| 1 | Neuroscience 2010 Jul 168: 797-810 |
|---|---|
| PMID | 20381588 |
| Title | Genetic disruption of the autism spectrum disorder risk gene PLAUR induces GABAA receptor subunit changes. |
| Abstract | Disruption of the GABAergic system has been implicated in multiple developmental disorders, including epilepsy, autism spectrum disorder and schizophrenia. The human gene encoding uPAR (PLAUR) has been shown recently to be associated with the risk of autism. The uPAR(-/-) mouse exhibits a regionally-selective reduction in GABAergic interneurons in frontal and parietal regions of the cerebral cortex as well as in the CA1 and dentate gyrus subfields of the hippocampus. Behaviorally, these mice exhibit increased sensitivity to pharmacologically-induced seizures, heightened anxiety, and atypical social behavior. Here, we explore potential alterations in GABAergic circuitry that may occur in the context of altered interneuron development. Analysis of gene expression for 13 GABA(A) receptor subunits using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (PCR) indicates seven subunit mRNAs (alpha(1), alpha(2), alpha(3), beta(2), beta(3), gamma(2S) and gamma(2L)) of interest. Semi-quantitative in situ hybridization analysis focusing on these subunit mRNAs reveals a complex pattern of potential gene regulatory adaptations. The levels of alpha(2) subunit mRNAs increase in frontal cortex, CA1 and CA3, while those of alpha3 decrease in frontal cortex and CA1. In contrast, alpha(1) subunit mRNAs are unaltered in any region examined. beta(2) subunit mRNAs are increased in frontal cortex whereas beta(3) subunit mRNAs are decreased in parietal cortex. Finally, gamma(2S) subunit mRNAs are increased in parietal cortex while gamma(2L) subunit mRNAs are increased in the dentate gyrus, potentially altering the gamma(2S):gamma(2L) ratio in these two regions. For all subunits, no changes were observed in forebrain regions where GABAergic interneuron numbers are normal. We propose that disrupted differentiation of GABAergic neurons specifically in frontal and parietal cortices leads to regionally-selective alterations in local circuitry and subsequent adaptive changes in receptor subunit composition. Future electrophysiological studies will be useful in determining how alterations in network activity in the cortex and hippocampus relate to the observed behavioral phenotype. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia |
| 2 | Behav. Brain Res. 2014 Feb 259: 143-51 |
| PMID | 24211452 |
| Title | Prefrontal cognitive deficits in mice with altered cerebral cortical GABAergic interneurons. |
| Abstract | Alterations of inhibitory GABAergic neurons are implicated in multiple psychiatric and neurological disorders, including schizophrenia, autism and epilepsy. In particular, interneuron deficits in prefrontal areas, along with presumed decreased inhibition, have been reported in several human patients. The majority of forebrain GABAergic interneurons arise from a single subcortical source before migrating to their final regional destination. Factors that govern the interneuron populations have been identified, demonstrating that a single gene mutation may globally affect forebrain structures or a single area. In particular, mice lacking the urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (PLAUR) gene have decreased GABAergic interneurons in frontal and parietal, but not caudal, cortical regions. PLAUR assists in the activation of hepatocyte growth factor/scatter factor (HGF/SF), and several of the interneuron deficits are correlated with decreased levels of HGF/SF. In some cortical regions, the interneuron deficit can be remediated by endogenous overexpression of HGF/SF. In this study, we demonstrate decreased parvalbumin-expressing interneurons in the medial frontal cortex, but not in the hippocampus or basal lateral amygdala in the PLAUR null mouse. The PLAUR null mouse demonstrates impaired medial frontal cortical function in extinction of cued fear conditioning and the inability to form attentional sets. Endogenous HGF/SF overexpression increased the number of PV-expressing cells in medial frontal cortical areas to levels greater than found in wildtype mice, but did not remediate the behavioral deficits. These data suggest that proper medial frontal cortical function is dependent upon optimum levels of inhibition and that a deficit or excess of interneuron numbers impairs normal cognition. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia |
| 3 | Biol. Psychiatry 2015 Mar 77: 454-64 |
| PMID | 25193243 |
| Title | Interneurons are necessary for coordinated activity during reversal learning in orbitofrontal cortex. |
| Abstract | Cerebral cortical gamma-aminobutyric acidergic interneuron dysfunction is hypothesized to lead to cognitive deficits comorbid with human neuropsychiatric disorders, including schizophrenia, autism, and epilepsy. We have previously shown that mice that harbor mutations in the PLAUR gene, which is associated with schizophrenia, have deficits in frontal cortical parvalbumin-expressing interneurons. PLAUR mice have impaired reversal learning, similar to deficits observed in patients with schizophrenia. We examined the role of parvalbumin interneurons in orbitofrontal cortex during reversal learning by recording single unit activity from 180 control and 224 PLAUR mouse neurons during a serial reversal task. Neural activity was analyzed during correct and incorrect decision choices and reward receipt. Neurons in control mice exhibited strong phasic responses both during discrimination and reversal learning to decisions and rewards, and the strength of the response was correlated with behavioral performance. Although baseline firing was significantly enhanced in PLAUR mice, neural selectivity for correct or erroneous decisions was diminished and not correlated with behavior, and reward encoding was downscaled. In addition, PLAUR mice showed a significant reduction in the number of neurons that encoded expected outcomes across task phases during the decision period. These data indicate that parvalbumin interneurons are necessary for the representation of outcomes in orbitofrontal cortex. Deficits in inhibition blunt selective neural firing during key decisions, contributing to behavioral inflexibility. These data provide a potential explanation for disorders of cognitive control that accompany the loss of these gamma-aminobutyric acidergic interneurons in human neuropsychiatric disorders, such as autism, epilepsy, and schizophrenia. |
| SCZ Keywords | schizophrenia |