioning of neural networks is highlighted empirically by the use of drugs in the treatment of neurological disorders, such as Parkinson’s disease, schizophrenia and depression, as well as by mind-altering substances of abuse, all of which have specific chemical actions on brain neurons. A growing number of methodologies are being developed, including sampling (e.g. brain microdialysis), spectroscopic (e.g. fMRI) and electrochemical, to study neurochemical dynamics in the living brain. With the electrochemical approach, a microvoltammetric electrode is implanted in a specific brain region to monitor local changes in the concentration of substances in the extracellular fluid with sub-second time resolution over extended periods. This allows investigations of the functions of specific chemicals in neuronal signalling, drug actions, and well defined behaviours. The development of new technologies for long-term in-vivo electrochemistry (LIVE) in the conscious brain is now possible following major advances in the fabrication of sensing devices using polymer-enzyme composites (PECs) synthesised in situ on the electrode surface. We have already demonstrated the feasibility of using classical microelectrodes to monitor brain ascorbate, oxygen and blood flow, and PEC-based biosensors to monitor brain glucose in vivo. New in-vivo sensors for glutamate, hydrogen peroxide, NO and lactate, based on both classical and PEC designs are presently at various stages of development. In this presentation these LIVE devices will be described along with their application in novel studies of brain energy metabolism and animal models of psychiatric disease. 56.01 G2Cdb: The genes to cognition database. Croning M D R, Elliott P T, Marshall M C, McLaren P A, Grant S G N Genes to Cognition Programme, The Wellcome Trust Sanger Institute, Hinxton, Cambridge, CB10 1SA. Neuroscience databases linking genes, physiology, anatomy and behaviour across species will be valuable in a broad range of studies of the nervous system. G2Cdb is such a neuroscience database focused on synaptic proteins and diseases of the nervous system, specifically those affecting cognition, aiming to present a global view of the role of synapses in physiology and disease. It integrates human and mouse genomic information with available experimental resources including: synapse proteomics, human gene mutation information in CNS disease, brain gene expression resources, knockout mouse behavioural experiments, and electrophysiological studies of synaptic plasticity. It captures the experimental data output of the Wellcome Trust-funded Genes to Cognition Programme (G2C), our systematic curation of the relevant neuroscience literature, and data submitted directly to G2Cdb by investigators worldwide. Currently G2Cdb contains data on more than 1300 genes, including: components of the NMDA receptor complex; postsynaptic density (PSD; Collins et al, 2006); knockout and transgenic mice (ca. 200 lines) and complementary studies of human gene sequence variation (Grant et al, 2005). The databasL, Brandon, JM, Anderson, CN, Blackstock, WP, Choudhary JS and Grant SGN. J. Neurochem. (2006) 97 Suppl. 1:16-23. Grant, SG, Marshall, MC, Page KL, Cumiskey MA and Armstrong JD. Hum. Mol. Genet. (2005) 14 Spec. No. 2:R225-34. Page 77/101 - 10/05/2013 - 11:11:03
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