Dataset Information

Lifetime Observation of Cognition and Physiological Parameters in Male Mice.

ABSTRACT: Laboratory mice are predominantly used for one experiment only, i.e., new mice are ordered or bred for every new experiment. Moreover, most experiments use relatively young mice in the range of late adolescence to early adulthood. As a consequence, little is known about the day-to-day life of adult and aged laboratory mice. Here we present a long-term data set with three consecutive phases conducted with the same male mice over their lifetime in order to shed light on possible long-term effects of repeated cognitive stimulation. One third of the animals was trained by a variety of learning tasks conducted up to an age of 606 days. The mice were housed in four cages with 12 animals per cage; only four mice per cage had to repeatedly solve cognitive tasks for getting access to water using the IntelliCage system. In addition, these learner mice were tested in standard cognitive tests outside their home-cage. The other eight mice served as two control groups living in the same environment but without having to solve tasks for getting access to water. One control group was additionally placed on the test set-ups without having to learn the tasks. Next to the cognitive tasks, we took physiological measures (body mass, resting metabolic rate) and tested for dominance behavior, and attractivity in a female choice experiment. Overall, the mice were under surveillance until they died a natural death, providing a unique data set over the course of virtually their entire lives. Our data showed treatment differences during the first phase of our lifetime data set. Young learner mice showed a higher activity, less growth and resting metabolic rate, and were less attractive for female mice. These effects, however, were not preserved over the long-term. We also did not find differences in dominance or effects on longevity. However, we generated a unique and valuable set of long-term behavioral and physiological data from a single group of male mice and note that our long-term data contribute to a better understanding of the behavioral and physiological processes in male C57Bl/6J mice.

SUBMITTER: Kahnau P

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8442583 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Similar Datasets

Project description:Serum leptin levels are augmented in obese infertile men and in men with azoospermia. They also correlate inversely with sperm concentration, motility and normal forms. The mechanisms underlying the adverse effects of excess leptin on male reproductive function remain unclear. The present study aimed to evaluate the effects of exogenous leptin on sperm parameters in mice and to explore the underlying mechanisms.We treated normal adult male mice with saline, 0.1, 0.5 or 3 mg/kg leptin daily for 2 weeks. After treatment, serum leptin levels, serum testosterone levels, sperm parameters and testicular cell apoptosis were evaluated. Blood testis barrier integrity and the expression of tight junction-associated proteins in testes were also assessed. We further verified the direct effects of leptin on tight junction-associated proteins in Sertoli cells and the possible leptin signaling pathways involved in this process.After treatment, there were no significant differences in body weights, reproductive organ weights, serum leptin levels and serum testosterone levels between leptin-treated mice and control mice. Administration of 3 mg/kg leptin reduced sperm concentration, motility and progressive motility while increasing the percentage of abnormal sperm and testicular cell apoptosis. Mice treated with 3 mg/kg leptin also had impaired blood testis barrier integrity, which was related to decreased tight junction-associated proteins in testes. Leptin directly reduced tight junction-associated proteins in Sertoli cells, JAK2/STAT, PI3K and ERK pathways were suggested to be involved in this process.Exogenous leptin negatively affects sperm parameters and impairs blood testis barrier integrity in mice. Leptin reduced tight junction-associated proteins in Sertoli cells, indicating that leptin has a direct role in impairing blood testis barrier integrity. Given the function of blood testis barrier in maintaining normal spermatogenesis, leptin-induced blood testis barrier impairment may be one of the mechanisms contributing to male subfertility and infertility.

Project description:The lifetime effects of space irradiation (IR) on left ventricular (LV) function are unknown. The cardiac effects induced by space-type IR, specifically 5-ion simplified galactic cosmic ray simulation (simGCRsim), are yet to be discovered. Three-month-old, age-matched, male C57BL/6J mice were irradiated with 137Cs gamma (γ; 100, 200 cGy) and simGCRsim (50 and 100 cGy). LV function was assessed via transthoracic echocardiography at 14 and 28 days (early), and at 365, 440, and 660 (late) days post IR. We measured the endothelial function marker brain natriuretic peptide in plasma at three late timepoints. We assessed the mRNA expression of the genes involved in cardiac remodeling, fibrosis, inflammation, and calcium handling in LVs harvested at 660 days post IR. All IR groups had impaired global LV systolic function at 14, 28, and 365 days. At 660 days, 50 cGy simGCRsim-IR mice exhibited preserved LV systolic function with altered LV size and mass. At this timepoint, the simGCRsim-IR mice had elevated levels of cardiac fibrosis, inflammation, and hypertrophy markers Tgfβ1, Mcp1, Mmp9, and βmhc, suggesting that space-type IR may induce the cardiac remodeling processes that are commonly associated with diastolic dysfunction. IR groups showing statistical significance were modeled to calculate the Relative Biological Effectiveness (RBE) and Radiation Effects Ratio (RER). The observed dose-response shape did not indicate a lower threshold at these IR doses. A single full-body IR at doses of 100-200 cGy for γ-IR, and 50-100 cGy for simGCRsim-IR decreases the global LV systolic function in WT mice as early as 14 and 28 days after exposure, and at 660 days post IR. Interestingly, there is an intermediate time point (365 days) where the impairment in LV function is observed. These findings do not exclude the possibility of increased acute or degenerative cardiovascular disease risks at lower doses of space-type IR, and/or when combined with other space travel-associated stressors such as microgravity.

Project description:The space radiation (IR) environment contains high charge and energy (HZE) nuclei emitted from galactic cosmic rays with the ability to overcome current shielding strategies, posing increased IR-induced cardiovascular disease risks for astronauts on prolonged space missions. Little is known about the effect of 5-ion simplified galactic cosmic ray simulation (simGCRsim) exposure on left ventricular (LV) function. Three-month-old, age-matched male Apolipoprotein E (ApoE) null mice were irradiated with 137Cs gamma (γ; 100, 200, and 400 cGy) and simGCRsim (50, 100, 150 cGy all at 500 MeV/nucleon (n)). LV function was assessed using transthoracic echocardiography at early/acute (14 and 28 days) and late/degenerative (365, 440, and 660 days) times post-irradiation. As early as 14 and 28-days post IR, LV systolic function was reduced in both IR groups across all doses. At 14 days post-IR, 150 cGy simGCRsim-IR mice had decreased diastolic wall strain (DWS), suggesting increased myocardial stiffness. This was also observed later in 100 cGy γ-IR mice at 28 days. At later stages, a significant decrease in LV systolic function was observed in the 400 cGy γ-IR mice. Otherwise, there was no difference in the LV systolic function or structure at the remaining time points across the IR groups. We evaluated the expression of genes involved in hemodynamic stress, cardiac remodeling, inflammation, and calcium handling in LVs harvested 28 days post-IR. At 28 days post-IR, there is increased expression of Bnp and Ncx in both IR groups at the lowest doses, suggesting impaired function contributes to hemodynamic stress and altered calcium handling. The expression of Gals3 and β-Mhc were increased in simGCRsim and γ-IR mice respectively, suggesting there may be IR-specific cardiac remodeling. IR groups were modeled to calculate the Relative Biological Effectiveness (RBE) and Radiation Effects Ratio (RER). No lower threshold was determined using the observed dose-response curves. These findings do not exclude the possibility of the existence of a lower IR threshold or the presence of IR-induced cardiovascular disease (CVD) when combined with additional space travel stressors, e.g., microgravity.

Project description:BackgroundThe recent trends of technological innovation and widescale digitization as potential solutions to challenges in health care, sports, and emergency service operations have led to the conception of smart textile technology. In health care, these smart textile systems present the potential to aid preventative medicine and early diagnosis through continuous, noninvasive tracking of physical and mental health while promoting proactive involvement of patients in their medical management. In areas such as sports and emergency response, the potential to provide comprehensive and simultaneous physiological insights across multiple body systems is promising. However, it is currently unclear what type of evidence exists surrounding the use of smart textiles for the monitoring of physiological outcome measures across different settings.ObjectiveThis scoping review aimed to systematically survey the existing body of scientific literature surrounding smart textiles in their most prevalent form, the smart shirt, for monitoring physiological outcome measures.MethodsA total of 5 electronic bibliographic databases were systematically searched (Ovid Medical Literature Analysis and Retrieval System Online, Excerpta Medica database, Scopus, Cumulative Index to Nursing and Allied Health Literature, and SPORTDiscus). Publications from the inception of the database to June 24, 2019 were reviewed. Nonindexed literature relevant to this review was also systematically searched. The results were then collated, summarized, and reported.ResultsFollowing the removal of duplicates, 7871 citations were identified. On the basis of title and abstract screening, 7632 citations were excluded, whereas 239 were retrieved and assessed for eligibility. Of these, 101 citations were included in the final analysis. Included studies were categorized into four themes: (1) prototype design, (2) validation, (3) observational, and (4) reviews. Among the 101 analyzed studies, prototype design was the most prevalent theme (50/101, 49.5%), followed by validation (29/101, 28.7%), observational studies (21/101, 20.8%), and reviews (1/101, 0.1%). Presented prototype designs ranged from those capable of monitoring one physiological metric to those capable of monitoring several simultaneously. In 29 validation studies, 16 distinct smart shirts were validated against reference technology under various conditions and work rates, including rest, submaximal exercise, and maximal exercise. The identified observational studies used smart shirts in clinical, healthy, and occupational populations for aims such as early diagnosis and stress detection. One scoping review was identified, investigating the use of smart shirts for electrocardiograph signal monitoring in cardiac patients.ConclusionsAlthough smart shirts have been found to be valid and reliable in the monitoring of specific physiological metrics, results were variable for others, demonstrating the need for further systematic validation. Analysis of the results has also demonstrated gaps in knowledge, such as a considerable lag of validation and observational studies in comparison with prototype design and limited investigation using smart shirts in pediatric, elite sports, and emergency service populations.

Dataset Information

Lifetime Observation of Cognition and Physiological Parameters in Male Mice.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure

Tweets