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Peripheral nerve injury leads to working memory deficits and dysfunction of the hippocampus by upregulation of TNF-? in rodents.

ABSTRACT: Patients with chronic pain usually suffer from working memory deficits, which may decrease their intellectual ability significantly. Despite intensive clinical studies, the mechanism underlying this form of memory impairment remains elusive. In this study, we investigated this issue in the spared nerve injury (SNI) model of neuropathic pain, a most common form of chronic pain. We found that SNI impaired working memory and short-term memory in rats and mice. To explore the potential mechanisms, we studied synaptic transmission/plasticity in hippocampus, a brain region critically involved in memory function. We found that frequency facilitation, a presynaptic form of short-term plasticity, and long-term potentiation at CA3-CA1 synapses were impaired after SNI. Structurally, density of presynaptic boutons in hippocampal CA1 synapses was reduced significantly. At the molecular level, we found that tumor necrosis factor-? (TNF-?) increased in cerebrospinal fluid, in hippocampal tissue and in plasma after SNI. Intracerebroventricular or intrahippocampal injection of recombinant rat TNF mimicked the effects of SNI in naive rats, whereas inhibition of TNF-? or genetic deletion of TNF receptor 1 prevented both memory deficits and synaptic dysfunction induced by SNI. As TNF-? is critical for development of neuropathic pain, we suggested that the over-production of TNF-? following peripheral nerve injury might lead to neuropathic pain and memory deficits, simultaneously.

SUBMITTER: Ren WJ

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3077267 | biostudies-literature | 2011 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Peripheral nerve injury leads to working memory deficits and dysfunction of the hippocampus by upregulation of TNF-α in rodents.

Ren Wen-Jie WJ Liu Yong Y Zhou Li-Jun LJ Li Wei W Zhong Yi Y Pang Rui-Ping RP Xin Wen-Jun WJ Wei Xu-Hong XH Wang Jun J Zhu He-Quan HQ Wu Chang-You CY Qin Zhi-Hai ZH Liu Guosong G Liu Xian-Guo XG

Neuropsychopharmacology : official publication of the American College of Neuropsychopharmacology 20110202 5

Patients with chronic pain usually suffer from working memory deficits, which may decrease their intellectual ability significantly. Despite intensive clinical studies, the mechanism underlying this form of memory impairment remains elusive. In this study, we investigated this issue in the spared nerve injury (SNI) model of neuropathic pain, a most common form of chronic pain. We found that SNI impaired working memory and short-term memory in rats and mice. To explore the potential mechanisms, w ...[more]

PMID: 21289602

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Project description:Clinical studies show that chronic pain is accompanied by memory deficits and reduction in hippocampal volume. Experimental studies show that spared nerve injury (SNI) of the sciatic nerve induces long-term potentiation (LTP) at C-fiber synapses in spinal dorsal horn, but impairs LTP in the hippocampus. The opposite changes may contribute to neuropathic pain and memory deficits, respectively. However, the cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying the functional synaptic changes are unclear. Here, we show that the dendrite lengths and spine densities are reduced significantly in hippocampal CA1 pyramidal neurons, but increased in spinal neurokinin-1-positive neurons in mice after SNI, indicating that the excitatory synaptic connectivity is reduced in hippocampus but enhanced in spinal dorsal horn in this neuropathic pain model. Mechanistically, tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-?) is upregulated in bilateral hippocampus and in ipsilateral spinal dorsal horn, whereas brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) is decreased in the hippocampus but increased in the ipsilateral spinal dorsal horn after SNI. Importantly, the SNI-induced opposite changes in synaptic connectivity and BDNF expression are prevented by genetic deletion of TNF receptor 1 in vivo and are mimicked by TNF-? in cultured slices. Furthermore, SNI activated microglia in both spinal dorsal horn and hippocampus; pharmacological inhibition or genetic ablation of microglia prevented the region-dependent synaptic changes, neuropathic pain, and memory deficits induced by SNI. The data suggest that neuropathic pain involves different structural synaptic alterations in spinal and hippocampal neurons that are mediated by overproduction of TNF-? and microglial activation and may underlie chronic pain and memory deficits.Chronic pain is often accompanied by memory deficits. Previous studies have shown that peripheral nerve injury produces both neuropathic pain and memory deficits and induces long-term potentiation (LTP) at C-fiber synapses in spinal dorsal horn (SDH) but inhibits LTP in hippocampus. The opposite changes in synaptic plasticity may contribute to chronic pain and memory deficits, respectively. However, the structural and molecular bases of these alterations of synaptic plasticity are unclear. Here, we show that the complexity of excitatory synaptic connectivity and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) expression are enhanced in SDH but reduced in the hippocampus in neuropathic pain and the opposite changes depend on tumor necrosis factor-alpha/tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 signaling and microglial activation. The region-dependent synaptic alterations may underlie chronic neuropathic pain and memory deficits induced by peripheral nerve injury.

Dataset Information

Peripheral nerve injury leads to working memory deficits and dysfunction of the hippocampus by upregulation of TNF-? in rodents.

Publications

Peripheral nerve injury leads to working memory deficits and dysfunction of the hippocampus by upregulation of TNF-α in rodents.

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