Protocol for lentivirus-mediated delivery of genes to study neurogenesis and cognitive function in adult rodents

Adult neurogenesis leads to the generation of functional neurons from neural stem cells, whereas impairment of adult hippocampal neurogenesis contributes to the pathophysiology of cognitive symptoms in neurodegenerative and neuropsychiatric diseases. Here, we present a protocol for a direct hippocampal injection of lentivirus-delivered gene in adult rodents to study the specific molecular mechanism underlying adult neurogenesis, including lentivirus packaging and stereotaxic injection, EdU and BrdU injections, tissue immunostaining and imaging analysis, and cognitive testing. For complete details on the use and execution of this protocol, please refer to Li et al. (2023).¹.