Molecular Mechanisms for Changing Brain Connectivity in Mice and Humans
The goal of this study was to examine commonalities in the molecular basis of learning in mice and humans. In previous work we have demonstrated that the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and hippocampus (HC) are involved in learning a two-choice visuospatial discrimination task. Here, we began by loo...
| Main Authors: | , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
MDPI AG
2023-10-01
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| Series: | International Journal of Molecular Sciences |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/1422-0067/24/21/15840 |
| Summary: | The goal of this study was to examine commonalities in the molecular basis of learning in mice and humans. In previous work we have demonstrated that the anterior cingulate cortex (ACC) and hippocampus (HC) are involved in learning a two-choice visuospatial discrimination task. Here, we began by looking for candidate genes upregulated in mouse ACC and HC with learning. We then determined which of these were also upregulated in mouse blood. Finally, we used RT-PCR to compare candidate gene expression in mouse blood with that from humans following one of two forms of learning: a working memory task (network training) or meditation (a generalized training shown to change many networks). Two genes were upregulated in mice following learning: caspase recruitment domain-containing protein 6 (<i>Card6</i>) and inosine monophosphate dehydrogenase 2 (<i>Impdh2</i>). The <i>Impdh2</i> gene product catalyzes the first committed step of guanine nucleotide synthesis and is tightly linked to cell proliferation. The <i>Card6</i> gene product positively modulates signal transduction. In humans, <i>Card6</i> was significantly upregulated, and <i>Impdh2</i> trended toward upregulation with training. These genes have been shown to regulate pathways that influence nuclear factor kappa B (<i>NF-κB</i>), a factor previously found to be related to enhanced synaptic function and learning. |
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| ISSN: | 1661-6596 1422-0067 |