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Author Spotlight: Understanding Adolescent Social Adversity Effects on Neurodevelopment in Mice
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Transcriptomic analysis reveals oxidative phosphorylation activation in an adolescent social isolation rat model
1School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences, Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China.
Brain Research Bulletin
|August 25, 2018
Summary
Adolescent social isolation in rats induced anxiety and disrupted sensorimotor gating, altering gene expression in the prefrontal cortex. Oxidative phosphorylation genes are implicated in the pathogenesis of this schizophrenia model.
Area of Science:
- Neuroscience
- Genetics
- Molecular Biology
Background:
- Schizophrenia (SCZ) pathogenesis involves complex genetic and environmental interactions.
- Adolescent social isolation is a recognized model for studying SCZ, but its mechanisms remain unclear.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the molecular mechanisms underlying schizophrenia induced by adolescent social isolation in Sprague-Dawley rats.
- To identify specific gene expression alterations in the prefrontal cortex associated with this condition.
Main Methods:
- Adolescent rats underwent isolation rearing (IR) or social rearing (SR) from postnatal day 21 to 34.
- Behavioral tests (prepulse inhibition, elevated plus maze) were conducted on postnatal day 56.
- Transcriptomic sequencing and RT-qPCR were performed on prefrontal cortex tissues.
Main Results:
- Adolescent social isolation led to anxious behaviors and disrupted prepulse inhibition in adult rats.
- Significant alterations in prefrontal cortex gene expression were observed, with 196 genes upregulated and 748 downregulated in the IR group.
- Differentially expressed genes were enriched in pathways related to neurological disorders and oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS), with 26 overlapping genes strongly distinguishing the groups.
Conclusions:
- Adolescent social isolation induces behavioral and molecular changes relevant to schizophrenia.
- Genes associated with neurological disorders and particularly OXPHOS play a significant role in the pathogenesis of adolescent social isolation-induced SCZ (ASI-SCZ).
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