Experience-dependent expression of rat hippocampal Arc and Homer 1a after spatial learning on 8-arm and 12-arm radial mazes

Nikbakht, Nader; Zarei, B.; Shirani, Elham; Moshtaghian, Jamal; Esmaeili, Abolghasem; Saiëd, H

doi:10.1016/j.neuroscience.2012.05.025

Cited by 11 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…Rodent behavioral experiments done under red light are believed to place the animal in dark conditions while allowing the experimenter to observe the preparation directly or by video recording ( Celikel and Sakmann, 2007 ; Cloke et al, 2015 ; Diamond et al, 1999 ; Englund et al, 2020 ; van Goethem et al, 2012 ; Harris and Diamond, 2000 ; Harris et al, 1999 ; Jacklin et al, 2016 ; Nikbakht et al, 2012 ; Pacchiarini et al, 2020 ; Reid et al, 2014 ; Salaberry et al, 2017 ; Sieben et al, 2015 ; Vasconcelos et al, 2011 ; Winters and Reid, 2010 ). The relevant literature includes place-cell studies of rats navigating under dim red light, taken as the absence of visual input ( O'Keefe, 1976 ; Save et al, 2000 ; Zhang and Manahan-Vaughan, 2015 ; Zhang et al, 2014 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conserved visual capacity of rats under red light

Nikbakht

Diamond

2021

eLife

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Recent studies examine the behavioral capacities of rats and mice with and without visual input, and the neuronal mechanisms underlying such capacities. These animals are assumed to be functionally blind under red light, an assumption that might originate in the fact that they are dichromats who possess ultraviolet and green but not red cones. But the inability to see red as a color does not necessarily rule out form vision based on red light absorption. We measured Long-Evans rats' capacity for visual form discrimination under red light of various wavelength bands. Upon viewing a black and white grating, they had to distinguish between two categories of orientation, horizontal and vertical. Psychometric curves plotting judged orientation versus angle demonstrate the conserved visual capacity of rats under red light. Investigations aiming to explore rodent physiological and behavioral functions in the absence of visual input should not assume red-light blindness.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conserved visual capacity of rats under red light

Nikbakht

Diamond

2021

eLife

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“…Homer 1a is a dominant negative modulator of group 1 mGluR activity (Kammermeier and Worley, 2007), and its expression is experience-dependent (Nikbakht et al, 2012). Both reduction (Menard and Quirion, 2012b; Kaja et al, 2013) and overexpression (Klugmann et al, 2005) of Homer 1a levels have been associated with memory deficits, highlighting a tightly regulated expression.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Glutamatergic signaling and low prodynorphin expression are associated with intact memory and reduced anxiety in rat models of healthy aging

Ménard

Quirion

Bouchard

et al. 2014

Front. Aging Neurosci.

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The LOU/C/Jall (LOU) rat strain is considered a model of healthy aging due to its increased longevity, maintenance of stable body weight (BW) throughout life and low incidence of age-related diseases. However, aging LOU rat cognitive and anxiety status has yet to be investigated. In the present study, male and female LOU rat cognitive performances (6-42 months) were assessed using novel object recognition and Morris Water Maze tasks. Recognition memory remained intact in all LOU rats up to 42 months of age. As for spatial memory, old LOU rat performed similarly as young animals for learning acquisition, reversal learning, and retention. While LOU rat BW remained stable despite aging, 20-month-old ad-libitum-fed (OAL) male Sprague Dawley rats become obese. We determined if long-term caloric restriction (LTCR) prevents age-related BW increase and cognitive deficits in this rat strain, as observed in the obesity-resistant LOU rats. Compared to young animals, recognition memory was impaired in OAL but intact in 20-month-old calorie-restricted (OCR) rats. Similarly, OAL spatial learning acquisition was impaired but LTCR prevented the deficits. Exacerbated stress responses may favor age-related cognitive decline. In the elevated plus maze and open field tasks, LOU and OCR rats exhibited high levels of exploratory activity whereas OAL rats displayed anxious behaviors. Expression of prodynorphin (Pdyn), an endogenous peptide involved in stress-related memory impairments, was increased in the hippocampus of OAL rats. Group 1 metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 and immediate early genes Homer 1a and Arc expression, both associated with successful cognitive aging, were unaltered in aging LOU rats but lower in OAL than OCR rats. Altogether, our results, supported by principal component analysis and correlation matrix, suggest that intact memory and low anxiety are associated with glutamatergic signaling and low Pdyn expression in the hippocampus of non-obese aging rats.

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“…Red illumination is often used in reverse light cycle conditions in animal husbandry settings with the assumption that it will not affect rodent circadian rhythms (Emmer et al, 2018). Furthermore, experiments done under red light are believed to place the animal in dark conditions while allowing the experimenter to observe the preparation directly or by video recording (Cloke et al, 2015; Englund et al, 2020; van Goethem et al, 2012; Harris and Diamond, 2000; Harris et al, 1999; Jacklin et al, 2016; Nikbakht et al, 2012; Pacchiarini et al, 2020; Reid et al, 2014; Salaberry et al, 2017; Sieben et al, 2015; Vasconcelos et al, 2011; Winters and Reid, 2010). But from the inability to see red as a color, it does not necessarily follow that rodents cannot absorb red light through their rod-dominated retina to support form vision.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Conserved visual capacity of rats under red light

Nikbakht

Diamond

2020

Preprint

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Recent studies examine the behavioral capacities of rats and mice with and without visual input, and the neuronal mechanisms underlying such capacities. These animals are assumed to be functionally blind under red light, perhaps originating in the fact that they are dichromats who possess ultraviolet and green but not red cones. But the inability to see red as a color does not necessarily rule out form vision based on red light absorption through their rod-dominated retina. We measured Long-Evans rats' capacity for visual form discrimination under red light of various wavelength bands. Upon viewing a black and white grating, they had to distinguish between two categories of orientation, horizontal and vertical. Psychometric curves plotting judged orientation versus angle demonstrate the conserved visual capacity of rats under red light. Investigations aiming to explore rodent physiological and behavioral functions in the absence of visual input should not assume red-light blindness.

show abstract

Experience-dependent expression of rat hippocampal Arc and Homer 1a after spatial learning on 8-arm and 12-arm radial mazes

Cited by 11 publications

References 33 publications

Conserved visual capacity of rats under red light

Conserved visual capacity of rats under red light

Glutamatergic signaling and low prodynorphin expression are associated with intact memory and reduced anxiety in rat models of healthy aging

Conserved visual capacity of rats under red light

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