Early behavioral changes and quantitative analysis of neuropathological features in murine prion disease: Stereological analysis in the albino Swiss mice model

Behavioral and neuropathological changes have been widely investigated in murine prion disease but stereological based unbiased estimates of key neuropathological features have not been carried out. After injections of ME7 infected (ME7) or normal brain homogenates (NBH) into dorsal CA1 of albino Swiss mice and C57BL6, we assessed behavioral changes on hippocampal-dependent tasks. We also estimated by optical fractionator at 15 and 18 weeks post-injections (w.p.i.) the total number of neurons, reactive astrocytes, activated microglia and perineuronal nets (PN) in the polymorphic layer of dentate gyrus (PolDG), CA1 and septum in albino Swiss mice. On average, early behavioral changes in albino Swiss mice start four weeks later than in C57BL6. Cluster and discriminant analysis of behavioral data in albino Swiss mice revealed that four of nine subjects start to change their behavior at 12 w.p.i. and reach terminal stage at 22 w.p.i and the remaining subjects start at 22 w.p.i. and reach terminal stage at 26 w.p.i. Biotinylated dextran-amine BDA-tracer experiments in mossy fiber pathway confirmed axonal degeneration and stereological data showed that early astrocytosis, microgliosis and reduction in the perineuronal nets are independent of a change in the number of neuronal cell bodies. Statistical analysis revealed that the septal region had greater levels of neuroinflammation and extracellular matrix damage than CA1. This stereological and multivariate analysis at early stages of disease in an outbred model of prion disease provided new insights connecting behavioral changes and neuroinflammation and seems to be important to understand the mechanisms of prion disease progression.Key words: prion disease, optical fractionator, neuropathology, behavioral changes, albino Swiss mice     

Multiple apoptotic defects in hematopoietic cells from mice lacking lipocalin 24p3

The lipocalin mouse 24p3 has been implicated in diverse physiological processes, including apoptosis, iron trafficking, development and innate immunity. Studies from our laboratory as well as others demonstrated the proapoptotic activity of 24p3 in a variety of cultured models. However, a general role for the lipocalin 24p3 in the hematopoietic system has not been tested in vivo. To study the role of 24p3, we derived 24p3 null mice and back-crossed them onto C57BL/6 and 129/SVE backgrounds. Homozygous 24p3(-/-) mice developed a progressive accumulation of lymphoid, myeloid, and erythroid cells, which was not due to enhanced hematopoiesis because competitive repopulation and recovery from myelosuppression were the same as for wild type. Instead, apoptotic defects were unique to many mature hematopoietic cell types, including neutrophils, cytokine-dependent mast cells, thymocytes, and erythroid cells. Thymocytes isolated from 24p3 null mice also displayed resistance to apoptosis-induced by dexamethasone. Bim response to various apoptotic stimuli was attenuated in 24p3(-/-) cells, thus explaining their resistance to the ensuing cell death. The results of these studies, in conjunction with those of previous studies, reveal 24p3 as a regulator of the hematopoietic compartment with important roles in normal physiology and disease progression. Interestingly, these functions are limited to relatively mature blood cell compartments.     

CTCF binding site sequence differences are associated with unique regulatory and functional trends during embryonic stem cell differentiation

CTCF (CCCTC-binding factor) is a highly conserved multifunctional DNA-binding protein with thousands of binding sites genome-wide. Our previous work suggested that differences in CTCF’s binding site sequence may affect the regulation of CTCF recruitment and its function. To investigate this possibility, we characterized changes in genome-wide CTCF binding and gene expression during differentiation of mouse embryonic stem cells. After separating CTCF sites into three classes (LowOc, MedOc and HighOc) based on similarity to the consensus motif, we found that developmentally regulated CTCF binding occurs preferentially at LowOc sites, which have lower similarity to the consensus. By measuring the affinity of CTCF for selected sites, we show that sites lost during differentiation are enriched in motifs associated with weaker CTCF binding in vitro. Specifically, enrichment for T at the 18^th position of the CTCF binding site is associated with regulated binding in the LowOc class and can predictably reduce CTCF affinity for binding sites. Finally, by comparing changes in CTCF binding with changes in gene expression during differentiation, we show that LowOc and HighOc sites are associated with distinct regulatory functions. Our results suggest that the regulatory control of CTCF is dependent in part on specific motifs within its binding site.