Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ingvild Ulsaker-Janke, Torgeir Waaga, Tanja Waaga, Edvard I. Moser, May - Britt Moser
Summary: This study found that rats can develop grid-like neuron firing patterns in a specific environment, even without stable reference boundaries to guide them. After a few trials of training, these patterns become more clear. While some experience with external spatial boundaries is required for the expression of grid patterns in a new environment, this restricted spatial experience can be overcome with short-term training.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
(2023)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Julien Poitreau, Manon Buttet, Christine Manrique, Bruno Poucet, Francesca Sargolini, Etienne Save
Summary: The study indicates that the medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) is necessary for place navigation using a global reference frame, while the lateral entorhinal cortex (LEC) and MEC are not required for navigation using a local reference frame. The identity of objects does not affect the accuracy of place navigation.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Ilya D. Ionov, Irina I. Pushinskaya, Nicholas P. Gorev, Larissa A. Shpilevaya, David D. Frenkel, Nicholas N. Severtsev
Summary: A decreased H1 receptor activity in the anterior cingulate cortex (aCgCx) may lead to behavior changes related to depression. Blocking of H1 receptors in the aCgCx and lateral entorhinal cortex significantly reduces sucrose preference in rats, indicating a potential therapeutic target in depressive disorders.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Tomas T. Roos, Megg G. Garcia, Isak Martinsson, Rana Mabrouk, Bodil Israelsson, Tomas Deierborg, Asgeir Kobro-Flatmoen, Heikki Tanila, Gunnar K. Gouras
Summary: Research suggests that intracellular A beta plays a crucial role in the prion-like spread of Alzheimer's disease, leading to plaque formation and neuronal damage.
ACTA NEUROPATHOLOGICA
(2021)
Article
Immunology
Di Hu, Xiaocong Mo, Jihang Luo, Fang Wang, Cheng Huang, Hesong Xie, Ling Jin
Summary: In this study, the potential neuroprotective effects of the Hsp90 inhibitor 17-DMAG in intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH) were investigated. The results showed that treatment with 17-DMAG reduced hematoma expansion, improved neurological outcomes, and decreased BBB disruption. These effects were attributed to the regulation of SOX5 and activation of the PI3K/Akt pathway. Targeting SOX5 and the PI3K/Akt pathway may be a promising therapeutic approach for ICH.
INTERNATIONAL IMMUNOPHARMACOLOGY
(2023)
Article
Acoustics
Tereza Alekou, Marinos Giannakou, Christakis Damianou
Summary: A high intensity focused ultrasound phantom model was developed for experiments on Blood Brain Barrier disruption. The model successfully simulated BBB disruption during ultrasound application and has the potential to be a cost-effective alternative to animal experiments.
Article
Biology
Rong Zhao, Stacy D. Grunke, Caleb A. Wood, Gabriella A. Perez, Melissa Comstock, Ming-Hua Li, Anand K. Singh, Kyung-Won Park, Joanna L. Jankowsky
Summary: Neurons in the entorhinal cortex layer 2 (EC2) have been found to be unusually vulnerable to prolonged neuronal inactivity, and reelin + stellate cells connecting the EC and hippocampus are preferentially susceptible within the EC2 population. Multiple means of activity inhibition can lead to neuronal death, and preventing synaptic release is sufficient to induce silencing-induced degeneration. Furthermore, competition between active and inactive cells plays a role in the degeneration following synaptic silencing. This study suggests that the concept of a developmental window for lifelong circuit plasticity may extend into adulthood for specific brain regions.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Michael Dietrich, Hans-Peter Hartung, Philipp Albrecht
Summary: 4-aminopyridine is used as a symptomatic therapy in various neurological disorders, with potential neuroprotective features beyond its symptomatic action, particularly in patients with multiple sclerosis.
NEUROLOGY-NEUROIMMUNOLOGY & NEUROINFLAMMATION
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Eva Baerends, Katia Soud, Jonas Folke, Anna-Kathrine Pedersen, Simon Henmar, Lisa Konrad, Matthew D. Lycas, Yuki Mori, Bente Pakkenberg, David P. D. Woldbye, Oksana Dmytriyeva, Stanislava Pankratova
Summary: This study evaluated early behavioral, anatomical, and molecular changes in rats following injections of human Aβ oligomers. Social memory impairment and changes in brain structure were observed, indicating possible neuroinflammatory responses and synaptopathy associated with Aβ oligomer injections.
ACTA NEUROPATHOLOGICA COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Caitlin S. Mallory, Kiah Hardcastle, Malcolm G. Campbell, Alexander Attinger, Isabel I. C. Low, Jennifer L. Raymond, Lisa M. Giocomo
Summary: Neural circuits in the medial temporal lobe construct a map-like representation of space that supports navigation by integrating multiple sensory cues and cues related to the individual's movement through the environment. The medial entorhinal cortex (MEC) encodes three-dimensional head movement, eye position, and velocity, alongside other self-motion signals in individual neurons, such as body position, running speed, and azimuthal head direction.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Johnson Ying, Alexandra T. Keinath, Raphael Lavoie, Erika Vigneault, Salah El Mestikawy, Mark P. Brandon
Summary: In familial Alzheimer's disease, the buildup of amyloid beta leads to coding impairments in the medial entorhinal cortex grid cell network, resulting in impaired spatial memory performance.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Andrew M. Meier, Quanxin Wang, Weiqing Ji, Jehan Ganachaud, Andreas Burkhalter
Summary: The study showed that the postrhinal area in mice integrates visual information from various cortical areas and influences landmark navigation through connections with the amygdala, especially involving emotional input. Different modules within the postrhinal area respond to inputs differently, ultimately contributing to the construction of spatial maps for navigation.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Behavioral Sciences
Jena B. Hales, Nicole T. Reitz, Jonathan L. Vincze, Amber C. Ocampo, Stefan Leutgeb, Robert E. Clark
Summary: The study found that lesions in the medial entorhinal cortex can impair rats' ability to remember location and stimulus-stimulus associations across short temporal gaps, further indicating the role of the medial entorhinal cortex in bridging temporal delays during learning and memory processing.
BEHAVIOURAL BRAIN RESEARCH
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Yi Chen, Zachary Fernandez, Norman Scheel, Mahsa Gifani, David C. Zhu, Scott E. Counts, Anne M. Dorrance, Daniel Razansky, Xin Yu, Wei Qian, Chunqi Qian
Summary: This study presents an optimized technique for imaging deep-brain areas in rodents. By introducing baby cream into the middle ear, susceptibility-induced signal losses near the ear cavities and reduced sensitivity from the surface array coil are alleviated. The implementation of inductively coupled ear-bars enhances the detection sensitivity of deep brain regions without modifications to the scanner interface. Using this technique, large-scale networks originating from the entorhinal cortex can be observed, facilitating improved functional magnetic resonance imaging outcomes.
Article
Neurosciences
Sachin S. Deshmukh
Summary: The study shows that the inputs from different regions in the proximal and distal CA1 areas cause differential representation responses. While pCA1 representation splits when faced with conflicting inputs, dCA1 is more influenced by global cues. Overall spatial selectivity is not significantly different, possibly due to the richer sensory information available in the behavioral environment.
JOURNAL OF NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Sebastian Brandner, Sarah Schroeter, Guersel Caliskan, Seda Salar, Katja Kobow, Roland Coras, Ingmar Bluemcke, Hajo Hamer, Michael Schwarz, Michael Buchfelder, Anna Maslarova
Summary: The study investigated the negative impact of glucocorticoids on synaptic plasticity in the human cortex of epilepsy patients, suggesting that chronic activation of GRs may lead to memory impairment. Additionally, dexamethasone demonstrated an activity-dependent inhibitory effect on synaptic strength, indicating a potential mechanism through which stress may affect memory in patients with temporal lobe epilepsy.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Christian Malte Bosselmann, Victoria San Antonio-Arce, Andreas Schulze-Bonhage, Susanne Fauser, Pia Zacher, Thomas Mayer, Javier Aparicio, Kristina Albers, Thomas Cloppenborg, Wolfram Kunz, Rainer Surges, Steffen Syrbe, Yvonne Weber, Stefan Wolking
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the practice of genetic testing in presurgical evaluation in epilepsy centers in Germany. The survey results showed that the majority of participants consider genetic testing to be useful in individuals with familial syndromes or phenotypic features suggesting a genetic etiology. The report of 25 cases demonstrated that a genetic diagnosis significantly affects both the decision-making process during presurgical evaluation and the postoperative outcome. The conclusion is that genetic testing is increasingly being incorporated into the presurgical workup in epilepsy centers across Germany.
SEIZURE-EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF EPILEPSY
(2022)
Article
Clinical Neurology
Christine Strippel, Marisol Herrera-Rivero, Mareike Wendorff, Anja K. Tietz, Frauke Degenhardt, Anika Witten, Christina Schroeter, Christopher Nelke, Kristin S. Golombeck, Marie Madlener, Theodor Rueber, Leon Ernst, Attila Racz, Tobias Baumgartner, Guido Widman, Kathrin Doppler, Franziska Thaler, Kai Siebenbrodt, Andre Dik, Constanze Kerin, Saskia Rauber, Marco Gallus, Stjepana Kovac, Oliver M. Grauer, Alexander Grimm, Harald Pruess, Jonathan Wickel, Christian Geis, Jan Lewerenz, Norbert Goebels, Marius Ringelstein, Til Menge, Bjoern Tackenberg, Christoph Kellinghaus, Christian G. Bien, Andrea Kraft, Uwe Zettl, Fatme Seval Ismail, Ilya Ayzenberg, Christian Urbanek, Kurt-Wolfram Suhs, Simone C. Tauber, Sigrid Mues, Peter Kortvelyessy, Robert Markewitz, Asterios Paliantonis, Christian E. Elger, Rainer Surges, Claudia Sommer, Tania Kumpfel, Catharina C. Gross, Holger Lerche, Jorg Wellmer, Carlos M. Quesada, Florian Then Bergh, Klaus-Peter Wandinger, Albert J. Becker, Wolfram S. Kunz, Gerd Meyer zu Hoerste, Michael P. Malter, Felix Rosenow, Heinz Wiendl, Gregor Kuhlenbaumer, Frank Leypoldt, Wolfgang Lieb, Andre Franke, Sven G. Meuth, Monika Stoll, Nico Melzer
Summary: This study identified susceptibility loci for anti-GAD65 AINS, suggesting a strong genetic predisposition with functional implications for immunity and neural function.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Ciaran Campbell, Mark McCormack, Sonn Patel, Caragh Stapleton, Dheeraj Bobbili, Roland Krause, Chantal Depondt, Graeme J. Sills, Bobby P. Koeleman, Pasquale Striano, Federico Zara, Josemir W. Sander, Holger Lerche, Wolfram S. Kunz, Kari Stefansson, Hreinn Stefansson, Colin P. Doherty, Erin L. Heinzen, Ingrid E. Scheffer, David B. Goldstein, Terence O'Brien, David Cotter, Samuel F. Berkovic, Sanjay M. Sisodiya, Norman Delanty, Gianpiero L. Cavalleri
Summary: This study aimed to determine the contribution of genetic variation to psychiatric and behavioral adverse drug reactions associated with levetiracetam. The results showed that a polygenic burden for schizophrenia is a risk factor for levetiracetam-associated psychotic reaction, but no evidence of an increased burden of rare genetic variants was found.
Article
Clinical Neurology
Niklas Schwarz, Simone Seiffert, Manuela Pendziwiat, Annika Verena Rademacher, Tobias Brunger, Ulrike B. S. Hedrich, Paul B. Augustijn, Hartmut Baier, Allan Bayat, Francesca Bisulli, Russell J. Buono, Ben Zeev Bruria, Michael G. Doyle, Renzo Guerrini, Gali Heimer, Michele Iacomino, Hugh Kearney, Karl Martin Klein, Ioanna Kousiappa, Wolfram S. Kunz, Holger Lerche, Laura Licchetta, Ebba Lohmann, Raffaella Minardi, Marie McDonald, Sarah Montgomery, Lejla Mulahasanovic, Renske Oegema, Barel Ortal, Savvas S. Papacostas, Francesca Ragona, Tiziana Granata, Phillip S. Reif, Felix Rosenow, Annick Rothschild, Paolo Scudieri, Pasquale Striano, Paolo Tinuper, George A. Tanteles, Annalisa Vetro, Felix Zahnert, Ethan M. Goldberg, Federico Zara, Dennis Lal, Patrick May, Hiltrud Muhle, Ingo Helbig, Yvonne Weber
Summary: This study identified disease-associated Kv3.2 variants in patients with epilepsy and demonstrated their impact on brain excitability. Some variants were found to increase excitability while others decreased excitability. These findings are important for understanding the pathomechanisms of epilepsy and developing more effective treatment strategies.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Randi von Wrede, Martin Schidlowski, Hans-Juergen Huppertz, Theodor Rueber, Anja Ivo, Tobias Baumgartner, Kerstin Hallmann, Gabor Zsurka, Christoph Helmstaedter, Rainer Surges, Wolfram S. Kunz
Summary: In this study, we identified a novel homozygous frame-shift mutation in ASPM gene in a consanguineous family, leading to microcephaly, epilepsy, and cognitive deficits. Our findings suggest that the severity of neurological symptoms in patients with ASPM mutations may be influenced by factors other than ASPM expression levels.
Article
Genetics & Heredity
Marius Hippen, Gabor Zsurka, Viktoriya Peeva, Judith Machts, Kati Schwiecker, Grazyna Debska-Vielhaber, Rudolf J. Wiesner, Stefan Vielhaber, Wolfram S. Kunz
Summary: In this study, a novel pathogenic variant in the mitochondrial tRNA for cysteine was identified as a cause of NARP syndrome. It was found that the sequence variant disrupted the stability of the tRNA, leading to oxidative phosphorylation deficiency. The study also observed a cluster of somatic deletions near the variant, indicating a potential mechanism of deletion generation in the mitochondrial genome.
NEUROLOGY-GENETICS
(2022)
Article
Neurosciences
Susanne Koehler, Ulrike Winkler, Tabea Junge, Kristina Lippmann, Jens Eilers, Johannes Hirrlinger
Summary: Astrocytes in different brain regions have distinct basal properties but show similar responses to neuronal activity.
Article
Neurosciences
Kristina Lippmann, Zin-Juan Klaft, Seda Salar, Jan-Oliver Hollnagel, Manuel Valero, Anna Maslarova
Summary: Subicular sharp wave-ripples (SWRs) in the hippocampus show hyperexcitable features post-status epilepticus (SE), including increased ripple and unit activity. Disinhibition selectively recruits regular firing neurons for action potential generation during SWRs, while burster neurons generate fewer action potential bursts. Altered timing of postsynaptic and action potentials suggests distorted neuronal recruitment during SWRs. These distorted subicular SWRs may impair information processing and memory consolidation in epilepsy.
NEUROBIOLOGY OF DISEASE
(2022)
Article
Cell Biology
Gabor Zsurka, Maximilian L. T. Appel, Maximilian Nastaly, Kerstin Hallmann, Niels Hansen, Daniel Nass, Tobias Baumgartner, Rainer Surges, Gunther Hartmann, Eva Bartok, Wolfram S. Kunz
Summary: This study reports on a family with three affected individuals exhibiting symptoms resembling a neurodevelopmental disorder. Whole-exome sequencing identified a homozygous stop-gain mutation in the BATF2 gene, which is predominantly expressed in macrophages and monocytes and plays a role in modulating pro-inflammatory responses. Transcriptome analysis showed altered expression of interferon-stimulated genes and elevated responses to innate immune stimuli in the patients' blood. These findings suggest that BATF2 may be a novel disease-associated gene candidate for severe epilepsy and mental retardation related to dysregulation of immune responses, highlighting the importance of neuroinflammation in epilepsy.
Article
Cell Biology
Liron Sheintuch, Nitzan Geva, Daniel Deitch, Alon Rubin, Yaniv Ziv
Summary: Hippocampal subfield CA3 is known for its role in stable memory storage. This study used large-scale Ca2+ imaging in freely behaving mice to investigate the unique coding properties of CA3 and how they contribute to the stability and precision of neural coding. The results revealed that CA3 place cells have higher precision and stability, as well as stronger statistical dependence with their peers compared to CA1 place cells, indicating a cell assembly organization in CA3. Interestingly, cells with stronger peer dependence exhibited higher stability but not higher precision. These findings highlight the relationship between tuning precision, long-term stability, and peer dependence in the hippocampus.
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Genevieve Trombly, Afaf Milad Said, Alexei P. Kudin, Viktoriya Peeva, Janine Altmueller, Kerstin Becker, Karl Koehrer, Gabor Zsurka, Wolfram S. Kunz
Summary: The study investigated the effects of hydrogen peroxide on mitochondrial DNA integrity. The results showed that hydrogen peroxide treatment resulted in DNA breaks, which were then repaired through rapid repair of single-strand breaks and degradation of double-strand breaks-generated linear fragments. Inactivation of mitochondrial DNA degradation resulted in the persistence of linear fragments in mutant cells without affecting the repair of single-strand breaks. These findings highlight the interplay between DNA repair and degradation processes, and the potential generation of somatic mitochondrial DNA deletions.
Article
Critical Care Medicine
Julia Herzig-Nichtweiss, Farid Salih, Sascha Berning, Michael P. Malter, Johann O. Pelz, Piergiorgio Lochner, Matthias Wittstock, Albrecht Guenther, Angelika Alonso, Hannah Fuhrer, Silvia Schoenenberger, Martina Petersen, Felix Kohle, Annekatrin Mueller, Alexander Gawlitza, Waldemar Gubarev, Martin Holtkamp, Bernd J. Vorderwuelbecke
Summary: This study aimed to assess the risk of unprovoked seizure relapse after acute symptomatic epileptic seizures and the use of antiseizure medications. The findings showed that even in cases of structural etiology, the risk of subsequent unprovoked seizures is low, and there is no evidence supporting long-term treatments with antiseizure medications.
ANNALS OF INTENSIVE CARE
(2023)
Meeting Abstract
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Victor Shamanskiy, Alina A. Mikhailova, Kristina Ushakova, Alina G. Mikhailova, Sergei Oreshkov, Dmitry Knorre, Evgenii O. Tretiakov, Marianna Zazhytska, Samuel W. Lukowski, Chia-Wei Liou, Tsu-Kung Lin, Wolfram S. Kunz, Alexandre Reymond, Ilia Mazunin, Georgii A. Bazykin, Konstantin Gunbin, Jacques Fellay, Masashi Tanaka, Konstantin Khrapko, Konstantin Popadin
EUROPEAN JOURNAL OF HUMAN GENETICS
(2022)
Article
Ophthalmology
Johannes Birtel, Christina von Landenberg, Martin Gliem, Carla Gliem, Jens Reimann, Wolfram S. Kunz, Philipp Herrmann, Christian Betz, Richard Caswell, Victoria Nesbitt, Cornelia Kornblum, Peter Charbel Issa
Summary: By studying the retinal phenotype and associated genetic and systemic findings in patients with mitochondrial disease, researchers found that different types of mitochondrial retinopathy exhibit characteristic features. Recognizing these features can facilitate the earlier diagnosis of mitochondrial disease, particularly in patients with mild or nebulous multisystem disease.
OPHTHALMOLOGY RETINA
(2022)