AhR Deletion Promotes Aberrant Morphogenesis and Synaptic Activity of Adult-Generated Granule Neurons and Impairs Hippocampus-Dependent Memory
Newborn granule cells are continuously produced in the subgranular zone of dentate gyrus throughout life. Once these cells mature, they integrate into pre-existing circuits modulating hippocampus-dependent memory. Subsequently, mechanisms controlling generation and maturation of newborn cells are es...
| Autores: | , , , , , , , , |
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| Tipo de recurso: | artículo |
| Fecha de publicación: | 2018 |
| País: | España |
| Institución: | Universidad Complutense de Madrid (UCM) |
| Repositorio: | Docta Complutense |
| Idioma: | inglés |
| OAI Identifier: | oai:docta.ucm.es:20.500.14352/94497 |
| Acceso en línea: | https://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14352/94497 |
| Access Level: | acceso abierto |
| Palabra clave: | 612.82 Aryl hydrocarbon receptor Dendrite arborization Hippocampal memory Newborn granule cells Neurociencias (Biológicas) 2410 Biología Humana |
| Sumario: | Newborn granule cells are continuously produced in the subgranular zone of dentate gyrus throughout life. Once these cells mature, they integrate into pre-existing circuits modulating hippocampus-dependent memory. Subsequently, mechanisms controlling generation and maturation of newborn cells are essential for proper hippocampal function. Therefore, we have studied the role of aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR), a ligand-activated bHLH-PAS transcription factor, in hippocampus-dependent memory and granule neuronal morphology and function using genetic loss-of-function approaches based on constitutive and inducible-nestin AhR–/– mice. The results presented here show that the impaired hippocampus-dependent memory in AhR absence is not due to its effects on neurogenesis but to aberrant dendritic arborization and an increased spine density, albeit with a lower number of mature mushrooms spines in newborn granule cells, a finding that is associated with an immature electrophysiological phenotype. Together, our data strongly suggest that AhR plays a pivotal role in the regulation of hippocampal function, by controlling hippocampal granule neuron morphology and synaptic maturation. |
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