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Corticostriatal circuit defects in Hoxb8 mutant mice.

ABSTRACT: Hoxb8 mutant mice exhibit compulsive grooming and hair removal dysfunction similar to humans with the obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)-spectrum disorder, trichotillomania. As, in the mouse brain, the only detectable cells that label with Hoxb8 cell lineage appear to be microglia, we suggested that defective microglia cause the neuropsychiatric disorder. Does the Hoxb8 mutation in microglia lead to neural circuit dysfunctions? We demonstrate that Hoxb8 mutants contain corticostriatal circuit defects. Golgi staining, ultra-structural and electrophysiological studies of mutants reveal excess dendritic spines, pre- and postsynaptic structural defects, long-term potentiation and miniature postsynaptic current defects. Hoxb8 mutants also exhibit hyperanxiety and social behavioral deficits similar to mice with neuronal mutations in Sapap3, Slitrk5 and Shank3, reported models of OCD and autism spectrum disorders (ASDs). Long-term treatment of Hoxb8 mutants with fluoxetine, a serotonin reuptake inhibitor, reduces excessive grooming, hyperanxiety and social behavioral impairments. These studies provide linkage between the neuronal defects induced by defective Hoxb8-microglia and neuronal dysfunctions directly generated by mutations in synaptic components that result in mice, which display similar pathological grooming, hyperanxiety and social impairment deficits. Our results shed light on Hoxb8 microglia-driven circuit-specific defects and therapeutic approaches that will become essential to developing novel therapies for neuropsychiatric diseases such as OCD and ASDs with Hoxb8-microglia being the central target.

SUBMITTER: Nagarajan N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5970001 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Corticostriatal circuit defects in Hoxb8 mutant mice.

Nagarajan N N Jones B W BW West P J PJ Marc R E RE Capecchi M R MR

Molecular psychiatry 20170926 9

Hoxb8 mutant mice exhibit compulsive grooming and hair removal dysfunction similar to humans with the obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD)-spectrum disorder, trichotillomania. As, in the mouse brain, the only detectable cells that label with Hoxb8 cell lineage appear to be microglia, we suggested that defective microglia cause the neuropsychiatric disorder. Does the Hoxb8 mutation in microglia lead to neural circuit dysfunctions? We demonstrate that Hoxb8 mutants contain corticostriatal circuit d ...[more]

PMID: 28948967

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Project description:Stereotypic and/or repetitive behavior is one of the major symptoms of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Increase of self-grooming behavior is a behavioral phenotype commonly observed in the mouse models for ASD. Previously, we have shown that knockout of acid-sensing ion channel 3 (ASIC3) led to the increased self-grooming behavior in resident-intruder test. Given the facts that ASIC3 is mainly expressed in the peripheral dorsal root ganglion (DRG) and conditional knockout of ASIC3 in the proprioceptors induced proprioception deficits. We speculate a hypothesis that stereotypic phenotype related to ASD, pararalled with striatal dysfunction, might be caused by proprioception defect in the peripheral sensory neuron origin. Herein, we investigate in depth whether and how ASIC3 is involved in the regulation of self-grooming behavior. First, we observed that Asic3 null mutant mice exhibited increased self-grooming in social interaction during juvenile stage. Similarly, they displayed increased self-grooming behavior in a novel cage in the absence of cagemate. To further understand the mechanism by which ASIC3 affects grooming behavior, we analyzed neurochemical, neuropathological and electrophysiological features in the dorsal striatum of Asic3 null mutant mice. Knockout of Asic3 increased dopamine (DA) activity and phospho-ERK immunoreactivities in the dorsal striatum. Furthermore, we detected a lower paired-pulse ratio (PPR) and impaired long-term potentiation (LTP) in corticostriatal circuits in Asic3 null mutant mice as compared with wild-type (WT) littermates. Moreover, knockout of Asic3 altered the medial spiny neurons in the striatum with defects in presynaptic function and decrease of dendritic spines. Lastly, genetic ablation of Asic3 specifically in parvalbumin-positive (PV+) cells resulted in the increase of self-grooming behavior in mice. These findings suggest knockout of Asic3 in the PV+ neurons alters grooming behavior by co-opting corticostriatal circuits.

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Corticostriatal circuit defects in Hoxb8 mutant mice.

Publications

Corticostriatal circuit defects in Hoxb8 mutant mice.

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