Determining the Impact that Npas4 Expression has on the Maturation of Social Behaviors during Adolescence
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Date
2022-03
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Abstract
Intro/ Background
Adolescence is a period during which social functions mature. This maturation is paralleled by the maturation of the prefrontal cortex, a brain region regulating social behaviors in adulthood. Particularly, the prefrontal GABAergic system, which is the main inhibitory system of the nervous system, undergoes important reorganization during the adolescent period that seems necessary for developing social behaviors. There is however a nescience on the molecular mechanism that leads to this social maturation. Npas4 is a transcription factor that contributes to the development of the prefrontal GABA system, and is important for adult social behaviors. It is therefore likely that Npas4 contributes to the maturational processes underlying the acquisition of adult social functioning. The aim of this study is to evaluate the extent to which Npas4 contributes to the maturation of social functions. This information can help treat certain neuropsychiatric disorders marked by social deficits such as schizophrenia and anxiety.
Methods
Transgenic mice deficient in Npas4 were used to test social behaviors from childhood to adulthood. These mice were tested at three different age groups: childhood, adolescence and adulthood. We then used an early social isolation model known to impair the maturation of social behaviors. We assessed its impact on Npas4 expression in the prefrontal cortex using RT-PCR. Mice were isolated starting before adolescence, or during mid-adolescence. A control group of mice were group-housed. Npas4 expression was assessed at different times after isolation started.
Results
We observed that Npas4 deficient mice have deficits in social behavior after, but not before adolescence. Additionally, socially isolated mice have higher levels of Npas4 from two days to one week after social isolation compared to group-housed mice, followed by reduced expression until adulthood.
Conclusion
Our data support the idea that Npas4 can be a significant molecular contributor to adolescent maturation of social behaviors. To confirm this conclusion, the next aspect of the study will be to test whether overexpression of Npas4 on socially isolated mice can rescue social deficits.
Description
Pediatrics and Family Health (The Ohio State University Denman Undergraduate Research Forum)
Keywords
Neuroscience, psychology, Adolescence, Prefrontal Cortex, GABA System