NECAB1-3, parvalbumin, calbindin, and calretinin in the hippocampus of the European mole.

Many calcium-binding proteins are expressed in a region-and cell-type specific manner in the mammalian hippocampus. Neuronal calcium-binding proteins (NECABs) are also expressed in hippocampal neurons, but few species have been investigated, with partly controversial findings. We here describe NECAB1, NECAB2 and NECAB3 as well as parvalbumin, calbindin, and calretinin in the European mole, and compare staining patterns of these proteins with those in mouse and other species.

Cell numbers in the reflected blade of CA3 and their relation to other hippocampal principal cell populations across seven species.

The hippocampus of many mammals contains a histoarchitectural region that is not present in laboratory mice and rats-the reflected blade of the CA3 pyramidal cell layer. Pyramidal cells of the reflected blade do not extend dendrites into the hippocampal molecular layer, and recent evidence indicates that they, like the proximal CA3 pyramids in laboratory rats and mice, partially integrate functionally with the dentate circuitry in pattern separation. Quantitative assessments of phylogenetic or disease-related changes in the hippocampal structure and function treat the reflected blade heterogeneously.

Loss of all three APP family members during development impairs synaptic function and plasticity, disrupts learning, and causes an autism-like phenotype.

The key role of APP for Alzheimer pathogenesis is well established. However, perinatal lethality of germline knockout mice lacking the entire APP family has so far precluded the analysis of its physiological functions for the developing and adult brain. Here, we generated conditional APP/APLP1/APLP2 triple KO (cTKO) mice lacking the APP family in excitatory forebrain neurons from embryonic day 11.

Basic quantitative morphological methods applied to the central nervous system.

Generating numbers has become an almost inevitable task associated with studies of the morphology of the nervous system. Numbers serve a desire for clarity and objectivity in the presentation of results and are a prerequisite for the statistical evaluation of experimental outcomes. Clarity, objectivity, and statistics make demands on the quality of the numbers that are not met by many methods.

Consistent within-group covariance of septal and temporal hippocampal neurogenesis with behavioral phenotypes for exploration and memory retention across wild and laboratory small rodents.

Striking differences in the septo-temporal distribution of neurogenesis are found in small rodents. Here, we assessed the association of adult hippocampal neurogenesis with behavioral responses to novelty, temporal and spatial sequence and reversal learning in wild, wild-derived and laboratory rodents using an automated testing apparatus, the IntelliCage. Behaviorally, DBA/2 and wild-derived house mice were quickest to explore a novel environment, wild wood mice and bank voles were slowest, and C57BL/6 intermediate.

Sampling the Mouse Hippocampal Dentate Gyrus.

Sampling is a critical step in procedures that generate quantitative morphological data in the neurosciences. Samples need to be representative to allow statistical evaluations, and samples need to deliver a precision that makes statistical evaluations not only possible but also meaningful. Sampling generated variability should, e.

Effects of Strain and Species on the Septo-Temporal Distribution of Adult Neurogenesis in Rodents.

The functional septo-temporal (dorso-ventral) differentiation of the hippocampus is accompanied by gradients of adult hippocampal neurogenesis (AHN) in laboratory rodents. An extensive septal AHN in laboratory mice suggests an emphasis on a relation of AHN to tasks that also depend on the septal hippocampus. Domestication experiments indicate that AHN dynamics along the longitudinal axis are subject to selective pressure, questioning if the septal emphasis of AHN in laboratory mice is a rule applying to rodents in general.

Taxonomic Separation of Hippocampal Networks: Principal Cell Populations and Adult Neurogenesis.

While many differences in hippocampal anatomy have been described between species, it is typically not clear if they are specific to a particular species and related to functional requirements or if they are shared by species of larger taxonomic units. Without such information, it is difficult to infer how anatomical differences may impact on hippocampal function, because multiple taxonomic levels need to be considered to associate behavioral and anatomical changes. To provide information on anatomical changes within and across taxonomic ranks, we present a quantitative assessment of hippocampal principal cell populations in 20 species or strain groups, with emphasis on rodents, the taxonomic group that provides most animals used in laboratory research.

Large-scale phenotyping links adult hippocampal neurogenesis to the reaction to novelty.

The discovery of adult-born neurons in the hippocampus has triggered a wide range of studies that link the new neurons to various behavioral functions. However, the role of new neurons in behavior is still equivocal. Conflicting results may be due to the difficulty in manipulating neurogenesis without off-target effects as well as the statistical approach used, which fail to account for neurogenesis-independent effects of experimental manipulations on behavior.

Septo-temporal distribution and lineage progression of hippocampal neurogenesis in a primate (Callithrix jacchus) in comparison to mice.

Adult born neurons in the hippocampus show species-specific differences in their numbers, the pace of their maturation and their spatial distribution. Here, we present quantitative data on adult hippocampal neurogenesis in a New World primate, the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) that demonstrate parts of the lineage progression and age-related changes. Proliferation was largely (∼70%) restricted to stem cells or early progenitor cells, whilst the remainder of the cycling pool could be assigned almost exclusively to Tbr2+ intermediate precursor cells in both neonate and adult animals (20-122 months).

Selection for tameness, a key behavioral trait of domestication, increases adult hippocampal neurogenesis in foxes.

Work on laboratory and wild rodents suggests that domestication may impact on the extent of adult hippocampal neurogenesis and its responsiveness to regulatory factors. There is, however, no model of laboratory rodents and their nondomesticated conspecifics that would allow a controlled comparison of the effect of domestication. Here, we present a controlled within-species comparison of adult hippocampal neurogenesis in farm-bred foxes (Vulpes vulpes) that differ in their genetically determined degree of tameness.

Acute function of secreted amyloid precursor protein fragment APPsα in synaptic plasticity.

The key role of APP in the pathogenesis of Alzheimer disease is well established. However, postnatal lethality of double knockout mice has so far precluded the analysis of the physiological functions of APP and the APLPs in the brain. Previously, APP family proteins have been implicated in synaptic adhesion, and analysis of the neuromuscular junction of constitutive APP/APLP2 mutant mice showed deficits in synaptic morphology and neuromuscular transmission.

Adult neurogenesis and its anatomical context in the hippocampus of three mole-rat species.

African mole-rats (family Bathyergidae) are small to medium sized, long-lived, and strictly subterranean rodents that became valuable animal models as a result of their longevity and diversity in social organization. The formation and integration of new hippocampal neurons in adult mammals (adult hippocampal neurogenesis, AHN) correlates negatively with age and positively with habitat complexity. Here we present quantitative data on AHN in wild-derived mole-rats of 1 year and older, and briefly describe its anatomical context including markers of neuronal function (calbindin and parvalbumin).

The hippocampus of the eastern rock sengi: cytoarchitecture, markers of neuronal function, principal cell numbers, and adult neurogenesis.

The brains of sengis (elephant shrews, order Macroscelidae) have long been known to contain a hippocampus that in terms of allometric progression indices is larger than that of most primates and equal in size to that of humans. In this report, we provide descriptions of hippocampal cytoarchitecture in the eastern rock sengi (Elephantulus myurus), of the distributions of hippocampal calretinin, calbindin, parvalbumin, and somatostatin, of principal neuron numbers, and of cell numbers related to proliferation and neuronal differentiation in adult hippocampal neurogenesis. Sengi hippocampal cytoarchitecture is an amalgamation of characters that are found in CA1 of, e.

Habitat-specific shaping of proliferation and neuronal differentiation in adult hippocampal neurogenesis of wild rodents.

Daily life of wild mammals is characterized by a multitude of attractive and aversive stimuli. The hippocampus processes complex polymodal information associated with such stimuli and mediates adequate behavioral responses. How newly generated hippocampal neurons in wild animals contribute to hippocampal function is still a subject of debate.

3-dimensional examination of the adult mouse subventricular zone reveals lineage-specific microdomains.

Recent studies suggest that the subventricular zone (SVZ) of the lateral ventricle is populated by heterogeneous populations of stem and progenitor cells that, depending on their exact location, are biased to acquire specific neuronal fates. This newly described heterogeneity of SVZ stem and progenitor cells underlines the necessity to develop methods for the accurate quantification of SVZ stem and progenitor subpopulations. In this study, we provide 3-dimensional topographical maps of slow cycling "stem" cells and progenitors based on their unique cell cycle properties.

Different regulation of adult hippocampal neurogenesis in Western house mice (Mus musculus domesticus) and C57BL/6 mice.

Adult hippocampal neurogenesis (AHN) of laboratory rodents is enhanced by physical exercise in a running wheel. However, little is known about modulation of AHN in wild-living rodent species. The finding that AHN cannot be modulated by voluntary exercise in wild wood mice suggests that AHN may be regulated differently under natural conditions than in laboratory adapted animals.

Hippocampal pyramidal cells: the reemergence of cortical lamination.

The increasing resolution of tract-tracing studies has led to the definition of segments along the transverse axis of the hippocampal pyramidal cell layer, which may represent functionally defined elements. This review will summarize evidence for a morphological and functional differentiation of pyramidal cells along the radial (deep to superficial) axis of the cell layer. In many species, deep and superficial sublayers can be identified histologically throughout large parts of the septotemporal extent of the hippocampus.

A morphologically distinct granule cell type in the dentate gyrus of the red fox correlates with adult hippocampal neurogenesis.

Wild red foxes, proverbially cunning carnivores, are investigated for adult hippocampal neurogenesis and morphological characteristics of the dentate gyrus. Adult red foxes harbor almost 15-times more young, doublecortin-positive neurons in their dentate gyrus than domesticated dogs. The number of doublecortin-positive cells corresponds to 4.

The entorhinal cortex of the Megachiroptera: a comparative study of Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat and the straw-coloured fruit bat.

This study describes the organisation of the entorhinal cortex of the Megachiroptera, straw-coloured fruit bat and Wahlberg's epauletted fruit bat. Using Nissl and Timm stains, parvalbumin and SMI-32 immunohistochemistry, we identified five fields within the medial (MEA) and lateral (LEA) entorhinal areas. MEA fields E(CL) and E(C) are characterised by a poor differentiation between layers II and III, a distinct layer IV and broad, stratified layers V and VI.

A reward increases running-wheel performance without changing cell proliferation, neuronal differentiation or cell death in the dentate gyrus of C57BL/6 mice.

Exercise is one of the best-known stimulators of adult hippocampal neurogenesis, but it is not known if voluntary changes in the intensity of exercise are accompanied by changes in neurogenesis. In this study we investigated whether a reward influences the performance in a running wheel and the rate of cell proliferation, neuronal differentiation and cell death in C57BL/6 mice. Mice had free access to a running wheel during the first week of the experiment.

The secreted Helicobacter cysteine-rich protein A causes adherence of human monocytes and differentiation into a macrophage-like phenotype.

Helicobacter pylori genomes typically contain 8 or 9 genes that code for secreted and highly disulfide-bridged proteins designated Helicobacter cysteine-rich proteins (Hcp). Here we show that HcpA (hp0211) but not HcpC (hp1098) triggers the differentiation of human myeloid Thp1 monocytes into macrophages. Small amounts of HcpA cause the transition of round-shaped monocytes into cells with star-like morphologies, adherence to the culture dish surface, phagocytosis of opsonized fluorescent microspheres, and expression of the surface marker protein CD11b, all of which are indicative of a macrophage-like phenotype.

Early age-related changes in adult hippocampal neurogenesis in C57 mice.

Strong age-related declines in conjunction with comparatively easy experimental manipulations of adult hippocampal neurogenesis have generated considerable public and scientific interest in the prospect of "new neurons for old brains". Only few studies addressed the time course of the natural changes, which are the substrate for interventions that may realize this prospect. We provide a monthly or bimonthly account of cell proliferation, neurogenesis and cell death during the first 9 months of the life of C57Bl/6J mice.

Reversible effect of X-irradiation on proliferation, neurogenesis, and cell death in the dentate gyrus of adult mice.

Therapeutic cranial X-irradiation causes cognitive deficits in adult and pediatric patients, in particular, when the exposed area includes the medial temporal lobes. Effects on adult neurogenesis within the hippocampus may be related to such deficits. To investigate this relation, we irradiated the brain of young adult C57Bl/6j mice with a single dose of 4 Gy at a dose-rate of 27.