The effect of hemorrhage on the development of the postnatal mouse cerebellum.

Recent studies have shown that hemorrhagic injury in the preterm cerebellum leads to long-term neurological sequelae, such as motor, affective, and cognitive dysfunction. How cerebellar hemorrhage (CBH) affects the development and function of the cerebellum is largely unknown. Our study focuses on developing a mouse model of CBH to determine the anatomical, behavioral, and molecular phenotypes resulting from a hemorrhagic insult to the developing cerebellum.

Bi-parental care contributes to sexually dimorphic neural cell genesis in the adult mammalian brain.

Early life events can modulate brain development to produce persistent physiological and behavioural phenotypes that are transmissible across generations. However, whether neural precursor cells are altered by early life events, to produce persistent and transmissible behavioural changes, is unknown. Here, we show that bi-parental care, in early life, increases neural cell genesis in the adult rodent brain in a sexually dimorphic manner.

Paternal recognition of adult offspring mediated by newly generated CNS neurons.

In mammals, olfaction is often used to distinguish individuals on the basis of their unique odor types (genetically programmed body odors). Parental-offspring recognition behavior is mediated, in part, by learning and processing of different odor types and is crucial for reproductive success. Maternal recognition behavior and associated brain plasticity has been well characterized, but paternal recognition behavior and brain plasticity is poorly understood.

Identity crisis for adult periventricular neural stem cells: subventricular zone astrocytes, ependymal cells or both?

A population of neural stem cells (NSCs) resides adjacent to the lateral ventricles in the adult mammalian brain. Despite knowledge of their existence since the early 1990s, their identity remains controversial, with evidence suggesting that they may be ependymal cells, glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-expressing subventricular zone (SVZ) cells or several distinct NSC populations. This issue has major implications for the therapeutic use of NSCs as well as for the study and treatment of brain cancers.

Male pheromone-stimulated neurogenesis in the adult female brain: possible role in mating behavior.

The regulation of female reproductive behaviors may involve memories of male pheromone signatures, formed in part by neural circuitry involving the olfactory bulb and hippocampus. These neural structures are the principal sites of adult neurogenesis; however, previous studies point to their independent regulation by sensory and physiological stimuli. Here we report that the pheromones of dominant (but not subordinate) males stimulate neuronal production in both the olfactory bulb and hippocampus of female mice, which are independently mediated by prolactin and luteinizing hormone, respectively.