Background
The 14-3-3 family of proteins is implicated in the regulation of several key neuronal processes. Previous human and animal studies have suggested an association between 14-3-3 dysregulation and schizophrenia.
Methods
We characterized the behavioral and functional changes in the transgenic mice that express an isoform-independent 14-3-3 inhibitor peptide in the brain.
Results
We have recently shown that the 14-3-3 functional knockout mice (FKO) exhibit impairments in associative learning and memory. Here, we report that these 14-3-3 FKO mice display other behavioral deficits which correspond to the core symptoms of schizophrenia. These behavioral deficits may be attributed to alterations in multiple neurotransmission systems in the 14-3-3 FKO mice. Particularly, inhibition of 14-3-3 proteins results in a reduction of dendritic complexity and spine density in forebrain excitatory neurons, which may underlie the altered synaptic connectivity in the prefrontal cortical synapse of the 14-3-3 FKO mice. At the molecular level, this dendritic spine defect may stem from dysregulated actin dynamics due to a disruption of the 14-3-3-dependent regulation of phosphorylated cofilin.
Conclusions
Collectively, our data provide a link between 14-3-3 dysfunction, synaptic alterations, and schizophrenia-associated behavioral deficits.