Topic: hippocampus-dependent memory

The endogenous circadian rhythm of organisms maintains fundamental physiological processes and behaviour by synchronising them to the external environment. Disturbance to this rhythm in our modern societies, caused by the use of artificial light in dark periods, electronic gadgets, shift work, and poor sleep hygiene negatively impacts physiological and cognitive health. Studies in rodent hippocampus show that neuronal membrane excitability shows a diurnal rhythm and disturbance to the circadian cycle impairs hippocampal plasticity and memory. However, it is not clear how acute circadian distur

Severe bacterial infections affect more than 19 million people each year. With improved treatment strategies, more and more patients survive such severe bacterial infections. However, the majority of these survivors develop cognitive impairment and mental health problems. The pathogenesis of infection-induced cognitive impairment may include vascular injuries and neuro-inflammation, which eventually leads to neuron dysfunction. However, the mechanisms that promote cognitive impairment post infection remain largely unknown. We observed that mice exhibit hippocampus-dependent memory impairment p

Ischemic stroke (IS) and Alzheimer's disease (AD) are debilitating neurological disorders marked by functional and cognitive deficits, sharing underlying pathological mechanisms. Recent research highlights the involvement of neurogenesis in both conditions, with alterations in neurogenesis linked to cognitive dysfunction. In our study, we aimed to investigate cognitive decline in a combined IS/AD model. To this end, IS was induced by permanent middle cerebral artery occlusion (pMCAO) in 4-months-old male and female 3xTg-AD vs wild-type (WT) mice. Our results revealed comparable sensorimotor re

Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) is associated with inflammatory activity in the GI tract and birth complications in pregnant women. The long-term impact of gestational IBD on offspring development, however, has not been examined. Here, we employed dextran sulfate sodium (DSS, 2.5% in drinking water on GD9-12) to induce colonic mucosa ulceration to the pregnant C57BL/6 mice dams. Offspring from DSS-treated dams were compared with non-treated dams at juvenile (PND 30) and adult age (PND 70) in behavioural tests sensitive to the acute gestational infection induced by polyinosinic:polycytidylic a

Distinct patterns of DNA methylation (mC) and hydroxymethylation (hmC) are identified in the neuronal epigenome, and the dynamic regulation of mC/hmC is associated with various hippocampus-dependent memory processes. hmC, an oxidized form of mC, acts as an essential intermediate in the active DNA demethylation pathway. The further oxidized hmC derivatives are eventually removed by the thymine DNA glycosylase (TDG) initiated base excision repair (BER). Constitutive knockout or catalytic inactivation of TDG leads to embryonic lethality in mice, demonstrating an essential role of TDG in the epige