Construction of a Mex3c Gene-Deficient Mouse Model to Study C-FOS Expression in Hypothalamic Nuclei and Observe Morphological Differences in Embryonic Neural Tube Development

Abstract

Background This study utilized CRISPR/Cas9 gene editing technology to construct a Mex3c gene-deficient mouse model, and studied C-FOS expression in hypothalamic nuclei. Material/Methods Thirty Mex3c −/+ mice, 30 mice in the normal group, and 30 Mex3c −/+ mice were randomly divided into control, leptin, and ghrelin groups according to different intraperitoneal injections. HE and Nissl staining were performed to observe the morphology of hypothalamic nerve cells. The C-FOS expression in hypothalamic nuclei of each group was analyzed by immunohistochemical techniques. HE staining was used to observe neural tube morphology, and LFB staining was used to observe nerve myelin sheath morphology. TEM was used to observe neuronal ultrastructure and immunohistochemical techniques were utilized to analyze nestin expression. Results C-FOS expression was lower in the normal control group than in the leptin and ghrelin groups. The Mex3c control group and the leptin group had higher C-FOS expression than the ghrelin group. In neural tube studies, no significant differences were found in the neural tube pathological sections of E14.5-day embryos in each group. Nestin results demonstrated lower expression in the normal group and there was little difference between the HD and Mex3c groups. Conclusions Mex3c appears to participate in the regulation of energy metabolism by inducing C-FOS expression in the hypothalamus. The neural tubes of the offspring of Mex3c −/+ mice had defects during development.

MEX3C induces cognitive impairment in mice through autophagy inhibition

“…The MEX3C gene has been confirmed to be closely related to growth and development, especially in the central nervous system. Recent studies found that the MEX3C gene is involved in regulating the expression of PAX3 and Nestin proteins in the development of the embryonic neural tube in mice, thereby inhibiting the development and maturation of nerve cells in the neural tube and promoting apoptosis within (Du et al., 2020 ). In this study, we found that MEX3C ‐KO mice had significantly increased learning time and decreased memory ability in the water maze, novel object recognition, and shuttle box experiments; although the mice in the KO group formed memory, their memory reproduction ability was significantly decreased, while in the elevated plus maze and open‐field experiments, the KO mice also showed increased anxiety.…”

“…Studies have revealed that MEX3C plays an important role in the development of the embryonic neural tube (Du et al., 2020 ). It may participate in the regulation of the proliferation and apoptosis of NSCs through the interaction of neuroactive ligand receptors, TGF‐β, Notch, and other signaling pathways before affecting the neural tube.…”