U.S. patent application number 12/653904 was filed with the patent office on 2010-10-07 for dna regulatory element for the expression of transgenes in neurons of a subject and uses thereof.
This patent application is currently assigned to The Trustees of Columbia University in the City of New York. Invention is credited to Eric R. Kandel, Mark Mayford.
Application Number | 20100257616 12/653904 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 25515235 |
Filed Date | 2010-10-07 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100257616 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Kandel; Eric R. ; et
al. |
October 7, 2010 |
DNA regulatory element for the expression of transgenes in neurons
of a subject and uses thereof
Abstract
The present invention provides for a recombinant nucleic acid
molecule comprising a region of a calcium-calmodulin dependent
kinase II.alpha. promoter operatively linked to a gene of interest.
The region of a calcium-calmodulin dependent kinase II.alpha.
promoter may comprise an 8.5 kilobase nucleic acid sequence which
corresponds to the nucleic acid sequence of ATCC Accession No.:
______, designated pMM281. The present invention also provides a
human cell line which has been stably transformed by a recombinant
nucleic acid molecule comprising a gene of interest operatively
linked to a nucleic acid encoding a calcium-calmodulin dependent
kinase II.alpha. promoter region which has a nucleotide sequence
corresponding to the sequence of ATCC Accession No. ______,
designated pMM281. The present invention also provides for a
transgenic nonhuman mammal whose germ or somatic cells contain a
nucleic acid molecule which encodes a gene of interest under the
control of a CaMKII.alpha. promoter (ATCC Accession No. ______),
introduced into the mammal, or an ancestor thereof, at an embryonic
stage. Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of
evaluating whether a compound is effective in treating symptoms of
a neurological disorder in a subject which comprises: (a)
administering the compound to the transgenic nonhuman mammal whose
germ or somatic cells contain a nucleic acid molecule which encodes
a gene of interest under the control of a CaMKII.alpha. promoter,
and (b) comparing the neurological function the mammal in step (a)
with neurological function of the transgenic mammal in the absence
of the compound, thereby determining whether the compound is
effective in treating symptoms of the neurological disorder in a
subject.
Inventors: |
Kandel; Eric R.; (Riverdale,
NY) ; Mayford; Mark; (San Diego, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
COOPER & DUNHAM, LLP
30 Rockefeller Plaza, 20th Floor
NEW YORK
NY
10112
US
|
Assignee: |
The Trustees of Columbia University
in the City of New York
|
Family ID: |
25515235 |
Appl. No.: |
12/653904 |
Filed: |
December 18, 2009 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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10341999 |
Jan 14, 2003 |
7635768 |
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12653904 |
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08969137 |
Nov 12, 1997 |
6509190 |
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10341999 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
800/3 ; 424/9.2;
435/29; 435/366; 435/368; 514/44R; 800/14 |
Current CPC
Class: |
A61P 25/00 20180101;
C12N 2830/85 20130101; A61P 25/16 20180101; C12N 2830/006 20130101;
C12N 5/0619 20130101; C12N 15/85 20130101; C12N 2830/008 20130101;
C12N 5/16 20130101; A61P 25/28 20180101; C12N 2830/42 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
800/3 ; 514/44.R;
435/366; 435/368; 800/14; 424/9.2; 435/29 |
International
Class: |
A61K 49/00 20060101
A61K049/00; A61K 31/7088 20060101 A61K031/7088; A61P 25/00 20060101
A61P025/00; A61P 25/28 20060101 A61P025/28; A61P 25/16 20060101
A61P025/16; C12N 5/071 20100101 C12N005/071; C12N 5/0793 20100101
C12N005/0793; A01K 67/027 20060101 A01K067/027; C12Q 1/02 20060101
C12Q001/02 |
Goverment Interests
[0001] The invention disclosed herein was made with Government
support under Grant No. 50733-03 from National Institutes of Mental
Health. Accordingly, the U.S. Government has certain rights in this
invention.
Claims
1-5. (canceled)
6. A human cell line which has been stably transformed by a
recombinant nucleic acid molecule comprising a gene of interest
operatively linked to a nucleic acid encoding a calcium-calmodulin
dependent kinase II.alpha. promoter region which has a nucleotide
sequence corresponding to the sequence of ATCC Accession No.
98582.
7. The human cell line of claim 6, wherein the gene of interest
comprises an acalcinurin gene, a gene involved in brain function, a
growth factor gene, an ion channel gene, a kinase gene, a
neurotransmitter gene, a neurotrophic factor gene, a phosphatase
gene, a recombinase gene, a reporter gene, a receptor gene, a
transactivator transcription factor gene, a transcription factor
gene.
8. The cell line of claim 6, wherein the cell line is a human
neuronal cell line.
9. A transgenic nonhuman mammal whose germ or somatic cells contain
a nucleic acid molecule which encodes a gene of interest under the
control of a CaMKII.alpha. promoter (ATCC-Accession No. 98582),
introduced into the mammal, or an ancestor thereof, at an embryonic
stage.
10. The transgenic nonhuman mammal of claim 9, wherein the gene of
interest comprises an acalcinurin gene, a gene involved in brain
function, a growth factor gene, an ion channel gene, a kinase gene,
a neurotransmitter gene, a neurotrophic factor gene, a phosphatase
gene, a recombinase gene, a reporter gene, a receptor gene, a
transactivator transcription factor gene, a transcription factor
gene.
11. The transgenic nonhuman mammal of claim 9, wherein the nucleic
acid Molecule contains an appropriate piece of genomic clone DNA
from the mammal designed for homologous recombination.
12. A method of treating a neurological disorder in a subject which
comprises administering to the subject an effective amount of the
recombinant nucleic acid of claim 1 so as to express the gene of
interest in the subject and thereby treat the neurological
disorder.
13. The method of claim 13, wherein the neurological disorder is
amnesia, Alzheimer's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a
brain injury, cerebral senility, chronic peripheral neuropathy, a
cognitive disability, a degenerative disorder associated with
learning, Down's Syndrome, dyslexia, electric shock induced amnesia
or amnesia. Guillain-Barre syndrome, head trauma, Huntington's
disease, a learning disability, a memory deficiency, memory loss, a
mental illness, mental retardation, memory or cognitive
dysfunction, multi-infarct dementia and senile dementia, myasthenia
gravis, a neuromuscular disorder, Parkinson's disease, Pick's
disease, a reduction in spatial memory retention, senility, or
Turret's syndrome.
14. A method of evaluating whether a compound is effective in
treating symptoms of a neurological disorder in a subject which
comprises: (a) administering the compound to the transgenic
nonhuman mammal of claim 9, and (b) comparing the neurological
function the mammal in step (a) with neurological function of the
transgenic mammal in the absence of the compound, thereby
determining whether the compound is effective in treating symptoms
of the neurological disorder in a subject.
15. The method of claim 14, wherein the neurological disorder is
amnesia, Alzheimer's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a
brain injury, cerebral senility, chronic peripheral neuropathy, a
cognitive disability, a degenerative disorder associated with
learning, Down's Syndrome, dyslexia, electric shock induced amnesia
or amnesia, Guillain-Barre syndrome, head trauma, Huntington's
disease, a learning disability, a memory deficiency, memory loss, a
mental illness, mental retardation, memory or cognitive
dysfunction, multi-infarct dementia and senile dementia, myasthenia
gravis, a neuromuscular disorder, Parkinson's disease, Pick's
disease, a reduction in spatial memory retention, senility, or
Turret's syndrome.
16. The method of claim 14, wherein the compound is an organic
compound, a nucleic acid, a small molecule, an inorganic compound,
a lipid, or a synthetic compound.
17. The method of claim 14, wherein the mammal is a mouse, a sheep,
a bovine, a canine, a porcine, or a primate.
18. The method of claim 14, wherein the subject is a human.
19. The method of claim 14, wherein the administration comprises
intralesional, intraperitoneal, intramuscular or intravenous
injection; infusion; liposome-mediated delivery; gene bombardment;
topical, nasal, oral, anal, ocular or otic delivery.
20. A method of evaluating whether a-compound is effective in
treating symptoms of a neurological disorder in a subject which
comprises: (a) contacting a human neuronal cell of the human
neuronal cell line of claim 6 with the compound, and (b) comparing
the neuronal cell function of the neuronal cell in step (a) with
neuronal cell function in the absence of the compound, thereby
determining whether the compound is effective in treating symptoms
of the neurological disorder.
Description
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0002] Throughout this application, various publications are
referenced by author and date. Full citations for these
publications may be found listed alphabetically at the end of the
specification immediately preceding the claims. The disclosures of
these publications in their entireties are hereby incorporated by
reference into this application in order to more fully describe the
state of the art as known to those skilled therein as of the date
of the invention described and claimed herein.
[0003] The insight that memory has time-dependent phases dates to
1890 when William James first proposed a distinction between a
primary or short-term memory, a memory that has to be maintained
continuously in consciousness, and secondary or long-term memory
that can be dropped from consciousness and could be recalled at
will at a later time (James, 1890). According to James view,
short-term memory holds information for a few seconds whereas
long-term memory holds information for long periods of time.
Subsequent experimental work suggested that these two phases of
memory are usually in series and that the transition from short- to
long-term memory is facilitated by an increase in the saliency or
the number of training trials (Ebbinghaus, 1885; Weiskrantz, 1970;
Craik and Lockhart, 1972; Wickelgren, 1983; Mandel et al.,
1989).
[0004] The distinction between these two major phases was placed on
a firmer biochemical basis when long-term memory was found to
require the synthesis of new proteins, whereas short-term memory
does not (Davis and Squire, 1984). These Biochemical studies also
revealed that short-term memory often lasted many minutes, and
therefore was more enduring than the primary memory delineated y
James. These studies therefore suggested that short-term memory may
in turn have subdivisions, and that in addition to primary or
working memory, there is a subsequent intermediate stage of,
protein synthesis-independent, short-term memory. Further support
for subcomponents of memory have also emerged from genetic studies
in Drosophila and pharmacological studies in rodents and chicks
(McGaugh, 1968; Cherkin, 1969; Gibbs and Ng, 1977; Frieder and
Allweis, 1982; Rosenzweig et al., 1993; Tully et al., 1994; Zhao et
al., 1995 a and b; Bennet et al., 1996).
[0005] In addition to being able to distinguish temporal phases in
memory storage, studies in human and monkey also delineated two
distinct neural systems for long-term memory based upon the types
of information stored. Bilateral lesions of the medial temporal
lobe revealed an impairment in declarative long-term memory, a
memory for people, places and objects but these lesions spared
non-declarative memory for perceptual and motor skill.
Particularly, interesting was the finding that the lesions of the
medial temporal lobe system, that interfere with declarative
memory, only interfere with the long-term form of this memory and
not with components of short-term memory, in particular not with
working memory (Scoville and Milner, 1957; Mishkin, 1978;
Zola-Morgan and Squire, 1985; Squire, 1987; Overman et al., 1990;
Alvarez et al., 1994). These results indicate that structures in
the medial temporal lobe, in particular the hippocampus,
specifically subserve long-term memory but not some components of
short-term memory.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] The present invention provides for a recombinant nucleic
acid molecule comprising a region of a calcium-calmodulin dependent
kinase II.alpha. promoter operatively linked to a gene of interest.
The region of a calcium-calmodulin dependent kinase II.alpha.
promoter may comprise an 8.5 kilobase nucleic acid sequence which
corresponds to the nucleic acid sequence of ATCC Accession No.
______, designated pMM2.81. The present invention also provides a
human cell line which has been stably transformed by a recombinant
nucleic acid molecule comprising a gene of interest operatively
linked to a nucleic acid encoding a calcium-calmodulin dependent
kinase II.alpha. promoter region which has a nucleotide sequence
corresponding to the sequence of ATCC Accession No. ______,
designated pMM281. The present invention also provides for a
transgenic nonhuman mammal whose germ or somatic cells contain a
nucleic acid molecule which encodes a gene of interest under the
control of a CaMKII.alpha. promoter (ATCC Accession No. ______),
introduced into the mammal, or an ancestor thereof, at an embryonic
stage. Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of
evaluating whether a compound is effective in treating symptoms of
a neurological disorder in a subject which comprises: (a)
administering the compound to the transgenic nonhuman mammal whose
germ or somatic cells contain a nucleic acid molecule which encodes
a gene of interest under the control of a CaMKII.alpha. promoter,
and (b) comparing the neurological function the mammal in step (a)
with neurological function of the transgenic mammal in the absence
of the compound, thereby determining whether the compound is
effective in treating symptoms of the neurological disorder in a
subject.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0007] FIGS. 1A-1B. Expression of lacZ mRNA in mouse forebrain.
(FIG. 1A) schematic representation of the DNA constructs used for
the generation of transgenic mice. lac-CMK: the 8.5-kbp
CaMKII.alpha. promoter region, as well as 84 nucleotides of the 5'
non-coding exon, was fused to the E. coli lacZ gene. The entire
3'-UTR of the CaMKII.alpha. mRNA was placed downstream of the lacZ
coding region. lac-A: identical to lac-CMK except that the bovine
growth hormone polyadenylylation signal was substituted for the
CaMKII.alpha. 3'-UTR. nls-lac-CMK, the tet-O promoter (Craig et
al., 1993) was linked to a modified lacZ gene with an in-phase
fusion to the green fluorescent protein (GFP) and a nuclear
localization sequence. (FIG. 1B) Northern blot analysis of poly
(A).sup.+ RNA isolated from the forebrain of the lac-CMK and lac-A
mice.
[0008] FIGS. 2A-2B. Beta-galactosidase histochemistry.
[0009] FIGS. 3A-3D. In situ localization of lacZ mRNA in
hippocampus. (FIG. 3A) In situ hybridization using a lacZ-specific
oligonucleotide probe. SM (stratum molecular), dendritic layer of
the dentate gyrus granule cells; SR (stratum radiatum), dendritic
layer of the CA1 pyramidal cells. (FIG. 3B) X-gal staining of
hippocampus from 20 .mu.m horizontal sections as described in FIG.
2. (Bar=300 .mu.m).
[0010] FIGS. 4A-4D. Differential expression of beta-gal within
dendrites. (FIG. 4A) In situ hybridization against the nls-lac-CMK
mouse using a lacZ specific probe. (FIG. 4B) Histochemical
detection of J-gal in the nls-lac-CMK neuron in culture. The MAP2
antibody specifically labels microtubules along the dendritic
shaft. MAP2 labeling is indicated in red. .beta.-gal labeling is
shown in green. Arrows denote .beta.-gal in presumptive dendritic
spines. Arrowheads indicate areas of punctate .beta.-gal staining
along the dendrite. (FIG. 4D) Expression of .beta.-gal in a distal
portion of the dendritic arbor. Arrowheads denote areas of punctate
.beta.-gal staining. Open arrow shows a dendrite arising from a
neuron, which did not express the nls-lac-CMK transgene (Bar=10
.mu.M).
[0011] FIGS. 5A-5B. Regulation of the CaMKII-Asp286 transgene with
the tTA system. (FIG. 5A) Strategy used to obtain
forebrain-specific doxycycline-regulated transgene expression. Two
independent lines of transgenic mice are obtained, and the two
transgenes are introduced into a single mouse through mating. (FIG.
5B) Quantitation by RT-PCR Southern blot of CaMKII-Asp.sup.286
expression from the tet-O promoter, RT-PCR was performed on total
forebrain RNA and probed for expression of the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286
mutant mRNA as described (7, 21). Tg1, mouse carrying only the
CaMKII promoter-tTA transgene (line B). Tg2, mouse carrying only
the tet-O-CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene (line 21). Tgq/Tg2, double
transgenic mouse carrying both the CaMKII promoter-tTA transgene
(line B) and tet-O-CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 (line 21) transgenes.
Tg1/Tg2+Dox, double transgenic mouse treated with doxycycline (2
mg/ml) plus 5% sucrose in the drinking water for four weeks.
[0012] FIGS. 6A-6B. Forebrain-specific activation of a tet-O-lacZ
transgene. (FIG. 6A) Coronal section of double transgenic line B
lacl stained with X-Gal as described (Mayford et al., 1996). Ctx,
cerebral cortex; Str, striatum; Hip, hippocampus; Amy, amygdala.
(FIG. 6B) X-Gal-stained coronal section of the hippocampus from
double transgenic lines B lac1 and B lac2. CA1, CA1 cell body
layer; CA3, CA3 cell body layer; OG, dentate gyrus.
[0013] FIGS. 7A-7D. Regional distribution of the CaMKII-Asp.sub.286
mRNA determined by in situ hybridization (Mayford et al., 1995).
Medial sagittal sections of double transgenic lines B13, B21 and
B22 showing CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene expression. B21/Amygdala
shows a close-up view of a coronal section from the B21 double
transgenic line of mouse.
[0014] FIG. 8. Reversal of 10-Hz LTP deficit in CA1 of hippocampal
slices. Field EPSP slopes before and after 1-Hz tetanic stimulation
were recorded and expressed as the percentage of pre-tetanus
baseline. Transverse slices (400 .mu.m thick) of mouse hippocampus
were prepared and placed in an interface slice chamber perfused
with artificial cerebrospinal fluid as described (Mayford et al.,
1995). Field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) were
elicited once per minute with fine tungsten bipolar stimulation
electrodes (0.05-ms pulse duration). Stainless steel recording
electrodes were placed in striatum radiatum. The stimulation
strength was set to produce 50% of the maximum obtainable EPSP in
each slice. Baseline synaptic response was collected for 20 min.
Before the tetanus. The 10-Hz tetanus was delivered for 1.5 min at
the same intensity as used in the baseline recording. For
doxycycline treatment, animals were administered doxycycline (1
mg/ml) plus 5% sucrose in the drinking water for 2 to 3 weeks, and
the slices were then exposed to doxycycline (1 ng/ml) in the
perfusate. All animals were 2.5 to 6 months of age at the time of
recording. Stimulation at 10 Hz for 1.5 min induced a transient
depression followed by potentiation in wild-type mice (123.+-.9% at
60 min after tetanus; n=12 slices, 6 mice) (.quadrature.). Tetanus
(10 Hz) induced a slight depression in B13 double transgenic mice
(89 .+-.6% at 60 min after tetanus; n=9 slices, 3 mice)
(.box-solid.). Doxycycline treatment reversed the defect in B13
mice (132.+-.10%; n=8 slices, 4 mice) ( ) Doxycycline treatment had
no effect on synaptic potentiation in wild-type mice (122.+-.6%;
n=16 slices, 6 mice) .gradient.).
[0015] FIGS. 9A-9D. Reversible deficits in explicit learning and
memory in mice expressing the CaMKII.alpha. transgene. (FIG. 9A)
The Barnes circular maze. (FIG. 9B) Percentage of B22 transgenic
and wilt-type mice that met the learning criterion on the Barnes
circular maze. On the Barnes circular maze (Bach et al., 1995) the
mice (2.5 to 6 months of age) were tested once a day until they met
the criterion (Five out of six sessions with three or fewer errors
or until 40 days had elapsed). The order of holes searched was
recorded by an observer who was blind to genotype and doxycycline
condition, and from these data the number of errors was determined.
Errors were defined as searches of any hole that did not have the
tunnel beneath it. Searches included nose pokes and head
deflections over the hole. At the end of each session the search
strategy used was recorded by the observer. The spatial search
strategy was operationally defined as reaching the escape tunnel
with both error and distance scores .ltoreq.3. Distance was
calculated by counting the number of holes between the first hole
searched within a session and the escape tunnel. A one-factor
analysis of variance (ANOVA) (gender) revealed no significant
effect of gender for either transgenic or wild-type mice, so the
data were collapsed across this variable. For the error data, a
three-factor ANOVA (genotype, doxycycline, and session block) with
one repeated measure was used. For the spatial search strategy
data, the two groups of B22 transgenic mice were compared with a
two-way ANOVA (doxycycline and session block) with one repeated
measure. A chi-square analysis revealed that the percentage of B22
transgenics acquiring the Barnes Maze (0%) was significantly
different from B22 transgenics on doxycycline and both wild-type
groups (X.sup.2=53.05, P<0.0001). Four groups of mice were
tested: B22 transgenics (n=6), B22 transgenics on doxycycline (1
mg/ml) for 4 weeks (n=6), wild types (n=8), and wild types on
doxycycline (1mg/ml) for 4 weeks (n=7) (FIG. 9C) Mean number of
errors across session blocks composed of five sessions. Values
represent group means.+-.SEM. A three-way ANOVA revealed a main
effect of genotype (F[1.23]=4.28, P=0.04). (FIG. 9D) The percentage
of sessions in which the spatial search strategy was used across
session blocks by B22 transgenic mice. Values represent group means
.+-.SEM. A two-way ANOVA revealed a significant main effect of
doxycycline (F[1,10]=7.313, P=0.02).
[0016] FIGS. 10A-10E. Reversible deficits in implicit learning and
memory in mice expressing the CaMKII.alpha. transgene. Percentage
of time spent freezing to context (FIG. 10A) and to cue (FIG. 10B)
24 hours after training in the B22 and B21 lines. Values represent
group means.+-.SEM. A three-way ANOVA revealed a significant
three-way interaction for context (genotype by line by doxycycline)
(F[1,55]=9.177, P=0.0037) and a significant two-way interaction for
cue (line by genotype) (F[1,55]=5.087m P=0.0281) Six groups of mice
were tested: B22 transgenics (n=6), B22 transgenics on doxycycline
for four weeks (n=11), B21 transgenics on doxycycline for four
weeks (n=19), wild types (from both B22 and B21 lines) (n=11), and
wild types (from both B22 and B21 lines) on doxycycline for 4 weeks
(n=8). (FIG. 10C) Time line illustrating administration of
doxycycline and behavioral training and testing. (FIG. 10D)
Retention of context and cued conditioning. Percentage of time
spent freezing to context and cue 6 weeks after training. Values
represent group means.+-.SEM. Post hoc analysis by the Scheffe test
revealed that B21 transgenic mice that were switched to water froze
significantly less to context than B21 transgenic mice on
doxycycline (P=0.01) and wild types (P=0.008) and significantly
less to cue than B21 transgenic mice on doxycycline (P=0.02) and
wild types (P=0.0088). Three groups of mice were tested B21
transgenics on doxycycline for four weeks before training and 6
weeks after training (n=8), B21 transgenics on doxycycline for four
weeks before training that were switched to water for the 6 weeks
after training (n=8), and wild type mice (from both B22 and B21
lines, n=19). (FIG. 10E) The percentage of time spent freezing to
an intruder during the first 120 s after the mouse was exposed to a
rat. Values represent group means .+-..sub.SEM.
[0017] FIGS. 11A-D. Calcineurin transgene is expressed in the
hippocampus of CN98 mutant mice forebrain.
[0018] FIG. 11A. Schematic representation of the calcineurin
transgene construct used to generate the CN98 mice.
[0019] FIG. 11B. Northern blot analysis of total RNA from CN98
mice.
[0020] FIG. 11C. Enzyme activity determined in hippocampal extracts
from CN98 mice. Dephosphorylation of .alpha..sup.32P substrate
peptide was measured in the absence or presence of the Ca.sup.2+
chelator EGTA. Values are mean.+-.SEM. Wild-type: 4.63.+-.0.44 nmol
Pi/min/mg, n=6; CN98 mutant; 8.15.+-.0.57 nmol Pi/min/mg, n=4,
p<0.001; CN98 wild-type+EGTA: 0.427.+-.0.16 nmol Pi/min/mg, n=6;
CN98 mutant+EGTA: 0.32.+-.0.14 nmol Pi/min/mg, n=4, p>0.05.
[0021] FIG. 11D. Regional distribution of calcineurin transgene in
CN98 mice determined by in situ hybridization.
[0022] FIGS. 12A-12F. Basal synaptic transmission and short-term
forms of synaptic plasticity are not dramatically altered by
overexpression of calcineurin.
[0023] FIG. 12A. Input-output curve of fEPSP slope (mV/ms) versus
stimulus intensity (V) at the Schaffer collateral-CA1 pyramidal
cell synapse in CN98 mutant and wild-type mice. Data are presented
as mean.+-.SEM.
[0024] FIG. 12B. Plot of presynaptic fiber volley amplitude (PSFV,
mV) versus fEPSP slope at the Schaffer collateral-CA1 pyramidal
cell synapse from a random sample of slices from CN98 mutant and
wild-type mice.
[0025] FIG. 12C. Input-output curve of fEPSP slope (mV/ms) versus
intensity (V) at the Schaffer collateral-CA1 pyramidal cell synapse
in CN98 mutant (13 slices, 4 mice) and wild-type (16 slices, 4
mice) mice in the presence of the non-NMDA glutamate receptor
antagonist DNQX (10 .mu.M) and reduced MgSO.sub.4 (50 .mu.M). Data
are presented as mean.+-.SEM. Inset shows representative NMDA
receptor-mediated synaptic responses during a one second, 100 Hz
tetanus in wild-type and mutant slices. Scale bar is 50 ms and 5
mV.
[0026] FIG. 12D. Comparision of PTP in CN98 mutant and wild-type
mice. PTP was evoked by a single 100 Hz, one second train
administered in the presence of 50 .mu.M DL-AP5. Data are presented
as mean.+-.SEM of the normalized fEPSP slope.
[0027] FIG. 12E. Comparison of PPF in CN98 mutant and wild-type
mice with interstimulus intervals of 20, 50. 100 and 250 ms. Data
are presented as the mean .+-.SEM of the facilitation of the second
response relative to the first response of 16 slices from 7
wild-type mice and 15 slices from 6 mutant mice.
[0028] FIG. 12F. Comparison of LTD induced by 15 minutes of 1 Hz
stimulation in CN98 wild-type and mutant mice aged 3-4 weeks. Data
are presented as mean.+-.SEM of the normalized fEPSP slope.
[0029] FIGS. 13A-13D. Overexpression of calcineurin inhibits L-LTP
induced by four 100 Hz trains but not E-LTP induced by one 100 Hz
train.
[0030] Effect of overexpression of calcineurin on LTP in CN98
wild-type ( ) and mutant (.smallcircle.) animals. LTP elicited by
(A) a single 100 Hz train of one second duration, or (B) four 100
Hz trains spaced by five minute intervals. Each point in the time
courses represents the mean fEPSP slope.+-.SEM normalized to the
average of the pretetanus fEPSP slope. Insets show representative
fEPSP traces just before tetanus and FIG. 13A) 1 hour or FIG. 13B)
3 hours after.
[0031] FIG. 13C) and FIG. 13D): Drug was added at the time
indicated in both panels at a concentration of 100 .mu.M. Each
point in the time courses represents the mean fEPSP slope.+-.SEM
normalized to the average of the predrug fEPSP slope. Insets show
representative fEPSP traces just before drug addition and 3 hours
after. In (C), the decrease in the fEPSP slopes elicited towards
the end of Sp-cAMPS application has been previously demonstrated to
reflect a transient A1-adenosine receptor-mediated decrease in
glutamate release (Frey et al., 1993).
[0032] FIGS. 14A-F. Effects of protein synthesis and PKA inhibitors
on four train and two train LTP.
[0033] FIG. 14A. LTP induced by four 100 Hz trains, with a five
minute intertetanus interval in the presence of anisomycin
(.quadrature., 30 .mu.M) or KT5720 (.smallcircle., 1 .mu.M) in
wild-type mouse hippocampal slices. Drugs were added beginning 15
minutes prior to the first tetanus, and were washed out 15 minutes
after the last tetanus. Each point in the time course represents
the mean fEPSP slope.+-.SEM normalized to the average of the
pretetanus fEPSP slope.
[0034] FIG. 14B. Effects of prolonged anisomycin pretreatment on
LTP induced by four 100 Hz trains. Anisomycin (.smallcircle., 30
.mu.M) was added 60 minutes prior to the first tetanus, and was
washed out 15 minutes after the last tetanus. Each point in the
time course represents the mean fEPSP slope.+-.SEM normalized to
the average of the pretetanus fEPSP slope. No drug: 10 slices, 8
mice; Anisomycin 4 slices, 4 mice.
[0035] FIG. 14C. LTP introduced by two 100 Hz trains, with a 20
second interstimulus interval, in the presence or absence of
anisomycin (.smallcircle., 30 .mu.M) in wild-type hippocampal
slices. Each point in the time course represents the mean fEPSP
slope.+-.SEM normalized to the average of the pretetanus fEPSP
slope. No drug: 8 slices, 5 mice; Anisomycin: 7 slices, 4 mice.
[0036] FIG. 14D. Effect of the PKA inhibitor KT5720 (.smallcircle.,
1 .mu.M) on LTP induced by two 100 Hz trains in wild-type
hippocampal slices. Each point in the time course represents the
mean fEPSP slope.+-.SEM normalized to the average of the pretetanus
fEPSP slope.
[0037] FIG. 14E. LTP induced by two 100 Hz trains in hippocampal
slices from CN98 mutant (.smallcircle.) and wild-type ( ) mice.
Each point in the time course represents the mean fEPSP
slope.+-.SEM normalized to the average of the pretetanus fEPSP
slope.
[0038] FIG. 14F. Effect of the PKA inhibitor KT5720 (.smallcircle.,
1 .mu.M) on LTP induced by two 100 Hz trains hippocampal slices
from CN98 mutant mice. Each point in the time course represents the
mean fEPSP slope.+-.SEM normalized to the average of the pretetanus
fEPSP slope.
[0039] FIGS. 15A-C. LTP induced by two and four train (FIG. 15B and
15C), but not one train (FIG. 15A), protocols is reduced in
wild-type mice ( ) and mice overexpressing the calcineurin
transgene with the tTA system (.smallcircle.). FIG. 14A. Wild-type
( ): 14 slices, 9 mice, Tet-CN279 mutants (.quadrature.): 6 slices,
3 mice; Tet-CN273 mutants (.smallcircle.): 4 slices, 3 mice; FIG.
15B. Wild-type ( ): 7 slices, 4 mice; Tet-CN273 mutants
(.smallcircle.): 6 slices, 3 mice. FIG. 15C. Wild-type ( ): 10
slices, 8 mice; Tet-CN279 mutants (.quadrature.)L 7 slices, 4
mice.
[0040] FIGS. 16A-D. Basal synaptic transmission and short term
forms of synaptic plasticity are not altered by overexpression of
calcineurin with the tTA system.
[0041] FIG. 16A. Input-output curve of fEPSP slope (mV/ms) versus
stimulus intensity (V) at the Schaffer collateral-CA1 pyramidal
cell synapse in Tet-CN279 (9 slices, 4 mice) and Tet-CN273 (20
slices, 7 mice) mutant and wild-type (21 slices, 9 mice) mice. Data
are presented as mean.+-.SEM.
[0042] FIG. 16B. Input-output curve of fEPSP slope (mV/ms) versus
intensity (V) at the Schaffer collateral-CA1 pyramidal cell syhapse
in Tet-CN279 (8 slices, 4 mice) and Tet-CN273 (8 slices, 4 mice)
mutant and wild-type (21 slices, 8 mice) mice in the presence of
the non-NMDA glutamate receptor antagonist DNQX (10 .mu.M) and
reduced MgSO.sub.4 (50 .mu.M). Data are presented as
mean.+-.SEM.
[0043] FIG. 16C. Comparison of PTP in Tet-CN278 (6 slices, 3 mice)
and Tet-CN273 (8 slices, 4 mice) mutant and wild-types (15 slices,
8 mice) mice. PTP was evoked by a single 100 Hz, one second train
administered in the presence of 50 .mu.M DL-AP5. Data are presented
as mean.+-.SEM of the normalized fEPSP slope.
[0044] FIG. 16D. Comparison of PPF in Tet-CN273 (9 slices, 4 mice)
and Tet-CN279 (13 slices, 4 mice) mutant and wild-type (27 slices,
10 mice) mice with interstimulus intervals of 20, 50, 100 and 250
ms. Data are presented as the mean.+-.SEM of the facilitation of
the second response relative to the first response.
[0045] FIGS. 17A-B. FIG. 17A. Calyculin A (750 nM) rescues the
deficit in LTP induced by two 100 Hz trains in Tet-CN279 mutant
mice. Each point in the time course represents the mean fEPSP
slope.+-.SEM normalized to the average of the pretetanus slope.
Wildtype ( ), 7 slices, 4 mice), Mutant with calyculin A
pretreatment (.smallcircle.), 6 slices, 3 mice), wildtype with
cayculin A pretreatment (.box-solid.), 6 slices, 3 mice).
[0046] FIG. 17B. The LTP deficit seen in slices from Tet-CN279
mutants can be reversed be suppressing expression of the transgene
with doxycycline. Each point in the time course represents the mean
fEPSP slope.+-.SEM normalized to the average of the pretetanus
slope.
[0047] FIGS. 18A-B. A PICA-dependent, protein synthesis independent
phase of LTP, I-LTP exists in mouse hippocampus.
[0048] FIGS. 18A-B. Schematic representation of the time course of
potentiation induced by one train (lower panel, FIG. 18B) and
four-train (upper panel, FIG. 18A) protocols.
[0049] FIGS. 19A-C. CN98 mutant mice have impaired spatial memory
on the Barnes maze when tested with one trial a day, but have
normal memory on a cued version of the maze.
[0050] FIG. 19A. Percentage of CN98 mice that acquired the spatial
and cued versions of the Barnes maze with 1 trial a day.
[0051] FIG. 19B. Mean number of errors made by CN98 mice on the
spatial version of the Barnes maze with 1 trial a day.
[0052] FIG. 19C. Mean number of errors made by CN98 mice on the
cued version of the Barnes maze with 1 trial a day.
[0053] FIGS. 20A-C. CN98 mutant mice have a normal memory on the
Barnes maze with four trials a day.
[0054] FIG. 20A. Percentage of CN98 mice that acquired the spatial
version of the Barnes maze with four trials a day.
[0055] FIG. 20B. Mean number of trials and days to acquisition for
CN98 mice on the spatial version of the Barnes maze with either one
or four trials a day.
[0056] FIG. 20C. Mean number of errors made by CN98 mice on the
spatial version of the Barnes maze with four trials a day.
[0057] FIG. 21. CN98 mutant mice have normal short-term memory on
the novel object recognition task. A preference index (PI) greater
than 100 indicates preference for the novel object during testing.
A PI equal to 100 indicates no preference whereas a PI inferior to
100 indicates a preference for the familiar object.
[0058] FIGS. 22A-C. Regulated expression of calcineurin transgene
with the tTA system.
[0059] FIG. 22A. Strategy to obtain doxycycline-regulated
expression of calcineurin transgene in mice. Mice from line B carry
the CaMKII.alpha. promoter-tTA transgene and mice from lines CN279
and CN273, the tetO promoter-.DELTA.CaM-AI transgene. Both
transgenes are introduced into the same mouse through mating to
generate Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mice. In Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273
mice, expression of the calcineurin transgene is activated by tTA
and can be repressed by doxycycline.
[0060] FIG. 22B. Northern blot analysis of total forebrain RNA from
Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 wild-type and mutant mice on or off
doxycycline and RT-PCR of total forebrain RNA from Tet-CN279 and
Tet-CN273 wild-type, CN279 and CN273 mice, Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273
mutant mice on or off doxycycline.
[0061] FIG. 22C. Enzyme activity determined in hippocampal extracts
from Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mice on or off doxycycline.
Dephosphorylation of a radiolabeled peptide substrate was measured
in absence or presence of the Ca.sup.2+ chelator EGTA in Tet-CN279
and Tet-CN273 wild-type and mutant mice on or off doxycycline.
Values are mean.+-.SEM. Wild-type (Tet-CN279+Tet-CN273):
3.58.+-.0.26 nmol Pi/min/mg, n=6; Tet-CN279 mutant: 7078.+-.0.70
nmol Pi/min/mg, n=4, p>0.0001; Tet-CN273 mutant: 8.39.+-.0.39
nmol Pi/min/mg, n=3, p>0.001; Tet-CN279 mutant on dox.:
3.95.+-.0.48 nmol Pi/min/mg, n=4, p>0.05; Tet-CN273 mutant on
dox.: 4.23.+-.0.36 nmol Pi/min/mg, n=3, p>0.05; wild-type
(Tet-CN279+Tet-CN273)+EGTA: 0.432.+-.0.11 nmol Pi/min/ng, n=7;
mutant (Tet-CN279+Tet-CN273)+EGTA: 0.287.+-.0.17 nmol Pi/min/mg,
n=7, p>0.05.
[0062] FIGS. 23A-D. The expression of calcineurin transgene is
primarily restricted to CA1 subfield in the hippocampus of
Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mutant mice and is repressed by
doxycycline. Regional distribution of calcineurin transgene
determined by in situ hybridization on mouse brain sagital sections
from Tet-CN279 wild-type, Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mutant on or off
doxycycline.
[0063] FIGS. 24A-G. CN98 and Tet-CN279 mutant mice do not use the
spatial search strategy.
[0064] FIG. 24A. Representative examples of the search strategies
employed on the spatial version of the Barnes circular maze
task.
[0065] FIGS. 24B-G. Use of random search strategy by CN98 (B)
and
[0066] Tet-CN279 (C) mice, of serial search strategy by CN98 (D)
and Tet-CN279 (E) mice and of spatial search strategy by CN98 (F)
and Tet-CN279 (G) mice.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0067] The present invention provides for a recombinant nucleic
acid molecule comprising a region of a calcium-calmodulin dependent
kinase II.alpha. promoter operatively linked to a gene of interest.
The region of a calcium-calmodulin dependent kinase II.alpha.
promoter may comprise an 8.5 kilobase nucleic acid sequence which
corresponds to the nucleic acid sequence of ATCC Accession No.
______, which was deposited on Nov. 11, 1997 under provisions of
the Budapest Treaty with the American Type Culture Collection (see
details hereinbelow).
[0068] The gene of interest may comprise an acalcinurin gene, a
gene involved in brain function, a growth factor gene, an ion
channel gene, a kinase gene, a neurotransmitter gene, a
neurotrophic factor gene, a phosphatase gene, a recombinase gene, a
reporter gene, a receptor gene, a transactivator transcription
factor gene, a transcription factor gene.
[0069] The neurotrophic factor may comprise ciliary neurotrophic
factor; nerve growth factor; neurotrophic factor 4/5; brain-derived
neurotrophic factor; or glial-derived neurotrophic factor. The
neurotransmitter gene may comprises a serotonin gene, a dopamine
gene, or an epinepherine gene.
[0070] One embodiment of the present invention is a human cell line
which has been stably transformed by a recombinant nucleic acid
molecule comprising a gene of interest operatively linked to a
nucleic acid encoding a calcium-calmodulin dependent kinase
II.alpha. promoter region which has a nucleotide sequence
corresponding to the sequence of ATCC Accession No. ______,
deposited Nov. 11, 1997. The gene of interest may be an acalcinurin
gene, a gene involved in brain function, a growth factor gene, an
ion channel gene, a kinase gene, a neurotransmitter gene, a
neurotrophic factor gene, a phosphatase gene, a recombinase gene, a
reporter gene, a receptor gene, a transactivator transcription
factor gene, a transcription factor gene. The cell line may be a
human neuronal cell line.
[0071] The present invention also provides for a transgenic
nonhuman mammal whose germ or somatic cells contain a nucleic acid
molecule which encodes a gene of interest under the control of a
CaMKII.alpha. promoter (ATCC Accession No. ______), introduced into
the mammal, or an ancestor thereof, at an embryonic stage. The gene
of interest may be an acalcinurin gene, a gene involved in brain
function, a growth factor gene, an ion channel gene, a kinase gene,
a neurotransmitter gene, a neurotrophic factor gene, a phosphatase
gene, a recombinase gene, a reporter gene, a receptor gene, a
transactivator transcription factor gene, a transcription factor
gene. The gene of interest may be any gene. The nucleic acid
molecule which is the transgene of the transgenic nonhuman mammal
may contain an appropriate piece of genomic clone DNA from the
mammal designed for homologous recombination.
[0072] Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of
treating a neurological disorder in a subject which comprises
administering to the subject an effective amount of the recombinant
nucleic acid comprising a region of a calcium-calmodulin dependent
kinase II.alpha. promoter operatively linked to a gene of interest
so as to express the gene of interest in the subject and thereby
treat the neurological disorder. The neurological disorder may be
amnesia, Alzheimer's disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a
brain injury, cerebral senility, chronic peripheral neuropathy, a
cognitive disability, a degenerative disorder associated with
learning, Down's Syndrome, dyslexia, electric shock induced amnesia
or amnesia. Guillain-Barre syndrome, head trauma, Huntington's
disease, a learning disability, a memory deficiency, memory los, a
mental illness, mental retardation, memory or cognitive
dysfunction, multi-infarct dementia and senile dementia, myasthenia
gravis, a neuromuscular disorder, Parkinson's disease, Pick's
disease, a reduction in spatial memory retention, senility, or
Turret's syndrome.
[0073] Another embodiment of the present invention is a method of
evaluating whether a compound is effective in treating symptoms of
a neurological disorder in a subject which comprises: (a)
administering the compound to the transgenic nonhuman mammal whose
germ or somatic cells contain a nucleic acid molecule which encodes
a gene of interest under the control of a CaMKII.alpha. promoter,
and (b) comparing the neurological function the mammal in step (a)
with neurological function of the transgenic mammal in the absence
of the compound, thereby determining whether the compound is
effective in treating symptoms of the neurological disorder in a
subject.
[0074] The neurological disorder may be amnesia, Alzheimer's
disease, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a brain injury, cerebral
senility, chronic peripheral neuropathy, a cognitive disability, a
degenerative disorder associated with learning, Down's Syndrome,
dyslexia, electric shock induced amnesia or amnesia. Guillain-Barre
syndrome, head trauma, Huntington's disease, a learning disability,
a memory deficiency, memory loss, a mental illness, mental
retardation, memory or cognitive dysfunction, multi-infarct
dementia and senile dementia, myasthenia gravis, a neuromuscular
disorder, Parkinson's disease, Pick's disease, a reduction in
spatial memory retention, senility, or Turret's syndrome.
[0075] The compound may be an organic compound, a nucleic acid, a
small molecule, an inorganic compound, a lipid, or a synthetic
compound. The mammal may be a mouse, a sheep, a bovine, a canine, a
porcine, or a primate. The subject may be a human. The
administration may comprise intralesional, intraperitoneal,
intramuscular or intravenous injection; infusion; liposome-mediated
delivery; gene bombardment; topical, nasal, oral, anal, ocular or
otic delivery.
[0076] The present invention provides for a method of evaluating
whether a compound is effective in treating symptoms of a
neurological disorder in a subject which comprises: (a) contacting
a human neuronal cell of the human neuronal cell line which has
been stably transformed by a recombinant nucleic acid molecule
comprising a gene of interest operatively linked to a nucleic acid
encoding a calcium-calmodulin dependent kinase II.alpha. promoter
region with the compound, and (b) comparing the neuronal cell
function of the neuronal cell in step (a) with neuronal cell
function in the absence of the compound, thereby determining
whether the compound is effective in treating symptoms of the
neurological disorder.
[0077] The present invention also provides for a method for
alleviating symptoms in a subject suffering from a neurological
disorder which comprises administering to the subject an effective
amount of the compound evaluated by the methods hereinabove in an
amount effective to treat the symptoms in the subject suffering
from a neurological disorder.
[0078] The neuronal cell population may be an aged neuronal cell
population, an electrically stimulated neuronal cell population, or
a cell population associated with a learning disability or a
neurological disorder. The neuronal cell population may be from the
CA1 or CA3 region of the hippocampus.
[0079] As used herein, the term "neuronal degradation" includes
morphological and functional deterioration of neuronal cells
characteristic of degeneration associated with age or
characteristic of an association with a neurological disorder.
"Neuronal degradation" also includes cognitive impairments which
may be associated with aging, Alzheimer's disease, amyotrophic
lateral sclerosis, chronic peripheral neuropathy, drug or alcohol
use, electroshock treatment or trauma, Guillain-Barre syndrome,
Huntington's disease, a learning disability, a memory deficiency, a
mental illness, myasthenia gravis, Parkinson's disease and
reduction in spatial memory retention.
[0080] As used herein, the term "learning disability" includes a
hippocampal learning or memory deficit concurrent with an
electrophysiological deficit.
[0081] As used herein, the term "stimulating a neuronal cell
population" includes electrical stimulation to an evoke
electrophysiological response from the neuronal cell population,
treating the neuronal cell population with a compound or a drug to
elicit a response, applying tetani to the neuronal cell population
to elicit a electrophysiological response, treating a subject with
a compound which compound is capable of stimulating the neuronal
cell population of the subject or perfusing a solution containing a
composition or compound over the neuronal cell population. The
response may be late phase long term potentiation, early phase long
term potentiation. The neuronal cell population may be in a
hippocampal slice in vitro, in a subject in vivo, or in other
neuronal tissue.
[0082] As used herein, the term "normal neuronal cell population"
includes a neuronal cell population derived from a subject which
does not appear to have neuronal degradation due to aging, a
neurological disorder, a learning disability, exposure to trauma or
electric shock.
[0083] As used herein, the term "cognitive disorder" includes a
learning disability or a neurological disorder which may be
Alzheimer's Disease, a degenerative disorder associated with
learning, a learning disability, memory or cognitive dysfunction,
cerebral senility, multi-infarct dementia and senile dementia,
electric shock induced amnesia or amnesia.
[0084] Another embodiment of the subject invention is a method for
treating a subject with a cognitive disorder of memory or a
learning disability which comprises administering to the subject a
therapeutically effective amount of a transgene capable of
alleviating the symptoms of the cognitive disorder of memory or the
learning disability in the subject thereby treating the cognitive
disorder of memory or the learning disability in the subject,
wherein the transgene is made from a CaMKII.alpha. promoter-derived
construct (ATCC Accession No. ______, deposited on Nov. 11, 1997).
The transgene may be associated with a suitable pharmaceutically
acceptable carrier and administered intravenously or through the
CSF for transient effects.
[0085] The subject may be a mammal or a human subject. The
administration may be intralesional, intraperitoneal, intramuscular
or intravenous injection; infusion; liposome-mediated delivery;
gene bombardment; topical, nasal, oral, anal, ocular or otic
delivery.
[0086] In the practice of any of the methods of the invention or
preparation of any of the pharmaceutical compositions an
"therapeutically effective amount" is an amount which is capable of
alleviating the symptoms of the cognitive disorder of memory or
learning in the subject. Accordingly, the effective amount will
vary with the subject being treated, as well as the condition to be
treated. For the purposes of this invention, the methods of
administration are to include, but are not limited to,
administration cutaneously, subcutaneously, intravenously,
parenterally, orally, topically, or by aerosol.
[0087] As used herein, the term "suitable pharmaceutically
acceptable carrier" encompasses any of the standard
pharmaceutically accepted carriers, such as phosphate buffered
saline solution, water, emulsions such as an oil/water emulsion or
a triglyceride emulsion, various types of wetting agents, tablets,
coated tablets and capsules. An example of an acceptable
triglyceride emulsion useful in intravenous and intraperitoneal
administration of the compounds is the triglyceride emulsion
commercially known as Intralipid.RTM..
[0088] Typically such carriers contain excipients such as starch,
milk, sugar, certain types of clay, gelatin, stearic acid, talc,
vegetable fats or oils, gums, glycols, or other known excipients.
Such carriers may also include flavor and color additives or other
ingredients.
[0089] This invention also provides for pharmaceutical compositions
including therapeutically effective amounts of protein compositions
and compounds capable of alleviating the symptoms of the cognitive
disorder of memory or learning in the subject of the invention
together with suitable diluents, preservatives, solubilizers,
emulsifiers, adjuvants and/or carriers useful in treatment of
neuronal degradation due to aging, a learning disability, or a
neurological disorder. Such compositions are liquids or lyophilized
or otherwise dried formulations and include diluents of various
buffer content (e.g., Tris-HCl., acetate, phosphate), pH and ionic
strength, additives such as albumin or gelatin to prevent
absorption to surfaces, detergents (e.g., Tween 20, Tween 80,
Pluronic F68, bile acid salts), solubilizing agents (e.g.,
glycerol, polyethylene glycerol), anti-oxidants (e.g., ascorbic
acid, sodium metabisulfite), preservatives (e.g., Thimerosal,
benzyl alcohol, parabens), bulking substances or tonicity modifiers
(e.g., lactose, mannitol), covalent attachment of polymers such as
polyethylene glycol to the compound, complexation with metal ions,
or incorporation of the compound into or onto particulate
preparations of polymeric compounds such as polylactic acid,
polglycolic acid, hydrogels, etc, or onto liposomes, micro
emulsions, micelles, unilamellar or multi lamellar vesicles,
erythrocyte ghosts, or spheroplasts. Such compositions will
influence the physical state, solubility, stability, rate of in
vivo release, and rate of in vivo clearance of the compound or
composition. The choice of compositions will depend on the physical
and chemical properties of the compound capable of alleviating the
symptoms of the cognitive disorder of memory or the learning
disability in the subject.
[0090] Controlled or sustained release compositions include
formulation in lipophilic depots (e.g., fatty acids, waxes, oils).
Also comprehended by the invention are particulate compositions
coated with polymers (e.g., poloxamers or poloxamines) and the
compound coupled to antibodies directed against tissue-specific
receptors, ligands or antigens or coupled to ligands of
tissue-specific receptors. Other embodiments of the compositions of
the invention incorporate particulate forms protective coatings,
protease inhibitors or permeation enhancers for various routes of
administration, including parenteral, pulmonary, nasal and
oral.
[0091] Portions of the compound of the invention may be "labeled"
by association with a detectable marker substance (e.g.,
radiolabeled with 1251 or biotinylated) to provide reagents useful
in detection and quantification of compound or its receptor bearing
cells or its derivatives in solid tissue and fluid samples such as
blood, cerebral spinal fluid or urine.
[0092] When administered, compounds are often cleared rapidly from
the circulation and may therefore elicit relatively short-lived
pharmacological activity. Consequently, frequent injections of
relatively large doses of bioactive compounds may by required to
sustain therapeutic efficacy. Compounds modified by the covalent
attachment of water-soluble polymers such as polyethylene glycol,
copolymers of polyethylene glycol and polypropylene glycol,
carboxymethyl cellulose, dextran, polyvinyl alcohol,
polyvinylpyrrolidone or polyproline are known to exhibit
substantially longer half-lives in blood following intravenous
injection than do the corresponding unmodified compounds
(Abuchowski et al., 1981; Newmark et al., 1982; and Katre et al.,
1987). Such modifications may also increase the compound's
solubility in aqueous solution, eliminate aggregation, enhance the
physical and chemical stability of the compound, and greatly reduce
the immunogenicity and reactivity of the compound. As a result, the
desired in vivo biological activity may be achieved by the
administration of such polymer-compound adducts less frequently or
in lower doses than with the unmodified compound.
[0093] Attachment of polyethylene glycol (PEG) to compounds is
particularly useful because PEG has very low toxicity in mammals
(Carpenter et al., 1971). For example, a PEG adduct of adenosine
deaminase was approved in the United States for use in humans for
the treatment of severe combined immunodeficiency syndrome. A
second advantage afforded by the conjugation of PEG is that of
effectively reducing the immunogenicity and antigenicity of
heterologous compounds. For example, a PEG adduct of a human
protein might be useful for the treatment of disease in other
mammalian species without the risk of triggering a severe immune
response. The compound of the present invention capable of
alleviating symptoms of a cognitive disorder of memory or learning
may be delivered in a microencapsulation device so as to reduce or
prevent an host immune response against the compound or against
cells which may produce the compound. The compound of the present
invention may also be delivered microencapsulated in a membrane,
such as a liposome.
[0094] Polymers such as PEG may be conveniently attached to one or
more reactive amino acid residues in a protein such as the
alpha-amino group of the amino terminal amino acid, the epsilon
amino groups of lysine side chains, the sulfhydryl groups of
cysteine side chains, the carboxyl groups of aspartyl and glutamyl
side chains, the alpha-carboxyl group of the carboxy-terminal amino
acid, tyrosine side chains, or to activated derivatives of glycosyl
chains attached to certain asparagine, serine or threonine
residues.
[0095] Numerous activated forms of PEG suitable for direct reaction
with proteins have been described. Useful PEG reagents for reaction
with protein amino groups include active esters of carboxylic acid
or carbonate derivatives, particularly those in which the leaving
groups are N-hydroxysuccinimide, p-nitrophenol, imidazole or
1-hydroxy-2-nitrobenzene-4-sulfonate. PEG derivatives containing
maleimido or haloacetyl groups are useful reagents for the
modification of protein free sulfhydryl groups. Likewise, PEG
reagents containing amino hydrazine or hydrazide groups are useful
for reaction with aldehydes generated by periodate oxidation of
carbohydrate groups in proteins.
[0096] In one embodiment the compound of the present invention is
associated with a pharmaceutical carrier which includes a
pharmaceutical composition. The pharmaceutical carrier may be a
liquid and the pharmaceutical composition would be in the form of a
solution. In another embodiment, the pharmaceutically acceptable
carrier is a solid and the composition is in the form of a powder
or tablet. In a further embodiment, the pharmaceutical carrier is a
gel and the composition is in the form of a suppository or cream.
In a further embodiment the active ingredient may be formulated as
a part of a pharmaceutically acceptable transdermal patch.
[0097] Transgenic Mice
[0098] The methods used for generating transgenic mice are well
known to one of skill in the art. For example, one may use the
manual entitled "Manipulating the Mouse Embryo" by Brigid Hogan et
al. (Ed. Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory) 1986.
[0099] This invention further provides for a transgenic nonhuman
mammal whose germ or somatic cells contain a nucleic acid molecule
which comprises an 8.5 kb promoter region of the mouse
CaMKII.alpha. promoter, designated pMM403 (ATCC Accession No.
______, deposited Nov. 11, 1997) which is operably linked to a gene
of interest, introduced into the mammal, or an ancestor thereof, at
an embryonic stage. In one embodiment, the CaMKII.alpha. promoter
region of about 8.5 kb was accorded ATCC Accession No. ______ which
was deposited on Nov. 11, 1997 with the American Type Culture
Collection (ATCC), 12301 Parklawn Drive, Rockville, Md. 20852,
U.S.A. under the provision of the Budapest Treaty for the
International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganism for the
Purposes of Patent Procedure. Another embodiment of this invention
is a 3' untranslated region of the mouse CaMKII.alpha. gene,
designated pMM281, ATCC Accession No. ______, deposited Nov. 11,
1997 which was also deposited with the American Type Culture
Collection under the provision of the Budapest Treaty for the
International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganism for the
Purposes of Patent Procedure. Another embodiment of this invention
is a 3' mouse intron designated pNN265, ATCC Accession No. ______
which was deposited on Nov. 11, 1997 with the American Type Culture
Collection (ATCC), 12301 Parklawn Drive, Rockville, Md. 20852,
U.S.A. under the provision of the Budapest Treaty for the
International Recognition of the Deposit of Microorganism for the
Purposes of Patent Procedure.
[0100] The gene of interest will be expressed under the control of
the CaMKII.alpha. promoter region, therefore expression of the gene
of interest will be specifcally localized to the hippocampal region
of the brain of the mammal. This invention provides for a
transgenic nonhuman mammal whose cells may be transfected with a
suitable vector with an appropriate sequence designed to reduce
expression levels of harmful genes in the hippocampus of the
mammal. The transgenic nonhuman mammal may be transfected with a
suitable vector which contains an appropriate piece of genomic
clone designed for homologous recombination. Alternatively, the
transgenic nonhuman mammal may be transfected with a suitable
vector which encodes an appropriate ribozyme or antisense molecule.
See for example, Leder and Stewart, U.S. Pat. No. 4,736,866 for
methods for the production of a transgenic mouse.
[0101] Transgenic mice have been generated using a construct which
is one embodiment of the present invention (a 8.5 kb region of the
CaMKII.alpha. promoter driving a gene of interest which may further
comprise a 3' untranslated region). For example, the gene of
interest may be a lacZ gene, a CRE recombinase gene, a tet-O
tetracycline transactivator transcription factor gene, an
acalcinurin gene, a phosphatase gene or any gene involved in brain
function. The gene of interest can be any gene which is capable of
being expressed as a heterologous gene driven by the CaMKII.alpha.
promoter.
[0102] The gene of interest may be a neurotrophic factor such as
ciliary neurotrophic factor (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,997,929); nerve
growth factor (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,169,762); neurotrophic factor
4/5 (see PCT International Publication No. WO 92/05254);
brain-derived neurotrophic factor (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,180,820);
glial-derived neurotrophic factor (see PCT International
Publication No. WO 93/06116) or any other neurotrophic factor (see
European application EP 0 386 752 A1). The disclosures of these
publications in their entireties are hereby incorporated by
reference into this application in order to more fully describe the
state of the art as known to those skilled therein as of the date
of the invention described and claimed herein.
[0103] The gene of interest may be a neurotropic factor or a
cytokine or a growth factor. Such factors may include transforming
growth factor beta (TGF-.beta.), ciliary neurotropic factor (CNTF),
brain derived neurotropic factor (BDNF), NT-4, NT-5, NT-4/5, nerve
growth factor (NGF), activins, agrin, cell differentiation factor
(CDF), glial growth factor (GGF), and neu differentiation factor
(NDF), ARIA, and heregulins. The gene of interest may be a gene
encoding a pharmaceutically important protein, a transcription
factor, an agonist, an antagonist, a kinase, a phosphatase, a
nitric oxide synthase, CREB, a receptor, or a recombinase. The gene
of interest may be any gene which encodes a protein which is
functionally significant in brain functions, such as memory,
cognitive functions and learning.
[0104] The gene of interest may be a neurotransmitter gene. The
neurotransmitter may be a serotonin gene, a dopamine gene or an
epinepherine gene. The gene of interest may be a gene encoding a
neurotransmitter receptor protein.
[0105] The CaMKII.alpha. promoter construct (which includes a
CaMKII.alpha. promoter region and a gene of interest) may be used
to treat any disease where levels of expression of genes in the
hippocampus (forebrain) are changed or altered from that which
would be present under normal conditions. For example, ion channel
levels or activities are not abnormal in some neurological
disorders. Neurological disorders that affect the central nervous
system, memory or cognitive functions may also be treated via the
CaMKII.alpha. promoter construct. Such disorders may be the result
of the normal aging process or the result of damage to the nervous
system by trauma, surgery, ischemia, infection or metabolic
disease. The neurological disorder may be a neuromuscular disorder.
Examples of neurological disorders include Alzheimer's disease,
myasthenia gravis, Huntington's disease, Pick's disease,
Parkinson's disease, and Turret's Syndrome. The gene of interest
may be any gene which is identified or known to be involved in the
development of a neurological disorder. For example, genes which
may be involved in Alzheimer's Disease may be a gene of interest,
see for example PCT Application No. PCT/EP93/03581, International
Publication No. WO 94/13798.
[0106] This invention provides for a method of altering
neuro-receptor expression. In this method, nucleic acid moleucle
comprising a CaMKII.alpha. promoter driving expression of a gene of
interest is administered to a subject which may result in a change
in the expression of neuro-receptors.
[0107] This invention provides for improving the memory of a
subject.
[0108] Another embodiment of this invention is wherein the gene of
interest is a ribozyme which is capable of cleaving mRNA which is
produced by a neuronal cell. See Cech, et al., U.S. Pat. No.
4,987,071; Altman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,168,053; Haseloff et al,
U.S. Pat. No. 5,254,678 published European application No. Hampel
et al., EP 360,257.
[0109] This invention also provides for a replicable vector which
contains CaMKII.alpha. promoter sequence and a host cell containing
this vector. This expression vector may be a prokaryotic expression
vector, a eukaryotic expression vector, a mammalian expression
vector, a yeast expression vector, a baculovirus expression vector
or an insect expression vector. Examples of these vectors include
PKK233-2, pEUK-C1, pREP4, pBlueBacHisA, pYES2, PSE280 or pEBVHis.
Methods for the utilization of these replicable vectors may be
found in Sambrook, et al., 1989 or in Kriegler 1990. The host cell
may be a eukaryotic cell, a somatic cell, a germ cell, a neuronal
cell, a myocyte, a mammary carcinoma cell, a lung cell, a
prokaryotic cell, a virus packaging cell, or a stem cell.
[0110] A "reporter molecule", as defined herein, is a molecule or
atom which, by its chemical nature, provides an identifiable signal
allowing detection of the circular oligonucleotide. A reporter
molecule may be encoded by a reporter gene. Detection can be either
qualitative or quantitative. The present invention contemplates
using any commonly used reporter molecules including
radionucleotides, enzymes, biotins, psoralens, fluorophores,
chelated heavy metals, and luciferin. The most commonly used
reporter molecules are either enzymes, fluorophores, or
radionucleotides linked to the nucleotides which are used in
circular oligonucleotide synthesis. Commonly used enzymes include
horseradish peroxidase, alkaline phosphatase, glucose oxidase and
.alpha.-galactosidase, among others. The substrates to be used with
the specific enzymes are generally chosen because a detectably
colored product is formed by the enzyme acting upon the substrate.
For example, p-nitrophenyl phosphate is suitable for use with
alkaline phosphatase conjugates; for horseradish peroxidase,
1.2-phenylenediamine, 5-aminosalicylic acid or toluidine are
commonly used. The methods of using such hybridization probes are
well known and some examples of such methodology are provided by
Sambrook et al, 1989.
[0111] Gene Therapy
[0112] Several methods have been developed over the last decade for
the transduction of genes into mammalian cells for potential use in
gene therapy. In addition to direct use of plasmid DNA to transfer
genes, retroviruses, adenoviruses, parvoviruses, and herpesviruses
have been used (Anderson et al., 1995; Mulligan, 1993; The contents
of which are incorporated in their entirety into the subject
application). For transfer of genes into cells ex vivo and
subsequent reintroduction into a host, retroviruses have been the
vectors of choice. Advantages are that infection of retroviruses is
highly efficient and that the provirus generated after infection
integrates stably into the host DNA. A disadvantage however, is
that stable integration requires cell division, and many of the
earliest hematopoietic progenitor cells that would be the preferred
targets of gene therapy, do not divide under conditions used for
the infections and hence to not incorporate virus, or if they do
they may not retain their potential to completely reconsitute a
host. Notwithstanding this problem, it is possible that the
long-term culture-initiating cells that can be transduced by
retroviruses may be sufficient to repopulate some compartment with
cells that are particularly long lived and stable.
[0113] Most current gene therapy protocols use murine retroviral
vectors to deliver therapeutic genes into target cells; this
process, which is called transduction, mimics the early events of
retroviral infection. The crucial difference is that, unlike
replication competent retroviruses, the vector genome packaged
within the viral coat contains no genes for viral proteins and
therefore is incapable of replication. For example, a vector would
be designed to have 3' and 5' long terminal repeat sequences
necessary only for the integration of the viral DNA intermediate
into the target host cell chromosome and a packaging signal that
allows packaging into viral structural proteins supplied by the
packaging line in trans (Miller, 1992; Wilson et al., 1990; The
contents of which are incorporated in their entirety into the
subject application). Retroviral constructs are made in which the
DNA of the gene of interest (that is, the gene which one wishes to
have expressed under the control of the CaMKII.alpha. 5' promoter,
specifically localized expression to the forebrain, hippocampal
regions) and is inserted downstream of the CaMKII.alpha. promoter
to generate a vector. Genomic integration is the terminal step for
these defective retroviral vectors. They cannot make viral proteins
in cells transduced with the packaged vector and therefore cannot
produce progeny virus. The CaMKII.alpha. promoter retroviral
constructs are transfected into virus packaging cell lines to
generate infectious, but non-replicating virus particles. Such
virus packaging cell lines are known to those of skill in the art.
Cloning procedures and retroviral infection of cell lines are well
known to one skilled in the art and detailed protocols may be found
in Kriegler, 1990. Producer lines with high virus titers are chosen
for their ability to transduce the human neuronal cell lines
resulting in expression of the gene of interest in that cell
line.
[0114] There are several protocols for human gene therapy which
have been approved for use by the Recombinant DNA Advisory
Committee (RAC) which conform to a general protocol of target cell
infection and administration of transfected cells (see for example,
Blaese, R. M., et al., 1990; Anderson, W. F., 1992; Culver; K. W.
et al., 1991). In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 5,399,346 (Anderson, W.
F. et al., Mar. 21, 1995, U.S. Ser. No. 220,175) describes
procedures for retroviral gene transfer. The contents of these
support references are incorporated in their entirety into the
subject application. It may be necessary to select for a particular
subpopulation of originally harvested cells for use in the
infection protocol. Then, a retroviral vector containing the
gene(s) of interest would be mixed into the culture medium. The
vector binds to the surface of the subject's cells, enters the
cells and inserts the gene of interest randomly into a chromosome.
The gene of interest is now stably integrated and will remain in
place and be passed to all of the daughter cells as the cells grow
in number. The cells may be expanded in culture for a total of 9-10
days before reinfusion (Culver et al., 1991). As the length of time
the target cells are left in culture increases, the possibility of
contamination also increases, therefore a shorter protocol would be
more beneficial. In addition, the currently reported transduction
efficiency of 10-15% is well below the ideal transduction
efficiency of 90-100% which would allow the elimination of the
selection and expansion parts of the currently used protocols and
reduce the opportunity for target cell contamination.
[0115] This invention provides for the construction of retrovirus
vectors containing the cDNA for the transactivating factor which is
found 3' to the CaMKII.alpha. gene. The efficiency of transduction
of these vectors can be tested in cell culture systems.
[0116] In one embodiment of the method above the nucleic acid
molecule is incorporated into a liposome to allow for
administration to the subject. Methods of incorporation of nucleic
acid molecules into liposomes are well known to those of ordinary
skill in the art. In another embodiment of this method, the
molecule may be delivered via transfection, injection, or viral
infection. Other methods of delivery of nucleic acids and nucleic
acid compositions as discussed herein include viral gene-mediated
transfer, small particle bombardment, receptor-mediated endocytosis
and intralesional, intraperitoneal or intramuscular injection.
There are several protocols for human gene therapy which have been
approved for use by the Recombinant DNA Advisory Committee (RAC)
which conform to a general protocol of target cell infection and
administration of transfected cells (see for example, Blaese, R.
M., et al., 1990; Anderson, W. F., 1992; Culver, K. W. et al.,
1991). In addition, U.S. Pat. No. 5,399,346 (Anderson, W. F. et
al., Mar. 21, 1995, U.S. Ser. No. 220,175) describes procedures for
retroviral gene transfer. The contents of these support references
are incorporated in their entirety into the subject application.
Retroviral-mediated gene transfer requires target cells which are
undergoing cell division in order to achieve stable integration
hence, cells are collected from a subject often by removing blood
or bone marrow.
[0117] Several methods have been developed over the last decade for
the transduction of genes into mammalian cells for potential use in
gene therapy. In addition to direct use of plasmid DNA to transfer
genes, retroviruses, adenoviruses, parvoviruses, and herpesviruses
have been used (Anderson et al., 1995; Mulligan, 1993; The contents
of which are incorporated in their entirety into the subject
application).
[0118] Another embodiment of this invention is a method for
inducing neuronal regeneration which comprises administering to a
subject an effective amount of the CaMKII.alpha. promoter construct
driving a gene of interest and a pharmaceutically acceptable
carrier to induce the formation of a synaptic junction between a
neuron and a target cell. The target cell may be a neuronal cell,
an endocrine cell, a muscle cell or any cell capable of forming a
neuro-muscular junction. Expression of the gene of interest may
facilitate incorporation of implants into nervous tissue or to
promote nerve regeneration following damage by trauma, infarction,
infection or postoperatively.
[0119] Alternatively, the transgenic nonhuman mammal may be
transfected with a suitable vector which encodes an appropriate
ribozyme or antisense molecule. See for example, Leder and Stewart,
U.S. Pat. No. 4,736,866 for methods for the production of a
transgenic mouse. Such antisense vector may be used as a gene
therapy in humans to inhibit the expression of a gene in the
forebrain.
[0120] This invention is illustrated in the Experimental Details
section which follows. These sections are set forth to aid in an
understanding of the invention but are not intended to, and should
not be construed to, limit in any way the invention as set forth in
the claims which follow thereafter.
[0121] Experimental Details
Example 1
The 3'-Untranslated Region of CaMKII.alpha. is a Cis-Acting Signal
for the Localization and Translation of mRNA in Dendrites
[0122] Neuronal signaling requires that synaptic proteins be
appropriately localized within the cell and regulated there. In
mammalian neurons, polyribosomes are found not just in the cell
body, but also in dendrites where they are concentrated within or
beneath the dendritic spine. The a subunit of
Ca.sup.2+-calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII.alpha.) is
one of only five mRNAs known to be present within the dendrites, as
well as in the soma of neurons. This targeted subcellular
localization of the mRNA for CaMKII.alpha. provides a possible cell
biological mechanism both for controlling the distribution of the
cognate protein and for regulating independently the level of
protein expression in individual dendritic spines. To characterize
the cis-acting elements involved in the localization of dendritic
mRNA two lines of transgenic mice have been produced in which the
CaMKII.alpha. promoter is used to drive the expression of a lacZ
transcript, which either contains or lacks the 3'-untranslated
region of the CaMKII.alpha. gene. Although both lines of mice show
expression in forebrain neurons that parallels the expression of
the endogenous CaMKII.alpha. gene, only the lacZ transcripts
bearing the 3'-untranslated region are localized to dendrites. The
.beta.-galactosidase protein shows a variable level of expression
along the dendritic shaft and within dendritic spines, which
suggests that neurons can control the local biochemistry of the
dendrite either through differential localization of the mRNA or
variations in the translational efficiency at different sites along
the dendrite.
[0123] Polyribosomes are localized within neurons to the cell soma,
the proximal part of the axon, and throughout the full extent of
the dendritic authorization (Steward et al., 1982). Within
dendrites the polyribosomes are not distributed randomly, but
rather seem to be concentrated within or beneath the dendritic
spines (Steward et al., Prog. Brain Res.,1983; Cold Spring Harbor
Symp. Quant. Biol., 1983). Dendritic spines are elaborations of the
dendrite on which excitatory synapses are formed. This
concentration of the translational machinery at the site of
synaptic input suggests the possibility that the local
concentration of polyribosomes might function for the selective
expression of certain gene products, which can be regulated in a
synapse specific manner (Steward, 1992). Synapse specific gene
expression might occur by the selective targeting of specific mRNAs
to specific dendritic spines along with associated ribosomes.
Alternatively, the mRNA for a given gene might be distributed
uniformly to all dendritic spines in a neuron, but the translation
of that mRNA might be differentially regulated at the individual
spines.
[0124] Although the vast majority of neuronal mRNAs are restricted
to the cell soma, a number of mRNAs have been found in the dendrite
as well as the soma. These include the mRNAs for
microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2), the Ca.sup.2+-calmodulin
dependent protein kinase II.alpha. subunit, the IP3 receptor type
II, and two genes of unknown function designated L7 and ARC (Burgin
et al., 1990; Furuichi et al., 1993; Garner et al., 1988; Lyford et
al., 1995; Link et al., 1995; Bian et al., 1996). The molecular
mechanisms responsible for the localization of these mRNAs to
dendrites are not known. However, dendritic mRNA appears to be
associated with some component of the cytoskeleton (Davis et al.,
1987; Bassell et al., 1994). The fact that only certain mRNAs are
transported into dendrites suggests that a cis-acting signal,
present only in those transcripts, mediates the targeting. That
signal could be contained within the sequence or structure of the
mRNA itself, or it could be carried within the nascent polypeptide
chain. In the latter case, the entire complex consisting of
polyribosome, mRNA, and nascent peptide would be transported into
the dendrite.
[0125] The .alpha. subunit of Ca.sup.2+-calmodulin-dependent
protein kinase II (CaMKII.alpha.) subunit gene is expressed
specifically in neurons of the forebrain where its mRNA is found
within the dendrites as well as the soma of the neuron. Cis-acting
elements have been characterized in transgeneic mice, which
elements mediate the forebrain specific expression as well as the
dendritic localization of mRNA. A dendritically localized lacZ gene
shows an uneven expression along the length of the dendrite. This
suggests that the expression of dendritically localized mRNA is
regulated either at the level of the mRNA distribution or at the
level of local translation.
[0126] Materials and Methods
[0127] Transgene constructs. The CaMKII.alpha. promoter was
isolated from a cosmid library prepared from C57BL6J mouse spleen
using a 0.4-kb Aval fragment comprising the transcription
initiation region of the rat CaMKII.alpha. gene (Sunyer et al.,
1990). The full-length CaMKII.alpha. cDNA was isolated from a mouse
brain (C57BL/6J) cDNA library using a rat CaMKII.alpha. cDNA probe.
Constructs were assembled using standard techniques. The lacZ gene
was obtained from a 3.5 -kb HindIII/DraI fragment of pNSE lac
(Forss-Petter, et al., 1990). The bovine polyadenylylation signal
was from pRC/CMV (Invitrogen.RTM.). The GFP gene was from pGFP-C1
(CLONTECH.RTM.). The nuclear localization signal was from the
simian virus 40 large t antigen. It was inserted using synthetic
oligonucleotides and consisted of the sequence
SSDDEATADSQHSTPPKKKRKVEDP. Transgenic mice were produced by DNA
injection into B6CBA F.sub.2 or B6/SJL.sub.2F embryos using
standard techniques. Northern blot analysis was generated using 4
.mu.g of A.sup.+ RNA isolated from the forebrain of the lac-A and
lac-CMK transgenic lines. The blot was hybridized with a
lacZ-specific cDNA probe and washed for 40 min at 68.degree. C. in
0.2.times.SSC/0.1% SDS and exposed for 5 hr.
[0128] .beta.-Galactosidase (.beta.-gal) Histochemistry. Brains
were processed for histochemistry essentially as described
(Forss-Petter et al., 1990). Animals were perfused with 2%
paraformaldehyde/0.2% glutaraldehyde in PBS (pH 7.3) and
cryoprotected in 30% sucrose. Fifty-micrometer horizontal sections
were prepared and stained for .beta.-gal activity for 4 hrs at
37.degree. C. in 0.1 M sodium phosphate, pH 7.3/0.14 M NaCl/2 mM
MgCl.sub.2/3 mM K.sub.3Fe (CN).sub.6/3 mM K.sub.4Fe(CN).sub.6/1
mg/ml 5-bromo-4-chloro-3-indoyl .beta.-D-galactosidase (X-gal).
[0129] In situ Hybridization. For in situ hybridization, 20-.mu.m
coronal sections were taken from fresh frozen mouse brains. The
slices were fixed for 10 min in 4% paraformaldehyde and dehydrated.
Slices were probed with a pool of three oligonucleotides specific
for the lacZ gene, which had been labeled by tailing with
[.alpha.-.sup.35 S] dATP and terminal transferase to a specific
activity of >1.times.10.sup.9 cpm/gg. Oligonucleotide sequences:
lac 1, 5'-GTGCATCTGCCAGTTTGAGGGGACGACGACAGTAT-3'; lac 2,
5'-GCCGGAAACCAGGCAAAGCGCCATTCGCCATTCAGGCTGCGC-3'; lac 3,
5'-GTAACCGACCCAGCGCCCGTTGCACCACAGATGAAACGCCG-3'. Hybridization was
overnight at 42.degree. C. in a solution containing 10% dextran
sulfate, 50% formamide, 25 mM hepes (pH 7.6), 600 mM NaCl, 100 mM
DTT, 1 mM EDTA, 200 .mu.g/ml denatured salmon sperm DNA, 200
.mu.g/ml poly(A), 1.times. Denhardt's solution, 10.sup.7 cpm/ml
probe. Slides were washed 2.times.10' at reverse transcriptase with
Kodak NTB2 emulsion, exposed for 3 weeks, developed, counterstained
with toluidine blue, and photographed under darkfield
illumination.
[0130] Neuronal Cultures. For neuronal cultures, hippocampi of
P1-P3 mouse pups were dissected and treated for 30 min at
37.degree. C. with 0.25% trypsin (Sigma.RTM., type XI), and then
gently titrated and the dissociated cells plated at a concentration
of 2.times.10.sup.5 per ml onto poly-D-lysine (Sigma.RTM., 0.1
mg/ml) and laminin (Collaborative Research.RTM. 10 .mu.g/ml) coated
glass coverslips as described (Rayport, et al., 1992).
[0131] Cells were plated in minimal essential Eagle's medium (MEM)
containing 10% heat inactivated fetal bovine serum (HyCLone.RTM.),
2 mM glutamine, and 0.76% glucose. On the following day, the medium
was replaced with fresh SF1C medium, including B-27 supplements
(GIBCO.RTM.). For immunocytochemistry, cells were labeled as
described (Craig et al., 1993). Briefly, cells were fixed for 10
min at room temperature with 2% paraformaldehyde and incubated
overnight at 4.degree. C. with monoclonal antibody to
MAP2(Sigma.RTM., 5 .mu.g/ml) and rabbit polyclonal antibody to
.beta.-gal (Cappel.RTM., 2 .mu.g/ml) in PBS containing 10% goat
serum. Cells were then stained with fluorescently conjugated
secondary antibody (fluorescein isothiocyanate for .beta.-gal
detection and Cy3 for MAP2 detection). In several experiments a
monoclonal antibody to .beta.-gal (Promega.RTM.) was used. Images
were obtained using an MRC-1000 laser confocal microscope
(Bio-Rad.degree.).
[0132] Results
[0133] Cis-acting elements of the CaMKII.alpha. gene have been
isolated: one, the promoter, which controls the forebrain-specific
expression of the gene and the other, the 3'-untranslated region or
3' UTR, which controls the dendritic mRNA localization. Two DNA
constructs (lac-CMK and lac-A, FIG. 1A) were prepared such that the
lacZ reporter gene was placed downstream from an 8.5-kb fragment of
CaMKII.alpha. genomic DNA beginning at 84 kb following the
transcription initiation site (Sunyer et al., 1990). In one
construct, the entire 3' UTR of the CaMKII.alpha. mRNA (3.2 kb)
downstream from the lacZ coding region (lac-CMK) was included to
determine whether the signal for dendritic RNA localization was
contained in this region. As a control, the second construct
contained a 3' polyadenylylation signal provided by bovine growth
hormone (lac-A). Transgenic mice were generated using the two DNA
constructs. Of four founder animals obtained, two (one from each
construct) expressed the lacZ gene and were analyzed in detail.
[0134] To determine whether the two different transgenic lines
expressed mRNAs of the expected size, Northern blot analysis was
performed of forebrain mRNA using a lacZ-specific probe. The lac-A
and lac-CMK lines express lacZ-specific mRNAs of approximately 3.7
and 6.9 kb, respectively (FIG. 1B). In addition, the 6.9-kb
transcript from the lac-CMK mice also hybridized to a probe
specific for the CaMKII 3'-UTR.
[0135] Histochemical detection of .beta.-gal in brain sections
revealed a similar pattern of expression in both lines (FIG. 2).
With several exceptions, this expression was limited to those
regions of the forebrain that normally express CaMKII.alpha..
Notably, expression was absent in a medial layer of the cortex.
Also, within the hippocampus, expression was much stronger in the
dentate gyrus than in the CA3 and CA1 regions. Thus, the
CaMKII.alpha. promoter confers the expected cellular specificity on
the expression of a heterologous transgene, with some variations in
expression level.
[0136] The 3'-UTR of CaMKII Targets mRNA to Dendrites. While the
presence or absence of the CaMKII.alpha. 3'-UTR seemed to have
little effect on the regional distribution of transgene expression,
in situ hybridization using a lacZ-specific oligonucleotide probe
revealed a different subcellular localization of the lacZ mRNA
between the two transgenic lines. (FIG. 3A). To examine this
subcellular localization in greater detail, the hippocampus was
examined where the neuronal and dendritic layers are well
differentiated. In the lac-CMK mice the hybridization signal covers
not only the cell body layers of the dentate gyrus and CA1 region,
but also extends into the corresponding dendritic layers.
[0137] By contrast, the lac-A mice show strong hybridization in the
cell body layer of the dentate gyrus and a weaker signal in CA1
cell bodies but no signal in the corresponding dendritic layers.
The hybridization signal in the lac-CMK mice appears to be uniform
throughout the dendritic layer and to extend into the most distal
regions of the dendrite. This parallels the subcellular
distribution of the endogenous CaMKII.alpha. mRNA and differs from
that of MAP2, a dendritically-localized mRNA that is found only in
the proximal portion of the dendrite (Garner et al., 1988). Thus,
the presence of the CaMKII.alpha. 3' UTR is sufficient to localize
the lacZ mRNA to dendrites and to yield a distribution of the mRNA
within the dendritic layers that is indistinguishable from that of
the endogenous CaMKII.alpha. gene.
[0138] In an attempt to identify a common sequence element, the
nucleotide sequence of the other known dendritically localized
mRNAs [MAP2, Arc, IP-3R1, BC1 (Furuichi et al., 1993; Garner et
al., 1988; Lyford et al., 1995; Link et al., 1995; Tiedge et al.,
1991)] was compared to that of the CaMKII.alpha. 3'-UTR. No major
sequence homology was found. However, the critical determinant of
the cis-acting element may not be reflected in its primary sequence
but in the three-dimensional structure of the folded mRNA. This
appears to be the case for the RNA localization elements important
in early embryonic development (Macdonald et al., 1988; Macdonald
et al., 1993; Mowry et al., 1992). Alternately, the mechanism of
localization for CaMKII.alpha. may be different from that of the
other dendritically localized RNAs. The difference in the extent of
dendritic transport of the MAP2 and CaMKII.alpha. mRNAs suggests
some difference in the transport mechanism (Burgin et al., 1990;
Garner et al., 1988).
[0139] Dendritically Localized mRNA Is Effectively Translated. Is
this dendritically targeted mRNA effectively translated? Previous
studies have yielded conflicting results regarding basal protein
synthesis in dendrites (Torre et al., 1992; Gossen et al., 1992).
In mice bearing the dendritically localized lacZ mRNA, the level of
.beta.-gal protein in the dendrites of the hippocampal pyramidal
cells in increased relative to controls, in which the lacZ mRNA is
restricted to the cell body (FIG. 3B). This suggests that the
dendritic mRNA is translationally active in the intact animal under
basal conditions. However, when expressed at high levels,
.beta.-gal can diffuse into neuronal processes. It therefore is
possible that some of the protein found in dendrites actually arose
from translation in the cell body.
[0140] To clearly distinguish between protein synthesized locally
within the dendrites and that synthesized in the cell body and
diffusing into the dendrites, transgenic mice were generated in
which the lacZ gene carried a nuclear localization signal (nls) so
that .beta.-gal synthesized in the neuronal cell body would be
sequestered in the nucleus, thereby preventing it from diffusing
into the dendrite. Transgenic mice were generated using the
nls-lac-CMK construct shown in FIG. 1A. In this case, the transgene
of the tet-O-promoter was expressed using the tTA system (Craig et
al., 1993; Mayford et al., 1995). Three lines of mice were obtained
that expressed the nls-lac-CMK transgene in the hippocampus, one of
which was examined in detail.
[0141] In situ hybridization revealed that the lacZ mRNA from the
nls-lac-CMK line of mice was transported into dendrites (FIG. 4A).
Histochemical detection of .beta.-gal in this line revealed a
pattern in which strong staining is found in the nucleus with
little or no staining in the proximal dendrite and strong staining
again in the more distal dendritic layer (FIG. 4B). Thus, the
localization machinery is able to transport .beta.-gal synthesized
in the soma and proximal dendritic layer into the nucleus (compare
FIG. 3B, lac-CMK, with FIG. 4B, nls-lac-CMK). Moreover, this
expression pattern suggests that the .beta.-gal found in the distal
dendrite arises from local translation of the lacZ mRNA in the
distal dendrite.
[0142] .beta.-Gal Is Unevenly Expressed Along the Dendrite. To
assess whether the s-gal is expressed evenly along the whole length
of the dendrite, hippocampal neurons were cultured from nls-lac-CMK
mice and used double-immunofluorescent detection of .beta.-gal and
MAP2. The MAP2 antibody, which labels microtubules specifically
along the shaft of the dendrites, gives a smooth staining pattern.
By contrast, the .beta.-gal immunoreactivity is surprisingly patchy
in its distribution with localized hot spots of staining along the
dendritic shaft and within some presumptive dendritic spines (FIG.
4C and D). This pattern of .beta.-gal staining was observed using
two different antibodies and was not detected in cultures from
wild-type mice. This patchy, differential expression of .beta.-gal
along the dendrite suggests that the neuron is able to regulate
expression of the transgene locally within the dendrite. This local
regulation might occur through regulated distribution of the lacZ
mRNA within the dendrite or through local differences in the rate
of its translation.
[0143] Discussion
[0144] Because neurons are highly polarized cells, a critical
determinant of their function is the targeting of specific
signaling molecules to their appropriate subcellular destination.
In addition, neurons receive thousands of synaptic inputs and these
can often be modulated independently in response to local
differences in synaptic activity. For example, long-term
potentiation or LTP is an activity-dependent form of synaptic
plasticity that is synapse specific (Bliss et al., 1993). The
potentiation of synaptic strength with LTP occurs only at those
synapses that are stimulated and not at other synapses onto the
same cell. Thus, the LTP inducing stimulus must produce a
biochemical change specific to the activated synapse. One mechanism
for controlling the local biochemistry of a synapse is by
regulating the distribution and translation of specific mRNAs at
that synapse.
[0145] The CaMKII.alpha. gene is expressed specifically in
forebrain neurons, plays an essential role in LTP, and is one of
the few mRNAs that are known to be targeted to dendrites (Burgin et
al., 1990; Silva et al., 1992; Mayford et al., 1995). Therefore,
the signals controlling both the forebrain specific expression and
the dendritic mRNA localization were investigated. It was
discovered that an 8.5-kb fragment of the CaMKII.alpha. gene is
able to confer forebrain specific expression on a heterologous lacZ
transgene. Subsequently, this promoter element has been utilized to
express a number of other transgenes and it has been found that in
each case expression is limited to the forebrain neurons in a
pattern similar to that shown in FIG. 2. The ability to direct
transgene expression specifically to the forebrain neurons should
prove useful in transgenic studies of neuronal function and its
relation to behavior.
[0146] While the promoter targets CaMKII.alpha. to the forebrain,
the 3'-UTR of CaMKII.alpha. localizes the heterologous lacZ mRNA to
dendrites. The mapping of the dendritic targeting signal of the
CaMKII.alpha. mRNA to the 3'-UTR demonstrates that the localization
process is independent of the protein translated similar to the
regulation of mRNA localization in other systems (Bian et al.,
1996; Sundell et al., 1990; Kleiman et al., 1993). The expression
of a lacZ gene in which the mRNA was targeted to dendrites was
examined, but the .beta.-gal protein itself was targeted to the
nucleus. Strong staining was found for the .beta.-gal in the
nucleus and distal dendrites with relatively little staining in the
cytoplasm of the soma and proximal dendrite. These results suggest
that the nuclear localization machinery may not function
efficiently in the more distal regions of the dendrites. Within the
dendrite, .beta.-gal had an uneven distribution both along the
shaft and in dendritic spines. This differential expression of the
gene product provides a possible mechanism for the independent
modulation of the biochemistry of individual synapses. The
differential distribution could occur either through differential
localization of the mRNA or differences in the translation of mRNA
along the dendrite.
[0147] LTP is produced only at the appropriately stimulated
synapses and its late phase is blocked by inhibitors of protein and
mRNA synthesis (Bliss et al., 1993; Frey et al., 1988; Nguyen et
al., 1994). The requirement for new gene expression in LTP, coupled
with the synapse specificity of the process, implies that the new
gene products are targeted to or functionally used only at those
synapses where LTP is induced. One mechanism by which this might
occur is for the LTP-inducing stimulus to convert the synapse from
a translationally inactive to a translationally active state. This
would lead to an immediate increase in the level of the gene
product for those mRNA species localized to that synapse. In
addition, newly transcribed mRNA species that were transported into
dendrites would be expressed only at those translationally active
synapses that received the LTP-inducing stimulation. Alternatively,
an immediate increase in the translation of mRNA at the stimulated
synapses might mark those synapses such that the newly induced gene
products important for maintaining LTP would be targeted only to
those marked synapses. Mislocalization of CaMKII.alpha. mRNA,
through deletion of the dendritic targeting signal, may interfere
with the production or maintenance of a synapse-specific late phase
for LTP.
Example 2
Control of Memory Formation Through Regulated Expression of CaMKII
Transgene
[0148] Abstract
[0149] One of the major limitations in the use of genetically
modified mice for studying cognitive functions is the lack of
regional and temporal control of gene function. To overcome these
limitations, a forebrain-specific promoter was combined with the
tetracycline transactivator system to achieve both regional and
temporal control of transgene expression. Expression of an
activated calcium-independent form of calcium-calmodulin-dependent
kinase II (CaMKII) resulted in a loss of hippocampal long-term
potentiation in response to 10-hertz stimulation and a deficit in
spatial memory, a form of explicit memory. Suppression of transgene
expression reversed both the physiological and the memory deficit.
When the transgene was expressed at high levels in the lateral
amygdala and the striatum but not other forebrain structures, there
was a deficit in fear conditioning, an implicit memory task, that
also was reversible. Thus, the CaMKII signaling pathway is critical
for both explicit and implicit memory storage, in a manner that is
independent of its potential role in development.
[0150] Explicit memory--a memory for facts, places, and
events--requires the hippocampus and related medial temporal lobe
structures (Scoville et al., 1957; Squire et al., 1992), whereas
implicit memory--a memory for perceptual and motor skills--involves
a variety of anatomical systems (Schacter et al., 1994). For
example, one form of implicit memory, that for conditioned fear,
involves the amygdala (Blanchard et al., 1972; Davis, 1992).
[0151] Studies with genetically modified animals have sought to
relate specific genes to specific forms of explicit or implicit
memory storage (Grant et al., 1992; Silva et al., 1992; Mayford et
al., 1995; Bach et al., 1995). However, current methodology does
not allow one to distinguish between a direct effect on memory or
its underlying synaptic mechanisms and an indirect effect of the
development of the neuronal circuits in which the memory storage
occurs (Grant et al., 1992; Mayford et al., 1995). In addition, the
gene under study is typically over-expressed or ablated throughout
the entire brain. As a result, the genetic modifications often
affect, indiscriminately, both implicit and explicit memory as well
as perceptual or motor performance. Thus, to analyze the molecular
contribution of a given gene to a particular type of memory, it is
essential not only to control the timing of expression but also to
restrict expression to appropriate cell populations.
[0152] To address these issues and to achieve regulated transgene
expression in restricted regions of the forebrain, a
forebrain-specific promoter was used in combination with the
tetracycline transactivator (tTA) developed by Bujard and his
colleagues (Gossen et al., 1992; Furth et al., 1994). The role of
CaMKII signalling in synaptic plasticity as well as in implicit and
explicit memory storage was examined.
[0153] CaMKII.alpha. is a serine-threonine protein kinase that is
restricted to the forebrain (Miller et al., 1986; Burgin et al.,
1990; Hanson et al., 1992). It is expressed in the neurons of the
neocortex, the hippocampus, the amygdala, and the basal ganglia.
After a brief exposure to Ca.sup.2+, CaMKII can convert to a
Ca.sup.2+-independent state through an autophosphorylation at
Thr.sup.286 (Miller et al., 1986; Hanson et al., 1992; Fong et al.,
1989, Thiel et al., 1988; Waldmann et al., 1990). This ability to
become persistently active in response to a transient Ca.sup.2+
stimulus led to the suggestion that CaMKII may be a molecular
substrate of memory (Lisman, 1994). Targeted disruption of the
CaMKII.alpha. gene produces deficits in long-term potentiation
(LTP) and severely impairs performance on hippocampal-dependent
memory tasks (Silva et al., 1992; Silva et al., 1992, p. 201).
Mutation of Thr.sup.286 to Asp in CaMKII.alpha. mimics the effect
of autophosphorylation at Thr.sup.286 and converts the enzyme to a
Ca.sup.2+-independent form (Fong et al., 1989; Walsmann et al.,
1990). Transgenic expression of this dominant mutation of
CaMKII.alpha. (CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 ) results in a systematic shift
in response to low-frequency stimulation such that long-term
depression (LTD) is favored in the transgenic mice (Mayford et al.,
1995). Thus, although Schaffer collateral LTP in response to 100-Hz
tetanus is not altered, LTP is eliminated in the range of 5 to 10
Hz, a frequency (the theta frequency) characteristic of the
endogenous oscillation in neuronal activity seen in the hippocampus
of animals during spatial exploration (Bland, 1986). Correlated
with this selective deficit in LTP in the theta frequency range is
a severe defect in spatial memory (Bach et al., 1995). These
phenomena have been examined with regulated expression of the
CaMKII-Asp.sup.2 transgene.
[0154] Doxycycline regulation of transgene expression. The first
type of mouse generated to achieve regulated expression of
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 in forebrain neurons (FIG. 5A) expressed the tTA
gene under the control of the CaMKII.alpha. promoter (line B),
which limits expression of the tTA transgene to neurons of the
forebrain (Bland, et al., 1986). The CaMKII.alpha. promoter
consisted of 8.5 kb of genomic DNA upstream of the transcription
initiation site of the mouse CaMKII.alpha. gene, as well as 84 base
pairs of the 5' noncoding exon. Genomic DNA was isolated from a C57
B16/J mouse spleen cosmid library with a rat genomic probe
consisting of a 0.4-kb Ava I fragment comprising the
transcription-initiation region of rat CaMKII.alpha. (Sunyer et
al., 1990). The tTA gene from plasmid pUHD 15-1 (Gossen et al.,
1992) was flanked by an artificial intron and splice sites ats the
5' end (Choi et al., 1991) and by a polyadenylation signal from
SV40 at the 3' end. The cDNA with intron and polyadenylation signal
was placed downstream of the 8.5-kb CaMKII promoter fragment. The
cDNAs for Escherichia coli lacZ and mouse CaMKII.alpha. were
similarly flanked by the hybrid intron and polyadenylation signal
and placed downstream of the tet-O promoter element of plasmid pUHD
10-3 (Gossen et al., 1991). The CaMKII.alpha. gene was a
full-length cNDA (4.8 kb) isolated from a C57B16/J mouse brain cDNA
library. The lacZ gene carried an SV40 large T antigen nuclear
localization signal as well as the 3' untranslated region (UTR) of
CaMKII.alpha., which targets the mRNA to dendrites (Mayford et al.,
1996). In the second type of mouse, the tTA-responsive tet-O
promoter is linked to the target gene of interest, in this case
either lacZ or the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 gene. The tTA gene expresses
a eukaryotic transcription activator that binds to and activates
transcription from the tet-O promoter element; this transcription
is blocked by the tetracycline analog doxycycline (Gossen et al.,
1992). When both the tet-O and tTA transgenes were introduced into
the same mouse, the tet-O-linked gene was activated, but only in
those cells that express tTA.
[0155] The regulation of the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene was
assesed using a reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction
(RT-PCR) Southern (DNA) blot (RT-PCR was performed essentially as
described (Mayford et al., 1995). Total forebrain RNA (100 ng) was
used in each reaction with oligonucleotide primers to amplify a
region of the transcript that includes the Thr.sup.286 Asp
mutation. Equal amounts of amplified cDNA (both wild-type and
mutant sequences) were separated on a 3% agarose gel, transferred
to nylon membranes, and hybridized with a .sup.32P-labeled
oligonucleotide probe specific for the Asp.sup.286 mutation
(oligonucleotide sequence 5'CTTCAGGCAGTCGACGTCCTCCTGTCTGTG-3').
Blots were washed under conditions in which only the Asp.sup.286
mutant cDNA was detected (2' 15 min., 60.degree. C., 0.2' standard
saline citrate). A Northern (RNA) blot of total forebrain mRNA
revealed expression of a shorter-than-expected CaMKII-Asp.sup.286
transcript (.about.3.4 kb). As shown in FIGS. 7A-D, this shorter
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transcript did not localize to dendrites,
presumably as a result of the loss of a sequence element in the 3'
UTR that is necessary for mRNA targeting to dendrites (Mayford et
al., 1996)) to detect only the mutant transcripts (FIG. 5B). Mice
carrying either one of the transgenes alone show little or no
expression of CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 mRNA. When both transgenes were
introduced into the same mouse, there was a large activation of
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 expression. The expression of this transgene was
completely suppressed when the mice were given doxycycline (2
mg/ml) in the drinking water for 4 weeks.
[0156] Restricted expression of the tet-O linked transgenes. The
expression of .beta.-galactosidase was examined in two tet-O lacZ
reporter lines of mice that also carried that CaMKII.alpha.
promoter-tTA transgene (FIG. 6A). In the first line, expression was
uniform throughout the forebrain, neocortex, hippocampus, amygdala,
and striatum. This pattern mimics the expression of the endogenous
CaMKII.alpha. gene (Burgin et al., 1990). In the second lacZ line,
expression was observed throughout the forebrain, but surprisingly,
expression was absent in the CA# pyramidal cell body layer of the
hippocampus (FIG. 6B).
[0157] Using in situ hybridization, the pattern of expression in
three lines of double transgenic mice expressing tet-O-linked
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 was examined (mouse lines B13, B21 and B22)
(FIGS. 7A-7D). In the first line (B13), expression was evident
throughout the forebrain. However, in the hippocampus, expression
was strong in the dentate gyrus and CA2 region but was weak or
absent in the CA3 region. In a second line of mice (B22), there was
moderate expression in the hippocampus, subiculum, striatum, and
amygdala, with little expression in neocortex. In the hippocampus,
expression was again present in the CA1 region and absent in the
CA3 region. In the third line (B21), there was little expression in
the neocortex and hippocampus but strong expression in the
striatum, in anterior and lateral amygdala nuclei, and in the
underlying olfactory tubercle. Thus, whereas the CaMKII promoter
can limit expression to forebrain neurons generally, expression of
the tet-O-linked transgene is further limited to particular subsets
of forebrain neurons, presumably due to integration site-dependent
effects.
[0158] In double transgenic mice, a high level of expression of the
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 mRNA was obtained (FIGS. 5B and 7A-D). To
determine the effect of this expression on enzyme activity, CaMKII
activity was measured in the striatum of the B21 line of mice
(Table 1).
[0159] TABLE 1. Effect of CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 mRNA expression on
enzyme actibity. Brains were removed and the striatum was dissected
and immediately homogenized in 20 mM tris-HCl (pH 7.5), 0.5 mM
EGTA, 0.5 mM EDTA, 2 mM leupeptin, 0.4 mM dithiothreitol, 0.1 mM
phenylmethysulfonyl flouride, 0.4 mM molybdate, and 10 mM sodium
pyrophosphate. CaMKII enzyme activity was determined as described
(Mayford et al., 1995). B21 +Dox animals received doxycycline (1
mg/ml) plus 5% sucrose in the drinking water for 3 to 5 weeks. B21
+Dox withdrawal animals received doxycycline (1 mg/ml) for 3 to 5
weeks and were then switched to normal water for 6 weeks. The
number of mice is given in parentheses.
CaMKII Activity
TABLE-US-00001 [0160] Ca.sup.2+- Without Ca.sup.2+ With Ca.sup.2+
independent Mouse Line (pmol min.sup.-1 .mu.g.sup.-1) (pmol
min.sup.-1 .mu.g.sup.-1) (%) Wild type 0.13 .+-. 0.01(5) 10.4 .+-.
1.2 1.33 .+-. 0.21 B21 0.90 .+-. 0.14(5) 20.9 .+-. 2.9 4.62 .+-.
1.02 B21 + Dox 0.16 .+-. 0.04(5) 12.9 .+-. 1.5 1.22 .+-. 0.03 B21 +
Dox 0.80 .+-. 0.03(3) 14.2 .+-. 0.7 5.70 .+-. 0.43 withdrawal
[0161] In these mice, Ca.sup.2+-independent CaMKII activity was
increased seven-fold relative to that of the wild type. However,
when the mice were treated with doxycycline (1 mg/ml), CaMKII
activity was suppressed to wild-type values. When the doxycycline
treatment was discontinued, Ca.sup.2+-independent CaMKII activity
returned to those of the untreated transgenic mice. Thus, the
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene is functionally expressed and can be
regulated with doxycycline.
[0162] Effects of LTP of CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 expression in the
hippocampus. Constitutive expression of the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286
transgene in the mouse forebrain shifts the stimulation frequency
required for the production of LTP and LTD in the Schaffer
collateral pathway of the hippocampus (Mayford et al., 1995). In
wild-type mice, stimulation at 1 Hz produced LTD, whereas
stimulation at 5, 10 or 100 Hz produced LTP. However, stimulation
in the 5- to 10-Hz range no longer produced LTP, but rather
produced LTD or no change in synaptic strength.
[0163] Whether the transgene was acting presynaptically or
postsynaptically was investigated by asking whether expression of
the transgene specifically in the postsynaptic CA1 neurons would
produce a shift in the frequency threshold for LTP and LTD. The B13
line of mice, which showed a uniformly high level of expression in
the CA1 region, was examined with little or no expression in CA3
(Transverse slices (400 .mu.g thick) of mouse hippocampus were
prepared and placed in an interface slice chamber perfused with
artificial cerebrospinal fluid as described (Mayford et al., 1995).
Field excitatory postsynaptic potentials (EPSPs) were elicited once
per minute with fine stungsten bipolar stimulation electrodes
(0.05-ms pulse duration). Stainless steel recording electordes were
placed in striatum radiatum. The stimulation strength was set to
produce 50% of the maximum obtainable EPSP in each slice. Baseline
synaptic response was collected for 20 minutes before the tetanus.
The 10-Hz tetanus was delivered for 1.5 minutes at the same
intensity as used in the baseline recording. For doxycycline
treatment, animals were administered doxycycline (1 mg/ml) plus 5%
sucrose in the drinking water for 2 to 3 weeks, and the slices were
then exposed to doxycycline (1 ng/ml) in the perfusate. All animals
were 2.5 to 6 months of age at the time of recording.). Thus, when
Schaffer collateral LTP is measured in the B13 mice, the transgene
will be expressed only in the postsynaptic neurons. Stimulation of
slices from wild-type mice at 10 Hz resulted in a long-lasting
potentiation of 123.+-.9% (n=12 slices, 6 mice) (FIG. 8). By
contrast, 10-Hz stimulation in B13 transgenic mice produced a
slight depression to 89.+-.6% of baseline (n=9 slices, 3 mice),
which was significantly different from wild-type mice [t(19)=3.148;
P<0.01, Student's t test].
[0164] To determine whether this effect was reversible, transgene
expression was suppressed by administering doxycycline (1 mg/ml)
for 2 to 3 weeks. Ten-hertz stimulation then produced potentiation
similar to that in wild-type mice (132.+-.10%, N=8 slices, 4 mice)
(FIG. 8). Thus, suppression of transgene expression in adult mice
reversed the electrophysiological phenotype [t(15)=3.675,
P<0.005]. These results suggest that the selective expression of
the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene in the postsynaptic CA1 neurons of
the Schaffer collateral synapse is sufficient to alter the
frequency threshold for LTP. Moreover, the shift in the frequency
threshold is due to the acute expression of the transgene rather
than to an irreversible developmental defect (It would also be
useful to suppress transgene expression during development and then
activate the gene only in the adult animal. However, it was found
that treatment of wild-type mice with doxycycline (1 mg/ml) during
development impaired adult spatial memory and memory for fear
conditioning. The result suggests that doxycycline itself produces
a defect in neuronal development. Transgene suppression was used
only in the adult animal in which the doxycyline treatment did not
affect memory. Given the activation of the transgene throughout
development, it is possible that the LTP and memory phenotypes
observed with the transgene active in the adult animal result from
a synergistic interaction between development and adult expression
rather than a direct acute effect of transgene expression in the
adult animal.
[0165] Effect on explicit memory storage of CaMKII-Asp.sup.286
expression in the hippocampus. Expression of the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286
transgene in the forebrain interferes with spatial memory, a form
of explicit memory, as measured in the Barnes circular maze (Bach
et al., 1995). The Barnes circular maze is a brightly lit open disk
with 40 holes in the perimeter (FIG. 9A). Mice have an aversion for
brightly lit open areas and hence are motivated to escape form the
maze. This can be achieved by finding the 1 hole in 40 that leads
to a darkened escape tunnel. In the spatial version of this task,
the mouse must use distal cues in the room to locate the hole that
leads to the escape tunnel (On the Barnes circular maze (Bach et
al., 1995), the mice (2.5 to 6 months of age) were tested once a
day until they met the criterion (five out of six sessions with
three or fewer errors, or until 40 days had elapsed). The order of
holes searched was recorded by an observer who was blind to
genotype and doxycycline condition, and from these data the number
of errors was determined. Errors were defined as searches of any
hole that did not have the tunnel beneath it. Searches included
nose pokes and head deflections over the hole. At the end of each
session the search strategy used was recorded by the observer. The
spatial search strategy was operationally defined as reaching the
escape tunnel with both error and distance scores .ltoreq.3.
Distance was calculated by counting the number of holes between the
first hole searched within a session and the escape tunnel. A
one-factor analysis of variance (ANOVA) (gender) revealed no
significant effect of gender for either transgenic or wild-type
mice, so the data were collapsed across this variable. For the
error data, a three-factor ANOVA (genotype, doxycycline, and
session block) with one repeated measure was used. For the spatial
search strategy data, the two groups of B22 transgenic mice were
compared with a two-way ANOVA (doxycycline and session block) with
one repeated measure.).
[0166] Expression of the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene throughout
the forebrain as seen in the B13 mice results in an impairment in
the spatial but no the cued version of the Barnes maze task (Bach
et al., 1995). To investigate those areas in the forebrain that are
critical for this type of defect in spatial memory, the B22
transgenic mice were examined that show expression in the
hippocampus, subiculum, striatum, and amygdala, but relatively
little expression in the neocortex (FIGS. 7A-D). These mice
exhibited significant impairment in spatial memory on the Barnes
circular maze. None of the transgenic mice was able to acquire the
task by using the spatial strategy, despite the fact that they were
trained for 40 consecutive days (FIGS. 9B to 9D). Nevertheless,
this profound memory impairment was reversed by suppression of
transgene expression.
[0167] Effect on implicit memory of CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 expression
in the amygdala and striatum. Fear conditioning is a simple
associative form of learning, in which both a novel environment and
a tone are paired with a foot shock on the training day. In the
conditioned fear task (Bach et al., 1995), freezing was defined as
a total lack of movement with the exception of respiration and was
measured by an experimenter who was blind to genotype and
doxycycline condition. The percentage of time spent freezing to
context and cue was calculated. No significant effect of gender was
observed in the B22 or B21 transgenic mice or the wild-type mice,
so the data were collapsed across this variable. Freezing to
context and cue on testing day was analyzed by two three-factor
ANOVAs (genotype, line, and doxycycline) that were used to compare
the B22 and B21 transgenic and wild-type mice. Two one-way ANOVAs
were used to compare the amount of freezing 6 weeks later to cue
and context in B21 transgenics on doxycycline, B21 transgenics
switched to water, and wild-type mice.). Memory is assessed 24
hours later by measurement of the amount of freezing (the fear
response) elicited by either the novel environment (context
conditioning) or the tone (cued conditioning). Fear conditioning
shows components of both implicit and explicit forms of learning.
The contextual version of the task is selectively impaired by
lesions of the hippocampus (Kim et al., 1992) and thus can be
viewed as an explicit form of learning, whereas both the cued and
contextual versions of the task are impaired by lesion of the
amygdala and are therefore viewed as implicit. In contrast to their
spatial memory deficit, the B22 line of mice showed normal fear
conditioning to both the cue and the context (FIGS. 10A and 10B).
Thus, even though the B22 mice are impaired in spatial memory on
the Barnes maze, they are not impaired in a second
hippocampal-dependent task (contextual fear conditioning). This
dissociation has been observed previously with constitutive
expression of the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene and may reflect the
use of different synaptic mechanisms for the storage of memory in
the two tasks (Mayford et al., 1995). In addition, these results
demonstrate that the moderate level of transgene expression in the
amygdala and striatum seen in the B22 mice (FIG. 3) is insufficient
to interfere with the implicit component of fear conditioning.
[0168] Does a higher level of expression of the CaMKII-Asp.sup.186
transgene in the striatum and amygdala affect implicit memory
storage? To explore this question, the B21 mice were studied that
showed strong expression in the lateral amygdala and striatum but
little transgene expression in the hippocampus or neocortex (FIGS.
7A-7D). The B21 transgenic mice exhibited a severe impairment in
both context and cued conditioning (FIGS. 10A and 10B). This
learning impairment was again reversed by administration of
doxycycline for 4 weeks before training.
[0169] This deficit in fear conditioning most likely arises from
expression in the lateral amygdala, a structure that has been
implicated in this form of learning by lesion studies (LeDoux et
al., 1990). However, because there are many reciprocal connections
between the striatum and the amygdala (Kita et al., 1990; Canteras
et al., 1995), one cannot rule out the possibility that the deficit
results from a functional disruption in the striatum that
secondarily alters the amygdala.
[0170] Effect on memory retrieval of CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 Expression
in the amygdala and striatum. Withdrawal of doxycycline after the
initial period of transgene suppression resulted in a reactivation
of gene expression (Table 1). Whether reexpression of the
transgene, after normal learning has occurred, interferes with
later stages of memory storage such as consolidation or retrieval
was examined. B21 mice were trained with the transgene expression
suppressed and observed robust fear conditioning. Once the animals
had learned the task, transgene expression was reactivated by
withdrawing doxycycline (FIG. 10C). After a 6-week period, the
expression of the CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene returned to the same
levels found in animals that had not received the drug (Table 1).
These mice were then examined for retention of both context and
cued conditioning and found a significant reduction in freezing
compared to B21 mice in which suppression of the transgene was
maintained (FIG. 10D).
[0171] This reduction in freezing reflects either an impairment in
memory consolidation or recall, or a deficit in performance. The
evaluation of performance deficits is critical to the study of
memory because one can only infer that memory storage is defective
once all possible defects in perception, motor performance, and
cognitive understanding of the task have been excluded. Although it
is difficult to control for all consequences of a genetic
manipulation on various components of performance, the two most
likely classes of performance variables have been examined: (i) the
ability to perceive the unconditioned stimulus, and (ii) the
ability to attend to and freeze in response to fearful stimuli (the
conditioned response). To rule out an impairment in perception of
the unconditioned stimulus (foot shock), the sensitivity to shock
was examined and found no difference between B21 transgenic and
wild-type mice, suggesting that the observed fear-conditioning
deficit did not result from a difference in the perception of the
unconditioned stimulus (Plain sensitivity was measured in B21
transgenic (n=4) and wild-type mice (n=6)). The mice were placed
individually in a mouse operant chamber with a metal grid floor and
given 1-s foot shocks of increasing intensity (for example 1, 2, 3,
mA . . . ). An experimenter who was blind to the genotype of the
mice recorded the intensity of foot shock required to elicit each
of the following three responses: startles, vocalizations, and
jumps. A t test for each response revealed no significant effect of
genotype. Next, the possibility of a defect in performance of the
conditioned response (freezing) was examined by measuring
unconditioned freezing in response to an intruder Unconditioned
freezing in the presence of an intruder was measured in B21
transgenic (n=8) and wild-type mice (n=10) in a Nalgene plastic
metabolism cage. The mice and intruder were placed in the upper and
lower chambers, respectively. The chambers were separated by a
metal grid floor. A seven-week-old male Sprague-Dawley rat served
as the intruder and was placed in the lower chamber 10 minutes
before introduction of the mouse. The amount of unconditioned
freezing occurring during the first 120 s after the mouse was
introduced was measured by an experimenter who was blind to
genotype. A t test revealed no significant effect of genotype. No
difference was found in the ability of B21 mice to freeze to an
intruder (a rat) when the transgene was expressed (FIG. 10E). Thus,
the B21 transgenic mice were able to attend to fearful stimuli and
to express a normal freezing response. Although some occult defect
in performance might have been present that was not detected, these
control experiments argue that the transgene does not produce its
effect on the perception of the unconditioned stimulus or on
performance of the conditioned response. Rather, the results
suggest that the CaMKII signaling pathway is important for some
later aspects of memory storage such as the ability to consolidate
or to recall the learned information.
[0172] Discussion. High levels of Ca.sup.2+-independent CaMKII
activity shifted the stimulation-frequency threshold for
hippocampal LTP and LTD to favor LTD (Mayford et al., 1995). This
shift in threshold is associated with an impairment in explicit,
but not implicit, memory (Bach et al., 1995). To obtain regulated
expression of this transgene in restricted regions of the forebrain
so that one could study the underlying cellular and behavioral
functions more effectively, the tTA system was used for regulated
gene expression (Burgin et al., 1990; Hanson et al., 1992).
[0173] It was found that expression of the
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286transgene altered adult synaptic plasticity and
memory formation directly, and not by effects on neuronal
development. In addition, expression of the transgene
postsynaptically was sufficient to alter the frequency threshold
for LTP induction, at least at 10 Hz. Finally, high-level
activation of CaMKII in the striatum and lateral amygdala also
interfered with implicit forms of memory.
[0174] How might an increase in Ca.sup.2+-independent CaMKII
activity alter the stimulation frequency required to produce LTP
and LTD, and how might this in turn alter learning and memory
storage? The results demonstrate that the effect of the
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene is likely mediated by changes in the
postsynaptic CA1 neurons of the Schaffer collateral pathway. A
simple mechanism for systematically shifting the frequency
threshold for LTP and LTD to favor LTD would be to reduce the size
of the postsynaptic Ca.sup.2+ signal produced during the
stimulation [(Cummings et al., 1996); however, see (Neveu et al.,
(1996)]. This could occur either through the increased
phosphorylation of particular substrate proteins of CaMKII or by
increased binding of Ca.sup.2+-calmodulin by autophosphorylated
CaMKII (Meyer et al., 1992). Independent of its detailed
mechanisms, however, the data indicate that CaMKII activation alone
may not be sufficient to produce the increase in synaptic strength
associated with LTP, as has been suggested (Lisman, 1994; Petit et
al., 1992). Rather, the level of CaMKII activation regulates the
stimulation conditions under which LTP and LTD are produced.
[0175] In this study, synaptic physiology and behavior was not
measured in the same group of animals. The expression of the
CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 transgene in the CA1 region of the B22 mice was
patchy; that is, some neurons expressed the transgene well, whereas
in other neurons expression was absent. This patchy expression
precluded an assessment of LTP in this line of mice by means of
field recordings, which sample many synapses from different neurons
in a region. However, it is assumed that in those neurons where the
transgene was strongly expressed in these mice, a shift in the
LTP/LTD frequency threshold would occur. Nevertheless, the effects
of CaMKII activation on behavior are likely a consequence of its
effect on the frequency threshold for LTP and LTD induction. That
CaMKII activation interferes with synaptic plasticity in the 5- to
10-HZ range is particularly relevant for the explicit
hippocampal-based spatial memory paradigm. Animals exploring the
space of a novel environment show a rhythmic oscillation in
hippocampal activity in the 5- to 10-HZ range (the theta rhythm)
(Bland, 1986). Changes in synaptic strength can be produced by this
endogenous activity and are thought to be necessary for storing
information about space. Synaptic plasticity in the theta frequency
range may regulate hippocampal place cells, the pyramidal neurons
(in the CA3 and CA1 subfields) whose activity is correlated with
the animals' location in the environment (O'Keefe et al.,
1978).
[0176] Several lines of evidence implicate the lateral amygdala as
the site of plasticity for fear conditioning. First, the lateral
amygdala is the first site of convergence of somatosensory
(unconditioned stimulus) and auditory (conditioned stimulus)
information in the fear-conditioning pathway (Kim et al., 1992).
Second, fear conditioning enhances the auditory-evoked responses of
neurons in the lateral amygdala (Quirk et al., 1995). Third, these
neurons exhibit robust LTP that can contribute to enhanced
auditory-evoked responses (Rogan et al., 1995). Finally, lesions of
the lateral amygdala block fear conditioning (Kim et al., 1992).
How might the expression of CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 affect fear
conditioning? Expression of this transgene in the hippocampus
increases the stimulation frequency required to produce LTP (FIG.
8). Were a similar increase in the frequency threshold to occur at
excitatory synapses in the lateral amygdala, this increase in
threshold could form the physiological basis for the observed
impairment in implicit memory storage.
[0177] Expression of the transgene in striatum and amygdala also
affected memory consolidation or recall. Models of learning
generally invoke changes in synaptic strength only during the
initial learning process (Churchland et al., 1992). Once formed,
the changes in synaptic strength are thought to remain stable and
to carry the actual memory trace. However, for some memories, such
as hippocampal-based explicit memories, the anatomical locus of the
memory changes with time during a several-week period after the
initial learning (Kim et al., 1992). Moreover, the recall of memory
typically is reconstructive--it requires a new recapitulation of
the learned experience. Both transfer and reconstruction of memory
might require an activity-dependent change in synaptic strength. If
a similar process occurs for fear conditioning in the amygdala, the
defect in retrieval observed in the transgenic mice could reflect a
defect in synaptic plasticity caused by CaMKII-Asp.sup.286
expression during this memory transfer or reconstruction phase.
[0178] The methods for regional and regulated transgene expression
that are described here represent the development of an optimal
technology for the genetic study of cognitive processes. To carry
the molecular dissection of behavior further, it will be necessary
to use promoters that are even more restricted in their pattern of
expression and to adapt this technology to the regulation of
targeted gene disruption. The methods described here should prove
generally useful and should help in elucidating the cellular and
molecular signaling pathways important for higher cognitive
processes.
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Example 3
Genetic and Pharmacological Evidence for a Novel, Intermediate
Phase of Long-Tem Potentiation (I-LTP) Suppressed by
Calcineurin
[0242] To begin to investigate the role of phosphates in synaptic
plasticity using genetic approaches, we generated transgenic mice
that over express a truncated form of calcineurin under the control
of the CaMKII.alpha. promoter. Mice expressing this transgene show
increased calcium-dependent phosphate activity in hippocampus.
Physiological studies of the calcineurin-overexpressing mice and
parallel pharmacological experiments in wild-type mice reveal a
novel, intermediate phase of LTP (I-LTP) in the CA1 region of
hippocampus. This intermediate phase differs from E-LTP in
requiring multiple trains for induction, and in being dependent on
PKA. It differs from L-LTP in not requiring new protein synthesis.
These data suggest that calcineurin acts as an inhibitory
constraint on I-LTP that normally is relieved by PKA. This
inhibitory constraint acts as a gate to regulate the synaptic
induction of L-LTP.
[0243] Introduction
[0244] Long-Lasting modification of synaptic transmission are
thought to play a role in a variety of brain functions ranging from
memory storage to the fine tuning of synaptic connections during
development. As a result, an intensive search has been carried out
in both invertebrates and vertebrates to identify the molecular
components of various forms of synaptic plasticity. In this search
there has been a central focus on two types of synaptic
enhancement: long-term facilitation in Aplysia and long-term
potentiation (LTP) in the mammalian hippocampus. Both of these
forms of synaptic plasticity last from minutes to days, depending
on the strength and number of inducing stimulus. A major theme
emerging from these studies is that protein kinases play key roles
in long-term enhancement of synaptic transmission (for review, see
Roberson et al., 1996). Thus, inhibitors of various kinases impair
the induction or maintenance of both long-term facilitation in
Aplysia and of LTP in the hippocampus (for review, see Roberson, et
al., 1996; Huang et al., 1996b; Martin et al., 1997). Further,
genetically modified mice in which genes encoding specific kinases
have been either overexpressed or deleted exhibit phenotypes which
in most cases parallel those obtained with pharmacological
inhibitors (Mayford et al., 1995a, 1997; Abel et al., 1997)
[0245] While much attention has been focused on protein kinases in
synaptic plasticity, relatively little attention has been paid to
protein phosphates. Yet, phosphates are likely to have signaling
roles in synaptic plasticity that equal in importance those of
kinases if only because of their inherently antagonistic
relationship with protein kinases. Furthermore, most cellular
models of learning postulate erasure mechanisms designed to
counteract the long-lasting synaptic enhancement thought to be
required for memory storage. Consistent with this idea, recent
experiments have shown that whereas brief high frequency
stimulation of the Schaffer collateral pathway in the hippocampus
leads to LTP, prolonged low frequency stimulation of this same
pathway results in a long-term depression (LTD) of synaptic
transmission, and experiments with pharmacological inhibitors
suggest an important role for phosphates in LTD (Mulkey et al.,
1993, 1994; O'Dell and Kandel, 1994; for review see Bear and
Abraham, 1996). Despite the potential importance of phosphatases
for synaptic plasticity, however, the study of phosphates in
hippocampus has been limited by the lack of specificity of the
pharmacological inhibitors available (for example, see Helakar and
Patrick, 1997) as well as by the long periods of preincubation
often necessary for the inhibitors to produce alterations of
synaptic function (Mulkey, et al. 1993; 1994). As a result, the
role of phosphatases in LTP in not clear. While several experiments
suggest that pharmacological inhibitors of phosphatases have no
effect, or enhance LTP (Blitzer, et al., 1995, Mulkey et al, 1993;
Muller, et al., 1995; Wang and Kelly, 1996), other studies report
that these inhibitors block LTP (Wang and Stelzer, 1994; Lu et la.,
1996a,b).
[0246] To overcome these limitations and to begin to examine more
directly the precise role of specific phosphatases in synaptic
plasticity, we have turned to a genetic approach. We have focused
our initial efforts on calcineurin (PP2B), because this enzyme is
thought to be the first step in a phosphatase cascade initiated by
Ca.sup.2+ signal through the NMDA receptor. Consistent with the
idea that the Ca.sup.2+ signal through the NMDA receptor is the
initial event for both LTP and LTD in the hippocampus,
pharmacological inhibitors of calcineurin block LTD (Mulkey et al,
1994), and have been reported by some to enhance LTP (Wang and
Kelly, 1996; but see Wang and Stelzer, 1994; Wang and Kelley, 1997;
Lu et al, 1996a,b).
[0247] Calcineurin is a calcium-sensitive serine/threonine
phosphatase that is present at high levels in the hippocampus, is
enriched at synapses, and is a heteromultimer that has both
catalytic (calcineurin A, is a 60 kD protein that exists as three
isoforms (.alpha., .beta., and .gamma.), two of which, .alpha. and
.beta., are present in brain (Kuno, et al., 1992). Once activated,
calcineurin acts on two types of protein directly and thereby
regulate specific cellular functions. Second, it can modulate an
even larger variety of substrates indirectly by its ability to
dephosphorylate inhibitor-1, a key of protein phosphatase-1, (PP1).
Inhibitor-1 is a low molecular weight protein that, when
phosphorylated, inhibits the function of PP1. Dephosphorylation of
inhibitor-1 by calcineurin activities PP1 and leads to the
dephosphorylation of a large and independent set of target
proteins.
[0248] One interesting feature of the regulatory actions of
calcineurin comes from its interactions with the cAMP-dependent
protein kinase, PKA. Calcineurin dephosphorylates and inhibits the
action of inhibitor-1 by dephosphorylating the site on inhibitor-1
that is phosphorylated by PKA (Hubbard and Klee, 1991). This
dephosphorylation enhances the ability of RII.beta. to re-associate
with and inhibit the function of the catalytic subunit of PKA
(Rangel-Aldao and Rosen, 1976). Further, calcineurin and PKA
antagonistically regulate NMDA and GluR6 glutamate receptor
function (Tong, et al., 1995; Raman, et al, 1996; Traynelis and
Wahl, 1997). Calcineurin also inhibits a novel isoform of adenylyl
cyclase (Paterson et al., 1995). Finally, calcineurin can
dephosphorylate the transcription factor CREB (Bito et al, 1996;
Liu and Graybiel, 1996), another target of PKA, thereby regulating
CRE-mediated transcription. This modulation of CREB phosphorylation
by calcineurin is likely at least partially mediated by the
inhibitor-1 cascade (Bito et al., 1996). While dephosphorylation of
CREB Ser133 by calcineurin is though to reduce CRE-mediated
transcription, calcineurin-mediated dephosphorylation of CREB at
other regulatory site may result in enhancement of CRE-mediated
transcription (Schwaninger, et al., 1995)
[0249] The interactions of PKA and calcineurin are of particular
interest in the context of LTP. Based on the requirements for
macromolecular synthesis, LTP can be divided into at least two
components: an early component (E-LTP) and a late component
(L-LTP). Delivery of a single 100 Hz train lasting one second to
the Schaffer collateral-CA1 pyramidal cell synapse elicits E-LTP, a
relatively short-lived and weak enhancement of synaptic
transmission lasting 1-2 hr that does not require protein- and
RNA-synthesis and is not dependent on PKA (for review, see Haung,
et al., 1996b; Roberson et al, 1996). By contrast, administration
of three or four trains of 100 Hz, elicit L-LTP, a more robust and
stable form of LTP lasting many hours that is dependent on the
synthesis of both RNA and protein (for review, see Haung, et- al,
1996b; Roberson et al., 1996). Further, L-LTP is blocked by
inhibitors of PKA (for review, see Huang et al., 1996b), and is
dramatically impaired in mice expressing a dominant negative form
of a regulatory subunit of PKA (Abel et al., 1997). Recent
experiments with inhibitors of phosphatases suggest that one role
of PKA in LTP in area CA1 may be to suppress the actions of either
PP1 or PP2A (Blitzer et al., 1995; Thomas et al., 1996). In
particular, Blitzer et al., (1995) found that when LTP in area CA1
is induced by strong stimuli it can be blocked by inhibitors of
PKA. However, his inhibition could be removed by preincubation of
slices with PP1/PP2A inhibitors. This led Blitzer, et al, to
suggest that under certain circumstances, PKA may "gate" LTP by
suppressing a phosphatase cascade.
[0250] To examine further the role of phosphatases in synaptic
plasticity and in memory storage, as well as to determine more
precisely the interplay between PKA and phosphatases in the
regulation of LTP, we have overexpressed in the mouse forebrain a
truncated form of calcineurin A.alpha.. Overexpression of this
transgene results in an approximately 75% increase in phosphatase
activity in hippocampus. Using these mice, we have addressed two
questions: (1) What is the role of calcineurin in the expression of
the various phases of LTP? (2) Does PKA modulate the action exerted
by calcineurin on each of these phases?
[0251] Both generic and pharmacological evidence is provided which
is consistent with the "gating" model for the actions of PKA in LTP
(Blitzer, et al. 1995). In addition, date presented in this paper
and its companion (Mansuy et al., submitted to Cell) extend this
model by demonstrating that PKA "gate" has a distinct temporal
component that represents an intermediate phase of LTP (I-LTP).
This intermediate phase is induced by multiple trains and
suppressed by calcineurin. It differs from E-LTP in requiring a
much a stronger stimulus, the activation of PKA and the suppression
of calcineurin. The intermediate phase differs from L-LTP in not
requiring protein synthesis. Our data further suggests that this
constraint on I-LTP in not requiring protein synthesis. The data
further suggest that this constraint on I-LTP imposed by
calcineurin can be relieved by activation of PKA, and that this
relief is required for the full expression of L-LTP. Thus, the over
expression of calcineurin suppresses both I-LTP and L-LTP. The
behavioral results detailed in the accompanying article (Mansuy, et
al, submitted to Cell), suggest that the temporally distinct gating
function, mediated by calcineurin, is important behaviorally and
suppresses long-term memory formation.
[0252] Results
[0253] Generation of Transgenic Mice Overexpressing a Truncated
Form of Calcineurin
[0254] To increase calcineurin-mediated phosphatase activity in the
forebrain of transgenic mice, a deletion mutant of the catalytic
subunit A.alpha. (.DELTA.CAM-AI) of murine calcineurin (O'Keefe et
al., 1992) was expressed under the control of the CaMKII.alpha.
promoter (Line CN 98, FIG. 1A; Mayford et al, 1996). The
calcineurin mutant .DELTA.CAM-AI is a fragment of the catalytic
A.alpha. subunit which lacks the autoinhibitory domain and a
portion of the calmodulin binding domain, but retains the
calcineurin B binding domain (O'Keefe et al., 1992; Parsons et al.,
1994). This deletion weakens the calcium requirement for activation
of calcineurin. Although this construct shows some Ca 2+
independent activity when expressed in Jurkat cells (O'Keefe et
al., 1992), we find that this mutant form of calcineurin requires
calcium for activation in hippocampal neurons (FIG. 11C).
[0255] Calcineurin Overexpression is Primarily Restricted to the
Hippocampus In CN 98 Mutant Mice
[0256] The CaMKII.alpha. promoter has the advantage of driving
expression of transgenes postnatally to a restricted subset of
neurons in the CNS; thus it was used to drive transgene expression
selectively in neurons of forebrain structures including
hippocampus, striatum, cortex and amygdala (Mayford, et al,. 1995a:
Kojima et al 1997). Northern blot analyses performed on adult CN98
mutant mouse forebrain revealed the expression of a 1.9 kb
transcript corresponding to the mRNA of the transgene (FIG. 11B).
The brain distribution of the mRNA was determined by in situ
hyybridization using a radiolabled oligonucleotide specific for the
transgene. The mRNA was detected in forebrain, primarily in the
hippocampus in CA1, CA2, and CA3 regions as well as in dentate
gyrus (FIG. 11D). No signal was detected in wild-type littermates
(FIGS. 11D).
[0257] To determine if the determine if the transgene mRNA was
properly translated into a functional protein, we measured
phophatase activity in crude homogenates from the hippocampus in
the presence of okadaic acid (FIG. 11C). In the extracts from
transgenic hippocampi, there was an increase of 76%.+-.12% in
phosphatase activity compared to wild-type extracts. In the
presence of the calcium chelator EGTA, the phosphatase activity in
both CN98 mutant and wild-type hippocampal extracts was virtually
abolished, with no significant difference in phosphatase activity
between CN98 wild-type and mutant extracts (FIG. 11C). Thus, CN98
mutant mice have significantly increased levels of
calcium-stimulated phosphatase activity in hippocampus.
[0258] Basal Synaptic Transmission is not Altered in Mice
Overexpressing Calcineurin
[0259] Studies with pharmacological inhibitors of phosphatases have
suggested that endogenous phosphatase activity may regulate the
basal level of synaptic transmission at the Schaffer collateral
synapses (Firgurov et al., 1993, but see Mulkey et al., 1993;
O'Dell and Kandel, 1994). In CN98 mice however, no difference in
basal synaptic transmission were found. Stimulus-response curves
obtained from CN 98 wild-type and mutant mice were not
significantly different (FIG. 12A), and the slope of a fEPSP
elicited by a given presynaptic fiber volley did not differ
dramatically between wild-type and mutant mice (average ratio of
fEPSP slope and presynaptic fiber volley amplitude expressed with
standard deviation was 3.1.+-.1.68 for CN98 wild-type and
2.9.+-.1.3 for mutant; FIG. 12B).
[0260] In addition to basal transmission mediated primarily by
non-NMDA ionotropic glutamate receptors, previous studies have
demonstrated that under certain circumstances calcineurin can
subtly desensitize NMDA receptor-mediated synaptic currents (Tong
et al., 1995; Raman et al., 1996). To determine whether
overexpression of calcineurin altered NMDA-mediated synaptic
transmission in CN98 mice, we measured NMDA-mediated synaptic
potentials in the presence of 10 .mu.M 6,7
-dinitroquinozaline-2,3-dione (DNQX) and reduced MG.sup.2+ (50
.mu.M). Under these conditions, field potentials exhibited slower
kinetics than in the absence of DNQX, and were completely
antagonized by 50 .mu.M DL-AP5, indicating that they were mediated
by NMDA receptors. Stimulus-response curves generated for both CN98
mutant and wild-type animals under these conditions were not
significantly different, suggesting that overexpression of
calcineurin does not alter the function of the NMDA receptor (FIG.
12C). IN addition, under these conditions NMDA-mediated synaptic
responses in mutant slices followed a 100 Hz, one second tetanus in
a qualitatively similar manner to wild-types (FIG. 12C inset).
[0261] Because in the CN98 mutant mice the transgene is expressed
in both CA1 and CA3 pyramidal cells, next an evaluation was done on
presynaptic function in CN98 wild-type and mutant mice. It was
begun by assessing post-tetanic potentiation (PTP, for review, see
Zucker, 1989), a short-term form of presynaptic plasticity elicited
by a high frequency tetanus (1 second, 100 Hz). In the presence of
DL-AP5 (50 .mu.M) to block NMDA-receptors, administration of a
single 100 Hz tetanus resulted in a transient enhancement of
transmission that rapidly decayed to baseline within 2-3 minutes as
previously described (Huang et al., 1995; Abel et al., 1997). As
evident in FIG. 12D, there was no difference in the peak PTP
elicited between wild-type and mutant mice (160.+-.5% peak
potentiation in wild-type, 11 slices, 5 mice: 163.+-.11% peak
potentiation in CN98 mutant, 11 slices, 4 mice). These results
suggest that overexpression of calcineurin does not markedly affect
the ability of the Schaffer collateral-CA1 synapse to respond to
controlled high frequency rates of simulation.
[0262] To obtain a second measure of presynaptic function, we
examined paired-pulse facilitation (PPF). PPF is a transient form
of presynaptic plasticity in which the second of two closely-spaced
stimuli elicits enhanced transmitter release due to residual
increases in calcium in the presynaptic terminal following the
first stimulus (for review, see Zucker, 1989). Over an interval of
20-250 msec PPF was significantly reduced in CN98 mutant compared
to wild-type mice (15 slices, 5 mice CN98 wild-type; 14 slices, 5
mice CN98 mutant; for 20 50, and 100 ms interstimulus intervals
p<0.05 for CN98 wild-type versus mutant; FIG. 12E). Thus, data
on PTP and PPF are consistent in showing that overexpressing
calcineurin produces no gross deficits in synaptic transmission, it
nevertheless does produce a clear alteration in one form of acute
presynaptic plasticity.
[0263] Overexpression of Calcineurin does Not Affect the Expression
of LTD at the Schaffer Collateral-CA1 Pyramidal Cell Synapse
[0264] To begin to study the roles of calcineurin in synaptic
plasticity, LTD induced by 15 minutes of 1 Hz stimulation at the
Schaffer collateral-CA1 pyramidal cell synapse in adult animals
from CN98 wild-types were compared to mutants. It was found that
the response to 15 minutes of 1 Hz stimulation was virtually
identical in CN98 wild-type and mutant animals (percent of baseline
fEPSP slope 30 minutes after the end of 15 minutes of 1 Hz
stimulation: CN98 wild-type 93.+-.6%, 7 mice, 11 slices; CN98
mutant 95.+-.7%, 4 mice, 14 slices). As has previously been
reported (O'Dell and Kandel, 1994; Bear and Abraham, 1996), this
stimulation protocol produced little if any LTD in hippocampal
slices from adult animals. We therefore repeated these studies in
slices from young mice (3-4 weeks old) where LTD is more robust
(Bear and Abraham, 1996). As shown in FIG. 12F, although LTD was
much more robust in these younger animals, there was still no
difference detectable between CN98 wild-type and mutant animals
(fEPSP slope percent of baseline 30 minutes after the end of 15
minutes of 1 Hz stimulation: CN98 wild-type 79.+-.8%, 2 animals, 4
slices; CN98 mutant 76.+-.7%, 4 animals, 7 slices). One possibility
consistent with these data is that calcineurin may already be
present at saturating concentrations, particularly since
calcineurin is one of the most abundant proteins in brain (Yakel,
1997). If calcineurin were present in saturating concentrations,
one would predict that further overexpression of calcineurin would
not affect processes such as LTD that are likely mediated by
activation of the phosphatase. However, overexpression might alter
synaptic processes such as LTP where the suppression of phosphatase
activity is thought to be required.
[0265] Overexpression of Calcineurin Diminishes LTP Induced by
Multiple High-Frequency Trains but not a Single Train
[0266] To begin to explore the roles of calcineurin in long-term
synaptic enhancement, LTP induced by single or multiple one-second
high frequency (100 Hz) trains was studied in wild-type and CN98
mutant mouse hippocampal slices. In slices from both CN98 wild-type
and mutant mice, administration of a single train at 100 Hz
elicited a transient form of LTP that was comparable at one hour
post-tetanus, even though immediately after the tetanus LTP was
slightly reduced in CN98 mutants (CN98 mutant: 129.+-.10% of
baseline at 1 hr, 9 slices, 5 mice; CN98 wild-type: 130.+-.6% of
baseline at 1 hr, 7 slices, 4 mice; FIG. 13A). By contrast,
administration of four 100 Hz trains separated by 5 minutes
elicited robust, nondecremental LTP in wild-type hippocampal
slices, but produced a greatly reduced LTP in mutant mice (CN98
wild-type: 169.+-.8% of baseline at 1 hr after stimulus, 173.+-.8%
at 3 hr, 7 slices, 7 mice; CN98 mutant: 139.+-.9% of baseline at 1
hr after stimulus, 118.+-.10% at 3 hr, 8 slices, 7 mice; FIG. 13B).
This defect in the CN98 mutant animals was visible immediately
after the four tetani were administered (p<0.05 at 1 minute
after the last tetanus).
[0267] Overexpression of Calcineurin does not Affect
Chemically-Induced L-LTP
[0268] The finding that LTP induced by four trains but not a single
train is reduced in CN98 mutant mice suggests that overexpression
of calcineurin may suppress the late phase of LTP. Is this
reduction due to a direct effect on downstream components of L-LTP,
or is it due to a failure to fully initiate L-LTP? To begin to
explore this question we examined L-LTP evoked by pharmacological
activation of the PKA pathway, which bypasses tetanic stimulation
in area CA!. In addition to being evoked through multiple high
frequency tetani to the Schaffer collaterals, L-LTP in area CA1 can
be induced chemically through either application of D1/D5 dopamine
receptor agonists or direct activators of adenylyl cyclase and PKA.
In wild-type slices, application of agonists of D1/D5 dopamine
receptors or the PKA agonist Sp-cAMPS, result in a slow-onset
potentiation of synaptic transmission that is sensitive to protein
and RNA-synthesis inhibitors, and mutually occlusive with L-LTP
elicited by multiple high frequency trains (Huang and Kandel, 1994;
Huang et al., 1994; Bolshakov et al., 1997). If overexpression of
calcineurin directly affects the machinery necessary to produce the
late phase, pharmacologically-induced L-LTP, that bypasses E- and
I-LTP, would be impaired in CN98-mutant mice, as is the case with
the late phase deficit in tPA-knockout mice (Huang et al.,
1996a).
[0269] We tested the ability of both the D1/D5 receptor agonist
6-Br-APB (100 .mu.M) and the PKA activator Sp-cAMPs (100 .mu.M) to
elicit slow-onset potentiation at the Schaffer collateral-CA1
synapse in CN98 mice. As shown in FIG. 13C and 13D, application of
6-Br-APB and Sp-cAMPs elicited a slowly developing increase in
synaptic transmission in CN98 mutant mice that was
indistinguishable from that seen in wild-type mice (CN98 mutant:
181.+-.41% of baseline at 3 hr after 6-Br-APB application, 5
slices, 5 mice; CN98 wild-type: 204.+-.40% of baseline at 3 hr
after Sp-cAMPS application, 6 slices, 6 mice; wild-type: 124.+-.13%
of baseline at 3 hr after Sp-cAMPS application, 7 slices, 6
mice).
[0270] Multiple Trains Elicit Two Distinct PKA Dependent Phases of
LTP: One Dependent and the Other Independent of Protein
Synthesis
[0271] In contrast to wild-type hippocampal slices where LTP
induced by a single train is much weaker than that induced by four
trains, in slices from CN98 mutants the magnitude of LTP that
follows one train and four train protocols were similar. Indeed,
the LTP following four trains in CN98 mutants is quite similar to
that evident following four trains in wild-type hippocampal slices
incubated with inhibitors of PKA (for review see Huang et al.,
1996b), as well as to L-LTP in hippocampal slices from mice
expression a dominant negative form of PKA (Abel et al., 1997).
This would make it appear as if the PKA system is defective or
reduced in its effectiveness in the mutant mice. Yet L-LTP induced
by pharmacological activation of the cAMP cascade was not
dramatically impaired in the mutant mice. How then do PKA and
calcineurin interact?
[0272] One clue to the possible interaction of calcineurin with the
PKA system in regulating LTP comes from the work of Blitzer et al.
(1995) and Abel et al. (1997) showing that application of
inhibitors of PP1 and PP2A removes the ability of PKA in LTP in
area CA1 may be to inhibit the actions of phosphatases that are
activated by tetanus. This would suggest that PKA may serve a
double function. First, it can activate the late phase directly
(FIG. 13C,13D). Second, PKA has an earlier function in turning off
an opposing phosphatase cascade. Consistent with this hypothesis,
LTP generated by multiple 100 Hz trains in rat hippocampal slices
(Huang et al., 1996b), as well as mouse hippocampal slices (FIG.
14A) decays more rapidly in the presence of PKA inhibitors such as
Rp-cAMPS or KT5720 than in the presence of the protein synthesis
inhibitor anisomycin, suggesting that in addition to mediating an
action of the late phase of LTP that requires protein synthesis,
PKA may mediate a second, perhaps earlier upstream, action that is
independent of protein synthesis (Blitzer et al., 1995; Huang et
al., 1996b).
[0273] To examine further the possibility that there are two
independent phases both dependent on PKA, we reanalyzed the effects
of anisomycin, an inhibitor of protein synthesis on LTP in mouse
hippocampal slices, now increasing the preincubation time for
anisomycin by 30 minutes. In earlier studies the concentrations of
anisomycin used were sufficient to completely block protein
synthesis in area CA1 of hippocampus (Stanton and Sarvey, 1984;
Osten et al., 1996). Nonetheless, the difference in time course of
inhibition by anisomycin and PKA inhibitors could be due to
pharmacokinetic properties of these drugs. However, even in
experiments where anisomycin (30 .mu.M) was present in the bath for
one full hour prior to tetanus (compared to the 20 minute
pretreatment with the PKA inhibitor KT5720, 1 .mu.M), the PKA
inhibitor still elicited a much more rapid decay of LTP induced by
four 100 Hz trains than anisomycin (FIG. 14A,14B). This difference
in time course between inhibitors of protein synthesis and PKA
suggest that multiple trains that elicit L-LTP seem also to induce
a novel intermediate phase of LTP that requires PKA but does no
require protein synthesis.
[0274] A Novel PKA Dependent Intermediate Phase can also be
Isolated Pharmacologically and by Varying the Number of Stimulus
Trains
[0275] In an attempt to isolate, in still another way, the novel
intermediate phase in which PKA acts to suppress a phosphatase
cascade we varied the number of tetanic trains of stimulation. One
of the characteristics that distinguishes E-LTP from L-LTP is that
weak stimuli such as a single 100Hz train elicit E-LTP but not
L-LTP. In contrast, to reliably induce L-LTP, 3-4 repeated 100 Hz
trains are required. We therefore sought to determine if an
intermediate phase of LTP could also be distinguished from these
phases based on the strength of stimulus required. We elicited LTP
with two 100 Hz trains spaced by 20 seconds. This protocol elicited
LTP that was more robust than that elicited by one 100 Hz train,
but less maintained than that elicited by four trains (FIG. 14C).
In contrast to LTP elicited by a single 100 Hz train which is not
affected by inhibitors of PKA (Huang et al., 1996), LTP elicited by
two trains was partially sensitive to the PKA inhibitor KT5720 (no
drug: 206.+-.23% of baseline at 1 hr, 5 slices, 5 ice; 1 .mu.M
KT5720: 153.+-.5% of baseline at 1 hr, 5 slices, 4 mice; p<0.05;
FIG. 14D). However, unlike L-LTP, the LTP elicited by two trains
was completely insensitive to preincubation with the protein
synthesis inhibitor anisomycin, even at time points where LTP
induced by four trains is reduced by anisomycin (FIG. 4C). These
two types of experiments reveal a novel intermediate phase of LTP
(I-LTP) exists that requires 1) a stronger stimulus than E-LTP, and
2) the activation of PKA. But unlike L-LTP, this intermediate phase
does not require protein synthesis.
[0276] Genetic Evidence for an Interaction Between PKA and
Phosphatases in Regulating a Novel Intermediate Phase of LTP
(I-LTP)
[0277] To strengthen these pharmacological attempts to delineate an
intermediate phase we turned to a genetic approach. Blitzer et al.
(1995) and Thomas et al. (1996) suggested that the protein
synthesis-independent role of PKA in LTP is to suppress the
activity of PP1 or PP2A, perhaps through phosphorylation of
inhibitor-1. Since the phosphorylation site of inhibitor-1 is
dephosphorylated by calcineurin, one would predict that PKA and
calcineurin would antagonistically regulate the function of PP1 and
thereby regulate the level of synaptic output. If this were the
case, we would predict that in mice overexpressing calcineurin the
cAMP-dependent forms of LTP in area CA1 would be defective. Indeed,
as we have seen, one train LTP, which is independent of PKA, was
not decreased in CN98 mutant mice, while PKA-dependent four train
LTP was. To examine this further, we compared CN98 wild-type and
mutant mice by examining LTP induced by two trains, which we have
shown recruits the intermediate phase without significantly
recruiting the late phase. Consistent with the idea that the
intermediate phase of LTP is antagonistically regulated by PKA and
calcineurin, LTP elicited with two trains in mutant mice was
markedly impaired (CN98 mutant: 127.+-.7% of baseline at 1 hr, 12
slices, 7 mice; CN98 wild-type: 182.+-.17% of baseline at 1 hr, 8
slices, 4 mice; p<0.05; FIG. 14E). Moreover, the LTP that
remained in the mutant mice was insensitive to PKA inhibition,
suggesting further that the function of PKA in the intermediate
phase is to relieve the actions of calcineurin (FIG. 14F).
[0278] Overexpression of the Calcineurin Transgene Restricted to
Postsynaptic CA1 Pyramidal Cells is Sufficient to Interfere with
the Intermediate Phase of LTP
[0279] The phenotype of CN98 mutant mice suggests that calcineurin
suppresses an intermediate phase of LTP. However, because the
calcineurin construct in these mice is expressed in both the
presynaptic CA3 cells as well as the postsynaptic CA1 pyramidal
cells, we cannot tell from these experiments alone where
calcineurin is eliciting its action. In addition, it is conceivable
that subtle alterations in presynaptic function, such as those
observed in PPF and PTP in these mice could contribute to the
phenotype. To investigate this possibility, as well as to verify
that the deficit in I-LTP seen is not due to an insertion site
effect, we analyzed two additional lines of mice which express the
calcineurin transgene in a more spatially restricted manner in
hippocampus. The two lines we tested, (Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273),
had the further advantage that the expression of the calcineurin
transgene is regulated by the tetracycline-controlled
transactivator (tTA) system (see accompanying article, Mansuy et
al., submitted to Cell, for details of generation and
characterization of these two lines). In contrast to line CN98, in
which the transgene is strongly expressed both in CA3 and CA1
pyramidal cells, in lines Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 the transgene is
expressed much more strongly in the CA1 postsynaptic pyramidal
cells than in the CA3 pyramidal cells (Mansuy et al., submitted to
Cell).
[0280] We first determined the effects of overexpression of the
transgene in CA1 pyramidal cells on LTP by comparing slices from
Tet-CN273 and Tet-CN279 on LTP elicited by one and two trains, and
LTP induced by four 100 Hz trains in Tet-CN279 mice. Consistent
with the results in the CN98 line, we found that overexpression of
the calcineurin transgene under the Tet-system had no effect on LTP
induced by a single train, but reduced LTP elicited by two and four
trains (FIGS. 15A,B,C; FIG. 17B). It is interesting to note that,
in contrast to the CN98 mice, where LTP was reduced immediately
after two 100 Hz trains, both Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mutant mice,
which also exhibit a deficit in two train at 1 hour, showed little
or no deficit immediately after the tetanus. Thus, the phenotype in
these lines more closely parallels the defect observed after
application of PKA inhibitors to wild-type slices than does the
CN98 line, and supports the notion that delineation of the
intermediate phase in these mutant mice is not an artifact of
reduced presynaptic function. Further, these data imply that the
site of action of the phosphate cascade is postsynaptic.
[0281] The Suppression of the Intermediate Phase of LTP by
Overexpression of Calcineurin Can Be Rescued by Application of PPI
Inhibitors
[0282] Similar to the results obtained in line CN98, we found no
detectable differences in basal synaptic transmission, NMDA
receptor-mediated synaptic potentials, and PTP in wild-type and
mutant animals from lines Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 (FIGS. 16A,B,C).
In contrast to the results in the CN98 line, however, we saw no
deficits in PPF in line Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273, consistent with
weak or absent expression of the transgene presynaptically (FIG.
16D). As discussed above, Blitzer et al. (1995) reported that
preincubation of hippocampal slices with PP1 inhibitors removed the
ability of PKA inhibitors to block LTP elicited by a strong
stimulus, suggesting that one role of PKA in LTP may be to suppress
phosphatase activity in a "gate-like manner. Because PKA regulates
PP1 function through phosphorylation of inhibitor-1, a site that is
dephosphorylated by calcineurin, it would be predicted that
preincubation of hippocampal slices from mice overexpressing
calcineurin should rescue LTP. To test this hypothesis, we
pretreated slices from Tet-CN279 mutant and wild-type mice for 30
minutes with 750 nM calyculin A, after which LTP was induced with
two 100 Hz trains. Consistent with the hypothesis that
overexpressed calcineurin is suppressing LTP by regulating the
activity of PP1, pretreatment of slices with calyculin A resulted
in LTP in mutant mice that was indistinguishable from that seen in
wild-type (FIG. 17A).
[0283] Regulated Overexpression of the Calcineurin Transgene
Suggests that the Deficit in I-LW is Not Due to Developmental
Effects of the Transgene in Hippocampus
[0284] Since the tTA system allows for regulation of transgene
expression, we next performed experiments to address whether the
phenotype observed in mice overexpressing calcineurin reflected a
consequence of the transgene on development of the nervous system
or represented an acute effect of the transgene on synaptic
plasticity. In the absence of the inhibitor, doxycycline, the
transgene is expressed in the Tet-CN279 mice (Mansuy et al.,
submitted to Cell). However, when doxycycline (1 mg/ml) is
administered in the animal's water supply, or in the ACSF (1 ng/ml)
during electrophysiological experiments, the expression of the
transgene is suppressed (Mansuy et al., submitted to Cell). We
therefore compared LTP induced by two trains in Tet-CN279 mutant
and wild-type mice on or off doxycycline. In wild-type mice either
on or off doxycycline, stimulation with two trains resulted in
robust LTP that was indistinguishable from that elicited in CN98
wild-type mice (Tet-CN279. Wt: 195.+-.13% of baseline at 1 hr, 7
slices, 6 mice; Tet-CN279 mutant mice on doxycycline: 191.+-.18% of
baseline at 1 hr, 12 slices, 7 mice; FIG. 17B). In Tet-CN279 mutant
mice off doxycycline, the response to two trains was significantly
lower than that seen in wild-type one hour after the tetanus, and
was completely reversed by doxycycline pretreatment (Tet-CN279
mutant: 147.+-.8% of baseline at 1 hr, 15 slices, 9 mice; Tet-CN279
on doxycycline: 184.+-.18% of baseline at 1 hr, 8 slices, 5 mice;
p<0.01 for Tet-CN279 mutant versus Tet-CN279 wild-type, FIG.
17B). These results clearly show that the calcineurin transgene
produces its effect on the intermediate phase of LTP
postsynaptically in the adult animal, and its effect is not
attributable to a developmental consequence of the transgene.
[0285] Discussion
[0286] In an attempt to develop a genetic approach to study the
role of phosphatases in synaptic plasticity, we have focused on
calcineurin because it appears to function in the hippocampus as
the first step in a calcium-dependent molecular signaling cascade
of phosphatases. To both limit the expression of the transgene to
forebrain, and reduce the likelihood that the phenotype produced is
a result of the presence of the transgene during development, we
have overexpressed calcineurin using the CaMKII.alpha. promoter. To
control further for a developmental role of the transgene, as well
as to control for insertion-site dependent effects, we have also
studied two other lines of mice (Tet-CN279, Tet-CN273) in which the
phenotype exhibited by CN98 mice can be reproduced and reversed by
suppression of the expression of the transgene using a regulatable
transactivator (see Mansuy et al., submitted to Cell). With these
lines we are able to show that the expression of calcineurin
essentially limited to the CA1 neurons of the hippocampus
selectively interferes with a novel phase of LTP that we isolated
independently by pharmacological means and by using a two train
stimulus protocol. Moreover this phenotype in mice overexpressing
calcineurin is due to the expression of the transgene in the adult
animal.
[0287] An Intermediate Component of LTP, I-LTP, Modulated by
Calcineurin and PKA
[0288] These experiments have revealed several important features
about the role of calcineurin and PKA in synaptic function at the
Schaffer collateral-CA1 synapse. Converging lines of evidence, both
from pharmacological studies in wild-type mice and genetic studies
with calcineurin overexpressing mice suggest that an intermediate
phase of LTP exists, and that this phase is suppressed by
calcineurin. This suggestion, that a distinct intermediate phase of
LTP exists, is based on two sets of findings (FIG. 18). First,
E-LTP and I-LTP are distinguishable in three ways: 1) E-LTP is
independent of PKA, whereas I-LTP is dependent on PKA. 2) I-LTP,
but not E-LTP, is inhibited by overexpression of calcineurin.
Finally, 3) I-LTP requires a stronger stimulus for initiation than
E-LTP>
[0289] Second, I-LTP in turn also can be distinguished from L-LTP
by two ways. First, whereas both I-LTP and L-LTP are dependent on
PKA, only L-LTP is dependent on macromolecular synthesis. Second,
while I-LTP could not be generated in mice overexpressing
calcineurin, pharmacologically induced slow-onset potentiation,
which is thought to utilize the same mechanisms as
tetanically-induced L-LTP can still be generated.
[0290] Although the temporal features suggesting that PKA
participates in a macromolecular synthesis-independent phase have
not been clearly defined in earlier studies, it has been implicit
in several of them. A number of groups have noted that an early,
apparently protein synthesis-independent component of LTP, produced
by multiple trains, requires PKA (Huang and Kandel, 1994; Blitzer
et al., 1995). For example, Huang and Kandel (1994) have found that
while LTP induced by multiple trains is rapidly inhibited by
inhibitors of PKA, it was inhibited more slowly by inhibitors of
protein synthesis. Consistent with this finding, Blitzer et al.
(1995) found that LTP induced by three trains is partially blocked
by inhibitors of PKA and that this blockade had a rapid time
course. Further, Thomas et al. (1996) found that activation of
.beta.-adrenergic receptors by isoproterenol enables subthreshold
stimuli to elicit robust enhancement of synaptic transmission at
the Schaffer collateral synapse in a PKA-dependent manner. Both the
effects delineated by Blitzer et al. and by Thomas et al. Were
interpreted to reflect a PKA-mediated suppression of phosphatase
activity. In each case the ability of PKA inhibitors to block LTP
is reduced by phosphatase inhibitors such as calyculin A and
okadaic acid.
[0291] While these earlier studies suggested that a role of PKA in
LTP is to suppress phosphatase activity, these studies could not
exclude an alternative explanation, that the phosphatase inhibitors
enhanced the actions of residual, incompletely antagonized PKA.
Moreover, although calcineurin was proposed to participate in
suppressing LTP, calyculin A and okadaic acid are ineffective in
inhibiting calcineurin at the concentrations used in these
experiments, making it unclear whether calcineurin is important in
regulating LTP. In fact, application of inhibitors of calcineurin
to hippocampal slices has yielded contradictory results, with some
studies reporting no effect (Mulkey et al., 1993; Muller et al.,
1995) or enhancement (Wang and Kelly, 1996) of LTP, while other
studies report blockade of LTP (Wang and Stelzer, 1994; Wang and
Kelly, 1997; Lu et al., 1996a,b). Using genetic approaches, we have
taken the opposite approach and demonstrated that PKA suppressed a
phosphatase cascade by showing that overexpression of calcineurin
removes the PKA-dependent component of LTP. Because this
suppression is rescued by the PP1/PP2A inhibitor calyculin A, these
data are also consistent with the proposed model that calcineurin
and PKA interact at the level of inhibitor-1, a molecule that
controls that activity of PP1.
[0292] The distinguishing features of I-LTP we report here extend
these previous results on the roles of phosphatases and PKA in LTP
by showing that overexpression of calcineurin removes the
PKA-dependent components of LTP in area CA1. Thus our findings
confirm the observation by Blitzer et al. (1995) that PKA plays an
important gating role in LTP by suppressing phosphatase activity,
and extends this idea by delineating that this role of PKA
specifically involves a competition with calcineurin, that it
represents a distinct temporal phase and that this phase has
behavioral consequences (Mansuy et al., submitted to Cell).
[0293] We would emphasize that although I-LTP and E-LTP differ in
several distinct ways, I-LTP very likely also shares a number of
mechanisms in common with E-LTP. For example, the suppression of
phosphatase activity by PKA during I-LTP, a suppression which
requires a stronger stimulus than the one 100 Hz train necessary to
produce E-LTP, may simply act to allow a more robust utilization of
mechanisms recruited for E-LTP. In addition, while there is a
temporal distinction between I-LTP, E-LTP and L-LTP in response to
repeated high frequency trains, as well as a distinction in the
strength of stimulus required to elicit these phases, these
distinctions may become blurred under other circumstances, such as
during periods in which neuromodulatory influences are recruited
(Thomas et al., 1996). Indeed, the sensitivity of I-LTP to stimulus
intensity explains why in a previous report overexpression of a
dominant negative form of PKA had no effect on LTP elicited by two
trains (Abel et al., 1997). When a stronger two train protocol was
used that elicited LTP of a magnitude comparable to the present
data, defective LTP in response to two trains was observed in R(AB)
mutant mice (D.G.W. and Abel, T. Personal communication).
[0294] Our evidence suggests that the intermediate phase of LTP is
inhibited by overexpression of calcineurin. Whether endogenous
calcineurin performs the same function remains to be determined.
However, pharmacological experiments suggest that this may be the
case (Wang and Kelly, 1996). Thus, in future experiments it will be
important to use other genetic manipulations, such as dominant
negative constructs of calcineurin knockouts to investigate this
intermediate phase further.
[0295] Interestingly, we find that several aspects of synaptic
transmission thought to be mediated by calcineurin are not altered
by overexpression of this enzyme. For example, overexpression of
calcineurin failed to modulate LTD, basal synaptic transmission, or
NMDA receptor-mediated synaptic potentials. While there are several
possible explanations for these findings, one possibility is that a
large excess of calcineurin exists in CA1 (a calcineurin reserve).
Consistent with this idea, calcineurin is one of the most abundant
proteins in brain (Yagel, 1997). If this hypothesis is correct,
overexpression of calcineurin would only be expected to affect
physiological actions that require the endogenous suppression of
phosphatase activity, since overexpression would create a larger
calcineurin reserve that might make it more difficult to completely
inhibit phosphatase activity. Consistent with this idea, we find
that overexpression of calcineurin places an inhibitory constraint
on I-LTP.
[0296] PKA is a Feed-forward Regulator of Calcium-Stimulated Kinase
Activity
[0297] Calcineurin has a particularly high affinity for
calcium/calmodulin. For example, it is at least an order of
magnitude more sensitive to calcium/calmodulin than CaMKII. It was
this feature of calcineurin which led Lisman (1989; 1994) to
propose that low-level increases in calcium, induced by low
frequency stimuli, would lead to synaptic depression through
activation of calcineurin, while high frequency stimuli would lead
to the large increases in calcium necessary to activate CaMKII and
lead to LTP (Lisman, 1994). These aspects of Lisman's model have
been supported by several studies (Malenka and Nicoll, 1993;
Cummings et al., 1996).
[0298] Our studies provide support for a further prediction of the
model. According to Lisman's model, robust LTP requires the
inactivation of phosphatases. Consistent with this idea, we find
that the phosphatases do indeed impose an inhibitory constraint on
LTP, and suggest that PKA is required to suppress phosphatase
activity sufficiently to fully elicit LTP. The calcium-sensitive
adenylyl cyclases are ideally suited to increase cAMP levels and
thereby inhibit the phosphatases only when large increases in
intracellular calcium occurs (Lisman, 1994). Indeed, activation of
NMDA receptors by robust tetanization that induces LTP increases
cAMP levels in CA1 through a calmodulin-dependent process
(Chetkovich et al., 1991; 1993). Therefore, while calcium directly
regulates the balance of kinase and phosphatase activity, the
generation of cAMP by NMDA-receptor-dependent activation of
calcium-sensitive adenylyl cyclases can favor kinases further by
inducing a PKA-dependent inactivation of the activation of PP1 by
calcineurin through phosphorylation of inhibitor-1.
[0299] Thus our data extend Lisman's model in suggesting that there
are four rather than two critical steps in the input-output
relationship for hippocampal LTD and LTP. First, weak stimuli that
elicit low-level increases in intracellular calcium result in LTD
because of more complete activation of phosphatases than kinases.
Second, moderated stimuli elicit larger intracellular calcium rises
(such as one 100 Hz train), but elicit submaximal LTP (E-LTP)
because, the kinases activated by the larger influx of calcium are
opposed by phosphatases that are not suppressed. Third, strong
stimuli (multiple 100 Hz trains for example) elicit robust LTP
(I-LTP) because the calcium-dependent activation of kinases is now
combined with a PKA-dependent suppression of phosphatases. Finally,
if the stimulus is of sufficient strength (3-4 100 Hz trains), an
additional role of PKA, that of establishing the
macromolecular-synthesis dependent late phase of LTP would be
activated. This model further explains why the slow-onset
potentiation induced by Sp-cAMPS and D1/D5 dopamine receptor
agonists is not affected by overexpression of calcineurin. These
agents bypass synaptic tetanization to induced slow-onset
potentiation, thereby avoiding activation of the calcium-dependent
calcineurin phosphatase cascade, and therefore would not need to
inhibit such an activated cascade.
[0300] Calcineurin May Act as a Shunt of Synaptically Evoked
L-LTP
[0301] We find that L-LTP induced by four 100 Hz trains is
defective in CN98 mutant mice. In an effort to determine whether
the machinery required to induce L-LTP is intact in CN98 mice we
determined whether or not we could pharmacologically elicit the
late phase in a manner that bypasses tetanus. Thus, we found that
application of activators of the PKA cascade induced a slow-onset
potentiation of transmission that was normal in CN98 mutant slices.
This slow-onset potentiation of transmission is thought to utilize
the same machinery as four 100 Hz trains because they both are PKA
and macromolecular synthesis dependent, and are mutually occlusive
(Frey et al., 1993; Huang et al., 1996b). Indeed both
tetanus-induced and pharmacologically induced L-LTP are impaired in
cases in which molecules are ablated that are predicted to be
downstream from macromolecular synthesis in the generation of
L-LTP. For example, in tPA.sup.-/- mice which exhibit a defective
tetanus-evoked L-LTP, the slow onset potentiation induced by D1/D5
agnonists and Sp-cAMPS is absent, consistent with the idea that
tPA.sup.-/- mice lack the downstream machinery necessary for
producing the late phase (Huang et al., 1996a).
[0302] As discussed above, this reduction of LTP in CN98 mutant
mice overexpressing calcineurin is likely due to a shunting of the
upstream kinases important for initiating L-LTP. Indeed, two recent
reports are consistent with this possibility. First, Liu and
Graybiel (1996) have shown that CREB phosphorylation and
transcriptional activity in striosomes is negatively regulated by
calcineurin. Further, Bito et al. (1996) have reported that CREB
phosphorylation in hippocampal neurons in culture is also
negatively regulated by calcineurin. Thus, regulation of
transcription factors thought to be necessary for long-term
synaptic modifications by calcineurin may prevent the formation of
L-LTP in cases in which PKA is not activated sufficiently.
[0303] Multiple Inhibitory Constraints Must be Overcome to Evoke
PKA-Dependent Synaptic Plasticity
[0304] Our data suggest that calcineurin acts as an inhibitory
constraint on synaptic plasticity that opposes the formation of an
intermediate and late phase of tetanus induced LTP. As we have
indicated, PKA, which countervenes the actions of calcineurin,
appears to act both as a disinhibitor of these phases and as a
direct facilitator of the late phase.
[0305] Studies in the invertebrates Aplysia and Drosophila first
revealed that the expression of learning-related synaptic
plasticity is restricted by a number of inhibitory constraints that
operate in different compartments within the cell, ranging from the
cell membrane to the nucleus (Yin et al.,1994, 1995; Bartsch et
al., 1995). For example, Bartsch et al. (1995) found that an
isoform of the transcription factor CREB (CREB-2) normally
suppresses the formation of long-term facilitation by a single
pulse of serotonin. However, removal of this constraint by
injection of antibodies or antisense oligonucleotides directed
against this transcription factor allows one pulse of serotonin,
which normally only elicits short-term facilitation to elicit
long-term facilitation. These studies imply that to induce
long-lasting enhancement of synaptic transmission, different types
of inhibitory constraints are also acting on plasticity in the
mammalian brain. In the accompanying article (Mansuy et al., 1997),
we show that excessive activation of this inhibitory constraint
interferes with memory storage.
[0306] Materials/Methods
[0307] Plasmid Construction
[0308] A cDNA encoding a truncated form of the murine calcineurin
subunit A.alpha., tCaM-AI (provided by S. J. O'Keefe) was used to
construct the expression vector for the generation of CN98 mice.
.DELTA.CaM-AI lacks the autoinhibitory domain and a portion of the
calmodulin-binding domain of calcineurin A.alpha. and was shown to
be active in Jurkat T-cells (O'Keefe et al., 1992). A 1.27 kb EcoRI
fragment of .DELTA.CaM-AI cDNA was made blunt-ended and subcloned
into the EcoRV site of pNN265 vector (provided by N. Nakanishi).
The plasmid pNN265 carries upstream from the EcoRV site, a 230 by
hybrid intron that contains an adenovirus splice donor and an
immunoglobulin G splice acceptor (Choi et al., 1991) and has a SV40
polyadenylation signal downstream from the EcoRV site. The
.DELTA.CaM-AI cDNA flanked by the hybrid intron in 5` and the
poly(A) signal was 3' was excised from pNN265 with NotI and the
resulting 2.7 kb fragment was placed downstream of the 8.5 kb mouse
CaMKII.alpha. promoter including the transcriptional initiation
site (Mayford et al., 1996) to generate the CN98 mice (FIG. 11A)
was excised from the vector by digestion with SfiI. Prior to
microinjection, all cloning junctions were checked by DNA
sequencing.
[0309] Generation and Maintenance of CN98 Transgenic Mice
[0310] The transgenic mice CN98 were generated by microinjection of
the linear constructs into fertilized eggs collected from BL6/CBA
F1/J superovulated females mated with BL6/CBA F1 males (Jackson
Laboratories; Hogan et al., 1991). Before microinjection, the DNA
fragment was gel purified then put through Elutip (Schleicher and
Schuell) for further purification. Microinjected eggs were kept
overnight at 37.degree. C. in 5% CO.sup.2 and one day later, the
two-cell embryos were transferred into pseudopregnant BL6/CBA F1/J
females. Analysis of founder mice for integration of the transgene
was performed by Southern blotting and PCR. The founder mouse was
backcrossed to C57BL6 F1/J mice to generate the transgenic line
CN98. The genotype of the offspring was checked by Southern
blotting or PCR. Transgenic mice were maintained in the animal
colony according to standard protocol.
[0311] Northern Blot Analysis
[0312] Forebrains from adult CN98 mice were collected and total RNA
was isolated by the guanidinium thiocyanate method (Chomczynski and
Sacchi, 1987). Ten micrograms of RNA were denatured in 1 M
formaldehyde, 50% formamide, 40 mM triethanolamine, 2 mM EDTA (pH
8), electorphoresed on a 1% agarose gel and transferred to a nylon
membrane (GenScreen Plus, NEN) in 0.4 N NaOH. The membrane was
hybridized to a 1.1 kb [.alpha..sup.32P]dCTP-labeled EcoRV-NotI
fragment from pNN265. The hybridization was performed overnight at
42.degree. C. in 50% formamide, 2.times.SSC, 1% SDS, 10% dextran
sulfate, 0.5 mg/ml denatured salmon sperm DNA. The membrane was
washed 10 min at room temperature in 2.times.SSC, 1% SDS then twice
15 min at 42.degree. C. in 0.2.times.SSC, 1% SDS and exposed to
film for three days.
[0313] In Situ Hybridization
[0314] Brains from adult mice were dissected out and rapidly
embedded in Tissue-Tek medium on dry ice (Miles, Inc.) Fifteen mm
cyrostat sections were placed onto gelatin-coated glass slides,
dried 15 min at 55.degree. C. then fixed 10 min in freshly prepared
4% paraformaldehyde, rinsed two times in PBS (pH 7.2) and
dehydrated through a gradient of ethanol. The sections were
rehydrated, permeabilized into 0.1M triethanolamine pH 8, 0.25%
acetic anhydride, washed two times in 2.times.SSC, rinsed in 70%
ethanol then dried. The sections were hybridized overnight at 37oC
to an OPC purified oligonucleotide
(5'-GCAGGATCCGCTTGGGCTGCAGTTGGACCT-3') derived from pNN265. The
oligonucleotide was labeled by 3' poly(A) tailing using
[.alpha..sup.35S]dATP (NEN) and terminal transferase (Boehringer
Mannheim) and the hybridization was performed in a humidified
chamber in 50% formamide, 10% dextran sulfate, 35 mM HEPES (pH 7),
1 mM EDTA (pH 8), 100 mM DTT, 400 mg/ml denatured salmon sperm DNA,
400 mg/ml poly (dA), 1.times. Denhart's, 600 mM NaCl and 10.sup.7
cpm oligonucleotide/ml hybridization solution. After hybridization,
slides were washed twice for 10 min in 2.times.SSC at room
temperature, twice for 60 min in 0.2.times.SSX at 65.degree. C.
then once 10 min in 2.times.SSC at room temperature. Slides were
dehydrated in 70% ethanol, dried and exposed to Kodak Biomax MR
film for 2-3 weeks.
[0315] Phosphatase Assay
[0316] Phosphatase assays were performed according to Hubbard and
Klee (1991). Briefly, mice were injected with 5 ml/kg of
pentobarbital and decapitated. Hippocampi were dissected out,
homogenized in 2 mM EDTA (pH 8), 250 mM sucrose, 0.1%
.beta.-mercaptoethanol and centrifuged. Supernatants were diluted
in 40 mM Tris-HCl (pH 8), 0.1M NaCl, 0.04 mg/ml bovine serum
albumin, 1 mM DTT, 0.45 mM okadaic acid (Buffer 1) and incubated at
30.degree. C. for 1 min in Buffer 1 containing 1 mM of the peptide
[.gamma..sup.32P]-RII subunit of cyclic AMP-dependent protein
kinase (PKA) and either 0.1 mM calmodulin (Sigma) and 0.66 mM
Ca.sup.2+ or 0.33 mM EGTA (pH 7.5). The peptide .sup.97[Ala]-RII
(Peninsula Labs) was labeled with 0.3 mM [.gamma..sup.32P]ATP (NEN)
using 4 mg catalytic subunit of PKA (Fluka). The reaction was
stopped with 5% TCA in 0.1 M KH.sub.2PO.sub.4 and the enzyme
activity was calculated as previously described (Klee et al., 1983)
and is expressed in nmol Pi release/min/mg protein. The protein
concentration was determined using the bicinchroninic acid protein
assay kit (Sigma). All samples were performed in triplicate.
[0317] Electrophysiology
[0318] Transverse hippocampal slices were prepared as previously
described (Huang and Kandel, 1994). Mice of either sex, aged 7-18
weeks were used. In all appropriate cases, the experimenter was
blinded to animal genotype. Hippocampi was rapidly unilaterally
dissected out on ice, and 400 mm slices were cut on a Mcllwain
tissue chopper and placed in oxygenated ACSF (NaCl, 124 mM, KCl,
4.4 mM; CaCl.sub.2, 2.5 mM; MgSO.sub.4, 1.3 mM; NaH.sub.2PO.sub.4,
1 mM; glucose, 10 mM; and NaHCO.sub.3 26 mM). The slices were then
transferred to an interface chamber where they were subfused with
oxygenated ACSF (1-2 ml/min) and allowed to equilibrate for 60-90
min at 28.degree. C.
[0319] For extracellular recordings, ACSF-filled glass electrodes
(1-3 M.OMEGA.) were positioned in the stratum radiatum of area CA1.
A bipolar nichrome stimulating electrode was also placed in stratum
radiatum for stimulation of Schaffer collateral afferents (0.05 ms
duration). Unless otherwise mentioned, test stimuli were applied at
a frequency of 1 per minute (0.017 Hz), and at a stimulus intensity
that elicits a fEPSP slope that was 35% of the maximum. Experiments
in which a significant change in the fiber volley amplitude
occurred, were discarded. Drugs were applied through the perfusion
medium. DL-APS, calyculin A, KT5720 and
R(+)-6-Bromo-7,8-dihydroxy-3-allyl-1-phenyl-2,3,4-tetrahydro-1H-3-benzaze-
pine (6-Br-APB) were purchased from Research Biochemicals
International, Natick, Mass. DL-AP5 was dissolved directly into
ACSF prior to use. Calyculin A, KT5720 and 6-Br-APB were dissolved
as 100.times. stocks in DMSO and diluted into ACSF just before use.
Sp-cAMPS (Biolog, La Jolla, Calif.) was dissolved directly in
ACSF.
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Example 4
Restricted and Regulated Overexpression Reveals Calcineurin as A
Kay Component in the Transition From Short-Term to Long-Term
Memory
[0377] To investigate whether phosphates play a role in memory
storage, hippocampal-dependent memory was assessed in transgenic
mice by expression, primarily in the hippocampus, a truncated form
of calcineurin. These mice have normal short-term memory but have a
defect in long-term memory that is evident on both a spatial task
(the spatial version of the Barnes maze) and on a visual
recognition task, thus providing genetic evidence for the role of
the rodent hippocampus in spatial as well as non-spatial memory
storage. Further on the Barnes maze, the defect in long-term memory
could be fully rescued by increasing the number of training trials.
These results suggest that the transgenic mice overexpressing
calcineurin have the capacity for long-term memory which prevents
the storage of long-term memory. Using the tTA system, transgenic
mice overexpressing calcineurin in a regulated manner were analyzed
and found that the memory defect observed is reversible and
therefore is most likely due to the transgene and not to a
developmental abnormality. Together with our electrophysiological
findings that mice overexpressing calcineurin have a defect in an
intermediate phase of long-term potentiation (I-LTP), behavioral
results suggest that calcineurin has a role in the transition from
short- to long-term memory and that there is a correlation between
this transition in memory storage and a novel intermediate phase of
LTP.
[0378] Introduction
[0379] Mice that overexpress a truncated form of the phosphatase
calcineurin in the hippocampus is described (lines CN98, Tet-CN98 m
Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN 273). These mice exhibit a specific defect in
an intermediate phase of long-term potentiation (I-LTP). There is
now increasing evidence that LTP can contribute to the storage of
declarative forms of memory (Bliss and Collingridge, 1993;
Eichenbaum, 1995; Mayford et al., 1996; Tsien et al., 1996). Like
the temporal phases of memory, LTP also is not unitary but has at
least two major phases: an early phase (E-LTP) elicited by a weak
stimulus (1 train of is 100 Hz) and that is PKA- and protein
synthesis-independent, and a late phase (L-LTP) induced by strong
stimuli (4 trains of is 100 Hz) that requires PKA and protein
synthesis (Huang and Kandel, 1994; Huang et al., 1996).
[0380] In addition to its role in the late phase of LTP, PKA is
thought to be a component of a gate that regulates the initiation
of LTP by opposing the actions of the phosphatases PP1 and PP2A
(Blitzer et al., 1995; Thomas et al., 1996). The
electrophysiological results with mice expressing a truncated form
of calcineurin are consistent with this idea and suggest that this
gate has a distinct temporal component and forms a novel
intermediate phase of LTP (I-LTP) that can be suppressed by
calcineurin and that has three defining features: (1) it requires
strong stimulation (a minimum of 2 train of is 100 Hz) (2) it
depends on PKA (3) it does not require protein synthesis.
[0381] In the present study the hippocampal-dependent memory was
assessed in mice that express a truncated form of calcineurin. It
was found that mutant mice have normal short-term memory but
exhibit a profound and specific defect in long-term memory on both
the spatial version of the Barnes maze and on a task requiring the
visual recognition of a novel object. To determine whether mutant
mice have the capacity for long-term memory, the training protocol
was intensified on the spatial version of the Barnes Maze by
increasing the number of daily training trials and found that the
memory defect was fully reversed, indicating that these mice are
capable of forming long-term memory. This rescue experiment
suggests that mice overexpressing calcineurin have impaired
long-term memory possibly due to a specific defect in the
transition between short-term and long-term memory that may reflect
a weakening of an intermediate component of memory.
[0382] Finally, it is shown that the memory defect observed was not
the result of a developmental abnormality due to the genetic
manipulation. In mice in which the expression of calcineurin
transgene is regulated by the tetracycline-controlled
transactivator (tTA) system, the spatial memory defect was reversed
when the expression of the transgene was repressed by
doxycycline.
[0383] Results
[0384] Mice Overexpressing Calcineurin are Deficient on the Spatial
Version of the Barnes Maze with one Trial a Day
[0385] A physiological analysis is described of transgenic mice
overexpressing calcineurin primarily in the hippocampus (line
CN98). This analysis revealed that CN98 mutant mice lacked an
intermediate phase of LTP between the early, protein synthesis- and
PKA-independent phase and the late, protein synthesis- and
PKA-dependent phase. As a first step in analyzing the memory
capability of these mice, the mice were tested on a
hippocampal-dependent memory task: the spatial version of the
Barnes maze (Barnes. 1979; Bach et al., 1995).
[0386] The Barnes maze is a circular maze that has 40 holes in the
perimeter and a hidden escape tunnel placed under one of the holes.
The mouse is placed in the center of the maze and is motivated to
find the tunnel to escape the open brightly lit maze and an
aversive buzzer. To locate the tunnel the mouse needs to remember
and use the relationships among the distal cues in the environment.
To achieve the learning criterion on this task the mouse must make
three errors or less across five out of six consecutive trials.
Errors were defined as searching any hole that did not have the
tunnel beneath it. Previous research has established that
performance on this task depends on the hippocampus (Barnes et al.,
1979).
[0387] CN98 mice were tested on the Barnes maze once each day (1
trial per day, 24 h intertrial interval) until they met the
learning criterion or until 40 consecutive days elapsed. Despite
the fact that they were tested for 40 consecutive days, only 25% of
the CN98 mutant mice met the learning criterion compared to 88% of
the wild-type littermates (FIG. 19A). An analysis of the mean
number of errors made across 4 blocks of 5 trials by mutant and
wild-type mice revealed that the mutant mice made significantly
more errors than wild-type mice across the last 2 trial blocks
(Main effect genotype F [1,30]=4.63 m p, 0.05 m FIG. 19B).
[0388] The impairment on the spatial version of the maze observed
in the CN98 mutant mice could be due to a deficit in spatial memory
or to a performance deficit such as a gross motor, visual or
motivational impairment. To exclude a performance deficit, another
group of CN98 mice were tested on a cued version of the Barnes
maze, a task which does not require the hippocampus. The cured
version has similar contingencies and response requirements as the
spatial version except that the position of the escape tunnel is
made visible to the mice by putting a cue behind the hole where it
is placed. Thus to locate the escape tunnel, the mice simply need
to associate the cue with the tunnel. CM98 mutant mice acquired the
task in a manner similar to that of their wild-type littermates
(FIG. 19A) and made a similar number of errors across all trial
blocks (Main effect genotype F[1,18]=2.44, p<0.05; FIG. 19C).
These data indicate that CN98 mutant mice exhibit normal motivation
and do not have any gross motor, motivational or visual
impairments.
[0389] The Spatial Memory Deficit can be fully Rescued by Repeated
Training Trials
[0390] The results from the behavioral experiments on the spatial
version of the Barnes maze which is a hippocampal-dependent task,
indicate that CN98 mutant mice have a defect in spatial long-term
memory. Have the mutant mice totally lost their ability to form
long-term memory? Or do these mice have a block in the transition
from short-term to long-term memory? Can the mice store long-term
memory when trained with a more intensive protocol?
[0391] Our electrophysiological experiments indicated that L-LTP
was reduced in CN98 mutant mice (Winder et al., 1997).
Nevertheless, a potentiation similar to L-LTP could be induced by
pharmacological agents that activate the PKA pathway. These results
suggested that the machinery for the expression of L-LTP is intact
in CN98 mutant mice and that the impairment seems to reside in an
intermediate phase, between the early and the late phase, that is
necessary for the production of the late phase (Winder et al.,
1997). Since L-LTP is thought to parallel long-term memory (Abel et
al., 1997), these results suggest that CN98 mutant mice may indeed
have the ability to form long-term memory but may be deficient in
an earlier phase of memory essential for the storage of long-term
memory.
[0392] To test whether CN98 mutant mice have the capacity for
long-term memory, the Barnes maze protocol was modified by
increasing the number of daily trials from one to four per day. The
trials were separated by a 1.5 min. intertrial interval. When
trained with four trials per day, 100% of CN98 mutant mice were
able to learn the spatial version of the Barnes maze as were 100%
of wild-type mice (FIG. 20A). A comparison of the mean number of
trials and days to criterion across the single versus repeated
trials protocols revealed that a similar number of trials was
required for the wild-type mice to learn the task whether a single
or repeated trial was given each day (FIG. 20B). However, the
number of days necessary for the acquisition of the task was much
lower with four trials per day than with only one trail a day (FIG.
20B). An analysis of the mean number of errors revealed that mutant
mice were similar to wild-type mice across all trial blocks (Main
effect genotype F[1,8]=0.5191, p>0.05)(FIG. 20C).
[0393] These results demonstrate that CN98 mutant mice have
impaired long-term memory on the spatial version of the Barnes maze
when tested with one trial per day (24 h intertrial interval) but
have normal long-term memory when tested with four trials per day
(1.5 min intertrial interval) suggesting that CN98 mutant mice have
the capacity for long term memory but have a deficiency in storing
long-term memory.
[0394] Short-Term Memory is Normal in Mice Overexpressing
Calcineurin
[0395] The demonstration that CN98 mutant mice have the capacity
for hippocampal-dependent long-term memory when trained with
repeated trials raised the question: Why do mutant mice have
defective spatial memory when trained with one trial per day? Is
short-term memory impaired? If so, can the defect in long-term
memory be explained by a defect in short-term memory? Since spatial
tasks such as the spatial version of the Barnes do not readily lend
themselves to exploring short-term memory, the CN98 mutant mice
were assessed for short-term memory using a recognition task for
novel objects. Spontaneous exploratory activity in rodents can be
used as a measure of memory and in particular, it can be assessed
to determine the recognition of a novel versus a familiar object in
an object recognition task (Aggleton, 1985; Ennaceur and Delacour,
1988). In humans, the hippocampal region has been shown to play a
role in the detection of novel visual stimuli (Tulving et al.,
1996). Patients with hippocampal lesions exhibit impaired responses
to novel stimuli (Knight et al., 1996; Reed and Squire, 1997).
Monkeys and rodents with hippocampal lesions are similarly
defective on a task requiring the recognition of novel objects
(Myhrer, 1988a,b; Phillips et al., 1988; Mumby et al., 1995).
[0396] In the recognition task for novel objects, the mice were
trained by being placed in a novel environment that contained two
novel objects and were allowed to explore the objects for 15 min.
During the testing phase, following different retention intervals,
the mice were placed back in the environment but one of the two
familiar objects was replaced with a third novel object. Mice with
normal object recognition memory show an increase in exploration of
the third novel object. This increase in exploration indicates that
information regarding the familiar object was stored during
training and further exploration of this object is no longer
needed.
[0397] Exploration was assessed during the training phase by
examining the amount of time spent exploring both novel objects and
did not observe any difference between mutant and wild-type mice
(main effect of genotype F[1,67]=1.48, p=0.228). Then, exploration
of the novel object was assessed following different retention
intervals: short-term (30 min), intermediate-term (2 hr), and
long-tern (24 hr). For this analysis, a preference index (PI) was
determined by calculating the ratio between the amount of time
spent exploring the novel object and the amount of time spent
exploring both the novel and familiar objects during the first 5
min of the testing phase (the preference index was normalized and
expressed as a percentage with PI=100% indicating no preference and
PI greater than 100% indicating preference for the novel object). A
significant difference in exploration of the novel object between
mutant and wild-type mice was observed (Main effect genotype
F[1,67]=4.03, p=0.049). Post hoc analysis using a Student t test
was performed for each retention interval and revealed that mutant
mice exhibited and increase in exploration towards the novel object
comparable to wild-type at 30 min (t=0.449, p>0.05) (FIG. 21).
This indicates that the early components of short-term memory are
intact in mutant mice. When mutant mice were tested at the 2 hr
retention interval, they exhibit a slight memory defect compared to
wild-type, although this difference was not significant (t=1.114,
p>0.05) (FIG. 21). However, when tested at the 24 hr retention
interval, mutant mice showed a long-term memory deficit that was
statistically significant. Whereas wild-type mice exhibited a
significant preference for the novel object, mutant mice explored
both objects equally (t=2.061, p<0.05) (FIG. 21).
[0398] These results provide independent evidence for a deficit in
long-term memory in CN98 mutant mice and suggest that the early
components of short-term memory or intact. These results support
the findings from the single versus repeated trial protocol in the
Barnes maze in showing that mice overexpressing calcineurin have
normal short-term memory and the capacity for long-term memory that
is strengthened with repetition (four trials protocol) and allows
long-term memory to be stored.
[0399] Calcineurin Overexpression can be Regulated by the tTA
System
[0400] To verify that the memory impairment observed in CN98 mutant
mice is not due to a developmental defect caused by the increase in
calcineurin activity during postnatal development or to an effect
of the insertion site of the transgene, spatial memory was assessed
in mice expressing the calcineurin transgene in a regulated manner
under the control of the tTA system (lines Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273,
FIG. 22A). To obtain regulated expression of the calcineurin
transgene, mice were crossed that express the tTA gene under the
control of the CaMKII.alpha. promoter (line B, Mayford et al.,
1996) with mice carrying the tTA-responsive promoter tetO fused to
a cDNA encoding the truncated form of calcineurin .DELTA.CaM-AI
(lines CN279 and CN273)(FIG. 22A). Northern blot analysis revealed
a 1.9 kb transcript corresponding to the transgene mRNA in
Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN 273 mutant mice (FIG. 22B). Further, a RT-PCR
revealed expression of transgene mRNA in Tet-CN 279 and Tet-CN 273
mutant mice that was dramatically reduced when mutant mice were
administered doxycycline for at least one week (FIG. 22B).
Phosphatase assays revealed a 112%.+-.9% and 114%.+-.5% increase in
Ca2+-dependent calcineurin activity respectively in Tet-CN279 and
Tet-CN273 mutant compared to wild-type mice (FIG. 22C). This
increase in phophatase activity in Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mutant
mice was slightly higher than that detected in Cn98 mutant mice
(76%.+-.12%, see Winder et al., 1997). In Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273
mutant mice, phosphatase activity was suppressed to wild-type
levels upon administration of doxycycline for at least one week
(FIG. 22C).
[0401] The spatial distribution of the transgene transcript was
examined by in situ hybridization on adult brain in Tet-CN279 and
Tet-CN273 mice. The transgene mRNA was detected mainly in the
hippocampus and striatum, almost no expression was detected in
neocortex. In the hippocampus, it was found primarily in area CA1
and dentate gyrus with relatively little expression in area CA3
(FIG. 23). In contrast, no signal was detected in mutant mice
administered 1 mg/ml doxycycline for at least one week or in
wild-type mice (FIG. 23).
[0402] The memory Defect can be Reversed by Repression of the
Calcineurin Transgene by Doxycycline
[0403] To assess whether the memory defect could be reversed by
repression of calcineurin transgene with doxycycline in adult mice,
Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mice were tested on the spatial version of
the Barnes maze. When performing the spatial version of the Barnes
maze, mice normally progress through three search strategies:
random, serial and spatial (Barnes, 1979; Bach et al., 1995)(FIG.
24A). The random search strategy is operationally defined as a
random localized search of holes separated by center crossings
which results in a large number of errors. The serial search
strategy is defined operationally as a systematic search of
consecutive holes in a clockwise or counter-clockwise fashion and
use of the strategy results in less errors than for the random
search strategy (FIG. 24A). The spatial search strategy, the most
efficient strategy of the three and the only one that requires that
hippocampus, is defined operationally as navigating directly to the
tunnel with three or fewer errors (FIG. 24A). During the first 5
trials, CN98 and Tet-CN279 mutant mice and their respective
wild-type mice either on or off doxycycline (FIGS. 24B and 24C)
primarily used the random strategy and both exhibited a similar
decrease in use across the remaining trial blocks (CN98: Main
effect genotype by time F[3.28]=0.5, p>0.05; Tet-CN279: Main
effect genotype F[1,54]=1.63, p>0.05). The decrease in the use
of the random strategy is paralleled by an increase in the use of
the serial search strategy in CN98 m Tet-CN279 mutant and wild-type
mice. The serial strategy was employed significantly more often by
CN98 and Tet-CN279 mutant mice during the last 2 trial blocked
(FIGS. 24D and 24E) (CN98: Main effect genotype by time
F[3,28]=5.22, p<0.01; Tet-CN279: Main effect genotype by
doxycycline F[1,54]=6.12, p<0.05). By contrast, during the last
2 trial blocks, CN98 wild-type mice, Tet-CN279 mutant mice on
doxycycline and wild-type mice employed primarily the spatial
search strategy (FIGS. 24F and 24G) CN98: Main effect genotype by
time F[3,28]=5.4, p<0.005; Tet-CN279: Main effect genotype F[1,
54]=4.64, p<0.05).
[0404] These results show that CN98 and Tet-CN279 mutant mice have
similar defect in spatial memory in that they do not employ the
spatial search strategy. When the expression of the calcineurin
transgene was repressed by doxycycline in Tet-CN279 mutant mice,
this defect was reversed. The ability to reverse the memory loss
suggests that the defect observed is probably not developmental but
most likely due to expression of the calcineurin transgene and the
resulting increase in calcineurin and its interference with memory
storage in the adult brain.
[0405] Discussion
[0406] Calcineurin Plays a Role in Hippocampal-Dependent Memory:
Transition from Short-Term to Long-Term Memory
[0407] Mice expressing a truncated form of calcineurin exhibit a
specific memory defect on the spatial version of the Barnes maze, a
hippocampal-dependent task. No defect was observed on the cued
version of the task, which is hippocampal-independent, indicating
that the defect observed on the Barnes maze was in spatial memory
and was not a motivational or sensory-motor defect. Further, the
defect in spatial memory was reversible in adult mice
overexpressing calcineurin in a regulated manner with the tTA
system. These results provide the first genetic evidence that a
phosphatase, and specifically calcineurin, has a role in the
hippocampus-based memory storage.
[0408] Although our data do not allow us to determine whether a
specific phase of memory is impaired by the overexpression of
calcineurin transgene, they allow us to being to delineate the
components of memory that are affected and to identify components
of memory that are not impaired. Our results indicate that by
increasing the number of daily trials on the spatial version of the
Barnes maze, the long-term memory defect observed in the CN98
mutant mice was fully rescued. This shows that although they
exhibit an apparent defect in spatial long-term memory, mutant mice
indeed still have the capacity to store long-term memory. The
finding that the memory deficit observed with one trial a day can
be rescued with repeated training suggest that mutant mice have a
defect in some upstream processes required for the storage of
long-term memory. These results therefore suggest that the
short-term memory trace generated by a single daily trial
disintegrates before the transition into long-term memory is
complete. When the training is intensified so that the defective
short-term trace is strengthened, long-term memory can be
achieved.
[0409] Genetic Evidence Support the Notion that the Hippocampus
Stores some Aspects of Short-Term as well as Long-Term Memory for
Spatial and Non-Spatial Tasks
[0410] Our results from the Barnes maze support those obtained on
the novel object recognition task. On this task, the mutant mice
have normal short-term memory at 30 min but have a significant
defect in long-term memory at 24 hr. The combined results on the
spatial version of the Barnes maze and the novel object recognition
task further strengthen the hypothesis that the defect that leads
to the impairment in long-term memory storage is a defect in the
process or stages whereby short-term memory is converted into
long-term memory. Since the calcineurin transgene is primarily
expressed in the hippocampus, this defect in the transition very
likely resides in the hippocampus. Whereas additional genetic
manipulations would be required to establish this idea more firmly,
the present results strengthen the important idea, well documented
in humans and in primates (Scoville and Milner, 1957; Mishkin,
1978; Zola-Morgan and Squire, 1985; Overman et al., 1990), that the
hippocampus is involved not only in the storage of long-term
memory, but also in some aspects of the storing of short-term
memory downstream from working memory. As a corollary, our
experiments provide independent evidence that the rodent
hippocampus is concerned with storing information other than space.
In addition to showing a defect in spatial memory, genetic
interference with I-LTP that is restricted to the hippocampus, also
interfered with the recognition of novel object. These findings
support the idea (Squire et al., 1992) that the rodent hippocampus
is similar to that of humans in supporting a variety of memories
that require the complex association of clues in all sensory
modalities.
[0411] The Defect in the Transition from Short-Term to Long-Term
Memory Correlates with a Defect in 1-LTP
[0412] Our behavioral and electrophysiological results suggest that
an increase in calcineurin activity in the hippocampus leads to a
defect in a transition phase of spatial memory between short-term
and long-term memory as well as to a defect in a novel intermediate
phase of LTP between early and late phase (Winder et al., 1997).
Since short-term memory and E-LTP on one hand, long-term memory and
L-LTP on the other have common properties in that short-term memory
and E-LTP do not require protein synthesis whereas long-term memory
and L-LTP depend on PKA and the synthesis of new proteins, our
results showing a similarity in the behavioral and
electrophysiological phenotypes suggest a correlation between the
transition from short- to long-term memory and the novel
intermediate phase of LTP. Our data also suggest a possible
correlation between short-term memory and E-LTP since both are
intact in our mice. Finally, our results extend further the
correlation suggested between long-term memory storage and L-LTP
(Abel et al., 1997). First, both long-term memory and L-LTP are
impaired in our mice. Second, both long-term memory and L-LTP
defects were rescued when the electrophysiological and behavioral
protocols were systematically manipulated.
[0413] The Behavioral Rescue of Long-Term Memory Defect by Repeated
Training is not seen in CREB and CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 Mutant Mice
[0414] Repeated training experiments similar to those carried out
here, have been performed in other genetically modified mice. In
CREB knockout mice, the deficit in spatial long-term memory
observed on the Morris water maze task was attenuated but not fully
rescued by increasing the number of daily trials from 1 to 12 with
1 min intertrial interval, or from 1 to 2 with 10 min intertrial
interval (Bourtchouladze et al., 1994; Kogan et al., 1996).
However, when the interval between daily trials (2 trials per day)
was increased to 60 min, performance in mutant mice was improved
(Kogan et al., 1996). Further, mice overexpressing a constitutively
active form of CaMKII (CaMKII-Asp.sup.286) were shown to have a
spatial memory defect on the Barnes maze with one trial a day. In
these mice, no improvement in spatial memory was observed when the
number of trials was increased to 10 trials per day with 1 min
intertrial interval and further, no improvement in performance was
observed within a day across the 10 trials (Mayford et al., 1995;
Bach, M, unpublished results). These results suggest that CREB
knockout and CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 mutant mice may have spatial memory
defects distinct from the defect observed in mice overexpressing
calcineurin (a comparison of performance on the Barnes and Morris
water maze is possible since both tasks involve similar cognitive
processes). Specifically, CREB mutant mice have a defect in
long-term memory although CaMKII-Asp.sup.286 mutant mice may have a
defect in the formation of the short-term memory trace.
[0415] In turn, the behavioral deficits observed in mice
overexpressing calcineurin and in CREB knockout mice provide an
interesting comparison with mice expressing a dominant negative
form of the regulatory subunit of PKA, R(AB) (Abel et al., 1997).
In both mice overexpressing calcineurin and in R(AB) mutant mice,
the PKA pathway is modified. In mice overexpressing calcineurin,
the PKA pathway is affected indirectly through an increase in
calcineurin activity which is suggested to suppress the PKA pathway
(Winder et al., 1997) whereas in R(AB) mice, the PKA pathway is
directly affected by the genetic manipulation since the activity of
PKA itself is decreased. In CREB knockout mice, the defect appears
to be further downstream from PKA since CREB has been implicated in
the activation of gene transcription (Brindle and Monminy, 1992;
Lee and Masson, 1993). Consistent with these three genetic
manipulations acting on complementary sites, all three types of
mice have a similar phenotype: short-term memory and E-LTP are
normal but L-LTP and long-term memory are impaired.
[0416] Experimental Procedures
[0417] Barnes Circular Maze
[0418] Barnes maze experiments were performed as previously
described with animals singly housed for at least three days before
the first day of experiment (Bach et al., 1995). Thirty four CN98
mice (mutant: n=17, wild-type: n=17), 58 Tet-CN279 (mutant: n=14,
on doxycycline n=20, wild-type: b=13, on doxycycline n=11) were
tested on the spatial version of the Barnes maze. Thirteen Cn98
mice (mutant: n=7, wild-type: n=6) were tested on the cued version
of the maze. Briefly, the Barnes maze is a circular platform with
forty holes at the periphery with an escape tunnel placed under one
of the holes. On the first day of testing, each mouse was placed in
the tunnel and left there for 1 min. The first session started 1
min after the training trial. At the beginning of each session,
each mouse was put in a starting chamber in the center of the maze
for 10 s and a buzzer was turned on. The start chamber was then
lifted and the mouse was allowed to explore the maze. The session
ended when the mouse entered the tunnel or after 5 min elapsed. The
buzzer was then turned off and the mouse was allowed to stay in the
tunnel for 1 min. In the spatial version of the maze, the tunnel
was always located under the same hole which was randomly
determined for each mouse. When tested with 4 trials per day, after
being removed from the escape tunnel, the mouse was placed into the
start chamber on the maze for 30 sec. Thus, each trial was
separated by an intertrial interval of 90 sec (60 sec in the escape
tunnel and 30 sec in the start chamber). In the cued version of the
maze, the mice were tested once a day until they met the criterion
of three errors or less on 5 out of 6 consecutive days or until 40
days elapsed. An error was defined as searching a hole that did not
have the tunnel beneath it. The order of holes searched and the
search strategy employed were manually recorded by an experimenter
blind to genotype.
[0419] For both the spatial, cued and repeated trials versions,
within the CN98 line, a two factor ANOVA (genotype and one repeated
measure) was employed. For the Tet-CN279 line a three factor ANOVA
(genotype, doxycycline, an one repeated measure) was employed.
[0420] Novel Object Recognition Task
[0421] Seventy-three mice from the CN98 line (mutant: 30 min n=9, 2
hr n=12, 24 hr n=15; wild type: 30 min n=9; 2 hr n=11; 24 hr n=17)
were individually assessed on the novel object recognition task.
Three mutant and three wild-type mice were excluded because they
displayed a strong preference (Preference index<60) towards the
familiar object during both training and testing. During the
training trial, mice were placed in a square novel environment
(20'' long by 8'' high) constructed from plywood and painted white
with epoxy paint. Two (of three possible) plastic toys (between 2.5
and 3 inches) that varied in color, shape and texture were placed
in specific locations in the environment 14 inches away from each
other. Two different combinations of object pairs were
counterbalanced across genotype and retention intervals. The mice
were able to freely explore the environment and objects for 15 min
and then were placed back into their individual home cages.
Following various retention intervals (30 min, 2 hr or 24 hr), mice
were placed back into the environment with two objects in the same
locations but now one of the familiar objects was replaced with a
third novel object. The mice were then again allowed to freely
explore both objects for 15 min. The objects were throughly cleaned
with a mild detergent (Roccal diluted 1:50 in water) before each
experiment to avoid instinctive odor avoidance due to mouse's odor
from the familiar object. During both training and testing phases,
an experimenter blind to genotype recorded the number of seconds
spent exploring each individual object for each minute across 15
min. A mouse was considered exploring the object when its head was
facing the object at a distance of 1 inch or less or when any part
of its body except the tail was touching the object. For the
purpose of data analysis we added the total number of seconds spent
exploring each object for the first 5 min during the testing phase
and calculated a preference index (PI). The amount of time spent
exploring the novel object was divided by the amount of time
exploring both the novel and familiar objects. The resulting value
was divided by 0.5 which represents no preference for either object
and that result was then multiplied by 100. A PI greater than 100
indicates preference for the novel object during testing. A PI
equal to 100 indicates no preference whereas a PI inferior to 100
indicates a preference for the familiar object. A two factor ANOVA
(genotype and one repeated measure) and individual Student t tests
for each retention interval were employed to assess the effect of
genotype on the PI at the different retention intervals.
[0422] Plasmid Construction
[0423] Construction of the plasmid used to generate the CN98 mice
is described in Winder et al., 1997. For the generation of
Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mice, a plasmid was constructed with a cDNA
encoding a truncated and active form of the murine calcineurin
catalytic subunit A.alpha., .DELTA.CaM-AI (provided by S. J.
O'Keefe). .DELTA.CaM-AI lacks the autoinhibitory domain and a
portion of the calmodulin-binding domain of calcineurin A.alpha.
and was shown to be constitutively active in Jurkat T-cells
(O'Keefe et al., 1992). A 1.27 kb EcoRI fragment of .DELTA.CaM-AI
cDNA was made blunt-ended and subcloned into the EcoRV site of
pNN265 vector (provided by N. Nakanishi). The plasmid pNN265
carries upstream from the EcoRV site, a 230 by hybrid intron that
contains an adenovirus splice donor and an immunoglobulin G splice
acceptor (Choi et al., 1991) and has a SV40 polyadenylation signal
downstream from the EcoRV site. The .DELTA.CAM-AI cDNA flanked by
the hybrid intron in 5' and the poly(A) signal in 3' was excised
from pNN265 with NotI and the resulting 2.7 kb fragment was placed
downstream of tetO promoter from plasmid pUHD10-3 (Gossen and
Bujard, 1992) to generate CN279 and CN273 mice (FIG. 22A). The
final 3.1 kb tetO-.DELTA.CaM-AI (FIG. 22A) fragment was excised
from the vector by NotI digestion. Prior to microinjection, all
cloning junctions were checked by DNA sequencing.
[0424] Generation and Maintenance of Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273
Transgenic Mice
[0425] The transgenic mice Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 were `generated
by microinjection of the linear construct as previously described
(Hogan et al., 1994; Windor et al., 1997). Analysis of founder mice
for integration of the transgene was performed by Southern blotting
and PCR. The founder mice were backcrossed to C57BL6 F1/J mice to
generate the transgenic lines Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273. To generate
Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mice, CN279 and CN273 F1 mice were crossed
with CaMKII.alpha. promoter-tTA mice (line B, Mayford et al., 1996)
(FIG. 22A). The offspring was checked by Southern blotting or PCT.
Transgenic mice were maintained in the animal colony according to
standard protocol. Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273 mice were administered
either water or 1 mg/ml doxycycline (in 5% sucrose) in the drinking
water at least one week before being used.
[0426] Northern Blot
[0427] Northern blot analysis was performed as described in Winder
et al., 1997. Briefly, forebrains from adult Tet-CN279 and
Tet-CN273 mice administered water or doxycycline were collected and
total RNA was isolated by the guanidinium thiocyanate method
(Chomzxynski and Sacchi, 1987). Ten micrograms of RNA were
denatured, electrophoresed on a 1% agarose gel and transferred to a
nylon membrane in 0.4 N NaOH. The membrane was hybridized overnight
at 42.degree. C. to a radiolabeled 1.1 kb EcoRV-NotI fragment from
pNN265, washed and exposed to film for three days.
[0428] RT-PCR
[0429] For RT-PCR, total RNA from forebrain was amplified according
tot he manufacturer's protocol (Gibco BRL). Briefly, cDNA was
synthesized from 3 .mu.g of total RNA with the Superscript II RT in
a 20 .mu.l reaction. Amplification was performed with Taq
Polymerase (Boehringer Mannheim) for 25 cycles as follows:
94.degree. C. for 30s, 50.degree. C. for 30s and 72.degree. C. for
1 min. The following oligonucleotides were used as primers:
5'-CCTGCAGCACAATAATTTGTTATC-3' and 5'-TAGGTGACACTATAGAATAGGGCCO-3'.
They produced a 478 by fragment containing 406 by of .DELTA.CaM-AI
cDNA and 72 bp of pNN265 sequences. Samples were run on a 2%
agarose gel then transferred onto Nylon membrane. The membrane was
hybridized to [.alpha..sup.32P]dCTP-labeled probe specific for
pNN265 sequences in the PCR product. Hybridization was performed
overnight at 42.degree. C. in 50% formamide, 2.times.SSX, 1% SDS,
10% dextran sulfate, 0.5 mg/ml denatured salmon sperm DNA. The
membrane was washed 10 min at room temperature in 2.times.SSC, 1%
SDS, twice 15 min at 42.degree. C. in 2.times.SSC, 1% SDS,
0.2.times.SSX and exposed to film.
[0430] In situ Hybridization
[0431] In situ hybridization were performed as described in Winder
et al., 1997. Briefly, brains from adult Tet-CN279 and Tet-CN273
mice either on or off doxycycline were dissected out and sectioned.
Sections were fixed 10 min in 4% paraformaldehyde, rinsed in PBS
and dehydrated. Sections were rehydrated, permeabilized, washed and
rinsed before being hybridized overnight at 37.degree. C. to
[.alpha..sup.35 S]ATP-labeled oligonucleotide
(5'-GCAGGATCCGCTTGGGCTGCAGTTGGACCT-3') specific for the transgenes.
After hybridization, slides were washed, dehydrated then exposed to
Kodak Biomax MR film for 2 to 3 weeks.
[0432] Phosphatase Assay
[0433] Phosphatase assays were performed as described in Winder et
al., 1997. Briefly, mice were injected with 5 ml/kg of
pentobarbital and decapitated. Hippocampi were dissected out,
homogenized in 2 mM EDTA (pH 8), 250 mM sucrose, 0.1%
.beta.-mercaptoethanol. Supernatants were incubated at 30.degree.
C. for 1 min in presence of the [.alpha..sup.32P]-labeled
[Ala97]-RII peptide and either 0.1 mM calmodulin and 0.66 mM
Ca.sup.2+ or 0.33 mM EGTA. The reaction was stopped and the enzyme
activity calculated previously as described (Klee et al., 1983;
1987). The activity was expressed in nmol Pi released/min/mg
protein. The protein concentration was determined using the
bicinchroninic acid protein assay kit (Sigma). All samples were
performed in triplicate.
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Example 5
Memory and Behavior: a Second Generation of Genetically Modified
Mice
[0489] [The Figures corresponding to the figure legends at the end
of this example may be found in Mayford et al., Current Biology
1997; R580-R589.]
[0490] Introduction
[0491] One of the insights of modern cognitive neural science is
that memory is not unitary but has at least two forms; implicit (or
nondeclarative) and explicit (or declarative) (Squire et al.,
1996). Explicit memory refers to the conscious recollection of
information about facts and events involving places, people
objects. Implicit memory refers to the unconscious use of
information relating to various habits and perceptual and motor
strategies, and to the memories for simple forms of learning in
Aplysia and Drosophila has provided some initial understanding of
the molecular mechanics that contribute to implicit memory storage
(Carew, 1996; Martin et al., 1996; Tully et al., 1996). By
contrasts, although is now has been four decades since Scoville and
Milner (Scoville et al., 1957)first established that explicit forms
of memory require the medical temporal lobe system of the brain,
much less is known of the mechanisms that contribute to these forms
of memory storage.
[0492] Studies of the medical temporal lobe system have been
hindered by its complexity (FIGS. 1,2). In humans, this system
consists of several interconnected cortical structure--including
multimodal association areas in the neocortex, the perirhinal and
entorhinal cortices, the dentate gyrus, the hippocampus and
entorhinal cortices, the dentate gyrus, the hippocampus and the
subicular complex--each of which is thought to be important for
aspects of explicit memory storage. To study the function of these
individual regions in human would required many patients with very
specifics brain lesions. Fortunately, recent anatomical and
behavioral studies indicate that, even though there are some
differences in the detail there is a striking similarity between
the organization of the medial temporal lobe system in human,
non-human primates, and simpler mammals such as rats and mice (FIG.
1) [Burwell et al., 1996). Moreover, even simple mammals such as
the mouse require the medial temporal system for the storage of
memory about places and objects, and this type of memory has
several of the characteristics, the integration not simply of one
but of a multiplicity of distal cues. Studying a form of explicit
memory in mice has the advantage that it makes this cognitive
process accessible to a genetic approach.
[0493] Of the several structures of the medical temporal lobe in
the mouse, the hippocampus as proven to be most suitable, and the
most accessible, target for a rigorous genetic analysis of aspects
of explicit memory storage. Each of the three major synaptic
pathways within the hippocampus (FIG. 2) is well define
anatomically and is capable of undergoing long-term potentiation
(LTP), an activity-dependent from of plasticity thought to be
important for memory storage (Bliss et al., 1973; Bliss et al.,
1993). Lesions of the hippocampus interfere with the formation of
the new spatial memories--memory for places--which is particularly
well studied in rodents (Morris et al., 1982). In the freely
behaving animal, the pyramidal cells of the hippocampus--the cells
that give rise to LTP--encode spatial locations in their action
potential firing patterns. Pyramidal cells are therefore `place
cells` that fire only when an animal occupies a particular location
in its environment (O'Keefe et al., 1971). These findings raise a
serial of questions that have been central to studies of spatial
memory during the past few years. What are the molecular mechanism
of LTP? Is LTP important for spatial memory storage? If so, how
does LTP moderate the properties of place cell to give rise to
spatial memory storage? Does it do so by acting during the initial
formation or subsequent stabilization of place fields?
[0494] In the review, we limit ourselves to two areas. First, we
look at how new techniques for producing temporally regulated and
anatomically restricted generic modification in the mouse have been
used to examine the mechanisms of LTP and the role it plays in
spatial memory. Second, we consider a complementary set of studies
in genetically modified mice that use single-unit recording of
place cell in the hippocampus. Here, the attempt is to examine the
relationship of LTP to the cognitive map of space in the
hippocampus. In this section of the review we will ask whatever LTP
is required for the information of place fields and for their
stability over time. If so, how do these properties of place cells
relate to the acquisition and maintenance of spatial memory?
[0495] A First Generation of Genetically Modified Mice
[0496] With the development of genetically modified mice, it became
possible to ask how the perturbation of a single gene affects LTP,
on the one hand, and whole animal behavior, on the other. The
initial studies of spatial memory in genetically modified animals
(Silva et al., 1992, p. 201, 206; Grant et al., 1992) took as their
starting point several important and well documented finding from
earlier pharmacological studies about the sequence of steps
involved in the induction of LTP (Bliss et al., 1993). These
studies focused on one of the key pathways in the hippocampus, the
Schaffer collateral pathway between the axons of the pyramidal
cells'of the CA3 region and the postsynaptic target cells in the
CA1 region. Earlier research had shown that, in this pathway, the
initiating step for L.P. involves the release of glutamate from the
presynaptic terminals of the CA3 neurons. This leads to the
activation of N-methyl-D-aspartate (NMDA) receptors on the
postsynaptic CA1 pyramidal cells, resulting in an influx of
Ca.sup.2+ into the postsynaptic neuron. The C2.sup.+ signal, in
turn, activates a number of second messengers kinase, including
Ca.sup.2+/calmodulin-dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII), protein
C, protein kinase A and one or more tyrosine kinase.
[0497] Building upon these pharmacological findings, homologous
recombination in embryonic stem cells was used to delate in mice
the genes encoding the a subunit of CaMKII (CaMKII.alpha.) and the
tyrosine Fyn (Silva et al., 1992, p. 201, 206; Grant et al., 1992).
In each case, deletion of the target gene led to a defect in L.P.
and to an impairment in explicit spatial memory. Thus, the initial
genetic studies not only supported the earlier pharmacological work
in showing that both CaMKII.alpha. and Fyn seem to be involved in
the signal transduction pathway important for L.P., but also showed
that interfering with L.P. affects memory.
[0498] A Second Generation Approach
[0499] Although these results illustrated the potential usefulness
of genetic approaches for analyzing synaptic plasticity and for
relating it to explicit memory, it also was clear that there were
limitations that needed to be overcome. For example, to understand
the role in memory storage of L.P. within a given component of the
medial temporal lobe system, such as the hippocampus, the generic
change must be restricted to that specific anatomical component.
The genetic change also needs to be regulated in a temporal manner,
to exclude possible developmental defects and to ensure that the
physiological or behavior phenotype reflects a change in the
functioning of the adult brain. To understand the effects of the
genetically induced alterations in L.P. on memory, the changes in
L.P. in the mutant mice must be related to changes in neuroma
activity in freely behaving animals. Within the last year,
substantial progress has been made in each of these three
areas.
[0500] The CaMKII.alpha. Promoter
[0501] Genetically modified mice come in two major varieties,
termed `knockouts` and `transgenics`. In knockout mice, the
endogenous gene of interest is specifically deleted by homologous
recombination in embryonic stem cells. The gene of interest is
therefore deleted in al cells of the body and is absent for the
entire life of the animal. Thus, conventional knockouts lack both
anatomical restrictions and temporal regulation. In transgenic
mice, an additional gene--the transgene--is added to the mouse
genome by the microinjection of DNA into the oocyte. The transgene
ma by the wild-type version of a gene--in which case the gene
product is overexpressed--or it may be a mutant version of the
gene, designed to enhance or suppress function. The transgene
carries with it an appropriate promoter element that directs the
anatomical and temporal pattern of its expression. By selecting the
appropriate promoter, the anatomical and temporal expression of the
genetic change can be controlled, at least partially. As many
molecules are likely to be used during development and learning
(Martin et al., 1996), the promoter should drive transgene
expression in the critical medial temporal lobe structures, with
the onset of expression occurring late in brain development.
Otherwise, one cannot be certain that one is examining learning and
memory specifically without interfering with development.
[0502] As first step in this directions, we isolated the promoter
of CaMKII.alpha. gene (Mayford et al., 1996), which drives
expression of a transgene specifically in forebrain structures,
especially the hippocampus. The promoter is active only in neurons
and not in glial cells (FIG. 3a), and the onset of expression
occurs at a relatively late developmental stage, usually the first
to second postnatal week (Kojima et al., 1997). As discussed below,
the anatomical sites at which gene expression occurs are restricted
further when the CaMKII.alpha. promoter is combined with other
regulatory elements such as the Crerecombinase or the tetracycline
transactivator (tTA) (Mayford et al., 1996; Tsien et al., 1996).
These features of the CaMKII.alpha. promoter have been crucial in
developing the second generation of genetic approaches to behavior
in mice and illustrate, as we discuss below, that the future
efforts will require the isolation of other promoters that are
specific for each of the components of the medial temporal
lobe.
[0503] Regional Restriction: the CaMKII.alpha. Promoter and Cre
Recombinase
[0504] The most dramatic evidence for anatomical restriction of the
CaMKII.alpha. promoter emerged from collaborative experiments with
Susumu Tonegawa and his colleagues in which we applied to the brain
the Cre-loxP system, a system developed by Klaus Rajewski's group
for B-Cell-specific gene deletion (Gu et al., 1994; Lakso et al.,
1992). This system uses the Cre recombinase, a site-specific
recombinase derived from P1 bacteriophage that catalyzes
recombination between 34 base-pair loxP recognition sequence
sequences (Abremski et al., 1984; Sauer et al., 1988). When two
appropriately oriented loxP sites flank a piece of DNA,
Cre-mediated recombination leads to the deletion of DNA between the
loxP sites.
[0505] Two different types of mice are required to obtain
Cre-loxP-mediated gene deletion. The first is transgenic mouse in
which a promoter--in this case the CaMKII.alpha. promoter--is used
to drive expression of the Cre recombinase in a specific subset of
neurons in the brain (with no effect, as loxP target sites are
absent from the genome). In the second type of mouse. LoxP sites
are introduced by homologous recombination into the endogenous gene
of interest (the gene to be "knocked out") such that they flank an
exon critical for the gene's function. The loxP sites are placed in
intros so that they do not alter the normal function of the gene
and do not produce a phenotype in the absence of Cre recombinase.
When, through mating, the Cre recombinase transgene and the
loxP-flanked endogenous gene are introduced into the same mouse,
the portion of the endogenous gene between the loxP sites will be
deleted by the Cre recombinase. This deletion will lead to a
knockout of the loxP-flanked gene only in neurons that express the
Cre recombinase. In cells that do not express Cre recombinase, the
loop-flanked gene remains intact and functional (FIG. 4a).
[0506] Surprisingly, when expression of the Cre recombinase was
driven by the CaMKII.alpha. promoter (Tsien et al., 1996), the
Cre-mediated deletion was restricted to just CA1 neurons of the
hippocampus in three of the first five lines (FIGS. 4b,c). The
molecular basis for the CA1 restriction of Cre-mediated
recombination is still unclear. Forebrain neurons outside of CA1
also expressed cre recombinase, albeit at a lower level, but this
expression did not lead to effective gene deletion Tsien et al.,
1996. This suggest that a high level of Cre expression is required
to achieve recombination, and in many line s of mice this high
threshold level of expression is achieved only in the CA1
neurons.
[0507] The CaMKII.alpha.-Cre-loxP system was then used by the
Tonegawa laboratory to knock-out the NMDA receptor 1 (R.sub.1 gene
in a CA1-restricted manner Tsien et al., 1996, p. 1327). The mutant
mice had a complete loss of LTD in Ca1 as well as a profound defect
in spatial memory, showing that NMDA receptor-mediated transmission
in the CA1 neurons of the hippocampus is critical for explicit
memory formation and strengthening the idea that L.P. in the
Schaffer collateral pathway is important from memory formation.
These results are complementary to earlier findings that selective
interference with mossy fiber L.P. between the granule cells and
the CA3 neurons has no effect on spatial memory (Huang et al.,
1995).
[0508] The CaMKII.alpha.-Cre-loop approach solves one of anatomical
restrictions--but there is still the possibility that the
impairment is spatial memory observed in these mice results from
some development abnormality caused by prolonged absence of the
NMDA R.sub.1 gene. Although this is unlikely, given the late onset
of expression of the CaMKII.alpha. promoter, we turned to a
technology for obtaining temporal regulation of transgene
expression.
[0509] Temporal Restriction: the CaMKII.alpha. Promoter and tTA
[0510] In a parallel series of experiments designed to obtain
temporal as well as anatomical control over the expression of a
transgene, we used the tetracycline-regulatable tTA system
developed by Herman Bujard's group (Gossen et al., 1992; Furth et
al., 1994). The tetracycline repressor (tetR) is a protein from the
Escherichia coli Tn10 tetracycline resistance operon that
recognizes and binds tetO, a specific DNA sequence in the operon.
The interaction of tetR with its tetO DNA target is disrupted by
low levels of the antibiotic tetracycline and its derivatives. By
fusing the tetR protein to the transcription activation domain of
VP16, a herpes simplex virus protein, Bujard produced a regulatable
eukaryotic transcription factor termed the tetracycline
transactivator (tTA). When tetO sequences, along with a minimal
eukaryotic promoter element, are placed next to the target gene of
interest, the tTA transcription factor can activate the expression
of the tetO-linked gene in eukaryotic cells. When exposed to low
levels of the tetracycline analog doxycycline, however, the binding
of tTA to tetO is prevented and transcription of the tetO-linked
gene is turned off.
[0511] To obtain doxycycline regulatable transgene expression, two
different types of transgenic mice are required (FIG. 5a). In the
first line of mouse, the CaMKII.alpha. promoter is used to drive
expression of the tTA gene in forebrain neurons (with no effect, as
there are no endogenous tetO sites). The second line of transgenic
mouse carries a tetO site linked to the particular gene of
interest, in this case a constitutively active form of
CaMKII.alpha. (CaMKII-Asp286), whose properties we consider below
(Mayford et al., 1996). When both transgenes are introduced into a
single mouse through mating, the CaMKII-Asp286 transgene is
expressed only in the forebrain neurons that express tTA. The
strong expression of the CaMKII-Asp286 gene can now be suppressed
by administering doxycycline to the mice in their drinking
water.
[0512] We selected CaMKII-Asp 286 as a transgene for study because,
as discussed above, the initial pharmacological and genetic studies
pinpointed CaMKII as a key molecular mediator of synaptic
plasticity and memory formation. Pharmacological blockade of CaMKII
prevents LTP (Malinow et al., 1989; Miller et al., 1988), and
deletion of the CaMKII.alpha. gene in mice led to a loss of LTP and
spatial memory (Silva et al., 1992, p. 201; Silva et al., 1992, p.
206). Moreover, earlier biochemical studies revealed several
interesting features of this kinase (Miller et al., 1986). In the
absence of Ca.sup.2+/calmodulin, CaMKII shows little or no
enzymatic activity. After a brief pulse of Ca.sup.2+/calmodulin,
full enzymatic activity is induced. When Ca.sup.2+ levels fall,
however, rather than returning to the low basal level of activity
as seen before the Ca.sup.2+ pulse, the enzyme remains
substantially active even in the complete absence of Ca2+.
[0513] This persistent switch from a Ca.sup.2+-dependent to a
.sup.2+Ca-independent state represents a form of biochemical memory
for the Ca.sup.2+ signal. Because LTP is, in essence, a
long-lasting biochemical alteration resulting from a brief
Ca.sup.2+ signal, Lisman (1994) suggested that the switch of CaMKII
from the Ca.sup.2+-dependent to the Ca.sup.2+-independent state
represents the biochemical mechanism of LTP.
[0514] To test Lisman's model, it became important to ask whether
turning on CaMKII was sufficient, by itself, to produce LTP. The
conversion of CaMKII from the Ca.sup.2+-dependent to the
Ca.sup.2+-independent state requires the phosphorylation of a
single amino acid residue, threonine 286 (Schworer et al., 1988;
Miller et al., 1988; Thiel et al., 1988). Mutation of this residue
to aspartate mimics the effects of autophosphorylation and produces
a Ca.sup.2+-independent enzyme (Fong et al., 1989; Waldmann et al.,
1990). The mutant CaMKII-Asp286 kinase now provides a molecular
genetic means for increasing the baseline activity of
CaMKII.alpha..
[0515] In initial studies, we used the CaMKII.alpha. promoter to
express CaMKII-Asp286 and examined the effect on LTP and memory
(Mayford et al., 1995; Bach et al., 1995). We found that the
activation of CaMKII.alpha. alone was not sufficient to switch on
LTP; rather, CaMKII.alpha. seems to act as a regulator of the
frequency of synaptic activity at which LTP or long-term depression
(LTD) will be produced. When the levels of Ca.sup.2+ -independent
CaMKII.alpha. were elevated in CaMKII-Asp286 transgenic mice to
levels greater than that produced during LTP, the stimulation
frequencies necessary to produce LTP or LTD were altered. In
wild-type animals, 1 Hz stimulation produces LTD, whereas 5 Hz or
10 Hz produce a modest amount of LTP and 100 Hz produces maximal
LTP. In the CaMKII-Asp286 transgenic mice, 100 Hz LTP is normal,
while in the 5-10 Hz range of stimulation LTD is favored over
LTP.
[0516] The shift from LTP in the wild-type to LTD in the mutant in
the 5-10 Hz frequency range is particularly interesting because
there is an endogenous 5-10 Hz oscillation in neuronal activity
(the "theta-rhythm") in the hippocampus of rodents. It has been
suggested that patterned neuronal activity in the theta-frequency
range represents the endogenous mechanism for inducing LTP in the
hippocampus during spatial learning (Staubli et al., 1987; Huerta
et al., 1995). If this idea is correct, then mice that lack LTP in
the theta frequency might show impaired spatial memory. Consistent
with this idea, analysis of the CaMKII-Asp286 transgenic mice
showed that they did not have a severe deficit in spatial memory
function.
[0517] These experiments did suffer, however, from both of the
problems discussed earlier: possible developmental abnormalities
and lack of precise anatomically restricted expression. To address
the developmental problems, we used the tTA system to express
CaMKII-Asp286 (Mayford et al., 1996). When the transgene expression
was suppressed by doxycycline, the memory impairment, evident in
the spatial memory task described in FIG. 5b, was completely
reversed--the transgenic mice performed as well as wild-type mice.
In parallel, the suppression of transgene expression also reversed
the deficit in theta-frequency LTP observed in the hippocampus.
These experiments with regulated gene expression therefore showed
that both the behavioral and electrophysiological effects of the
CaMKII-Asp286 transgene are the direct consequence of the acute
elevation in CaMKII.alpha. activity, and are not the effect of an
anomaly in neuronal circuitry caused by expression of the transgene
during development.
[0518] Combining Temporal and Regional Restriction
[0519] In the course of this work, we found that, in one line of
mice in which the CaMKII.alpha. promoter was combined with tTA,
there was little or no expression of the CaMKII-Asp286 transgene in
the neocortex (FIG. 3a). The expression was limited to certain deep
structures of the forebrain--the subiculum, striatum, amygdala and
hippocampus. Within the hippocampus, expression of the transgene
was strong in the CA1 region, which contains the postsynaptic cells
of the Schaffer collateral pathway, but was not expressed in the
CA3 region, which contains the presynaptic neurons of this pathway
(FIG. 3b).
[0520] This line of mice could therefore be used to ask whether the
CaMKII-Asp286 transgene had to be expressed in the presynaptic CA3
neurons to produce the deficit in 5-10 Hz LTP, or whether it was
sufficient to restrict expression to the postsynaptic CA1 neurons.
As the transgene expression was temporally regulatable, we could
also ask whether its expression in the CA1 neurons impaired LTP and
memory by interfering directly with normal plasticity in the adult
brain, or whether it did so through a disruption of neuronal
development. We found that reversible expression of the
CaMKII-Asp286 transgene--limited to the CA1 neurons--was sufficient
to reversibly impair LTP in the 5-10 Hz theta frequency. Moreover,
we found that expression of the transgene in the deep structures of
the forebrain was sufficient to impair spatial memory
reversibly.
[0521] Although the regional restriction achieved by combining the
CaMKII.alpha. promoter with tTA is not as limited as that achieved
by combining the CaMKII.alpha. promoter with Cre, the former is
nevertheless informative, especially in physiological terms where
we have been able to examine the relative contribution of the pre-
and post-synaptic element of a monosynaptic connection. Moreover,
this restriction, albeit limited, carries with it the great benefit
of also being regulatable, assuring that the phenotype is due to
direct effects in the adult brain and is not due to developmental
abnormalities.
[0522] Spatial Memory in the Adult Mouse: the Role of LTP and Place
Fields
[0523] The study of neuronal mechanisms of explicit memory requires
not only the production of highly defined molecular lesions in the
brain, but also an analysis of the physiological and plastic
properties of neurons in freely behaving animals when they are
challenged to learn and recall new information. Do the
modifications of connection strength induced by LTP occur naturally
in an intact animal doing a spatial memory test? If so, haw are
these modifications reflected in the firing properties of neurons
within the network that controls the behavior under study?
[0524] As first shown by O'Keefe and Dostrovsky (1971), the
pyramidal cells of the hippocampus that are stimulated artificially
during LTP experiments are, in the freely behaving rat, "place
cells" that encode spatial location in their action potential
firing patterns. A given place cell will fire only when an animal
occupies a particular location in its environment. When the animal
moves to a different location in the same environment, other place
cells fire. If the animal enters a new environment, the selection
of place cells from among the pyramidal cells changes. These new
place cells form within a matter of minutes and remain stable for
weeks (Bostock et al., 1991).
[0525] These results have given rise to the idea that the
hippocampus contains a map-like representation of the animal's
current environment, and that the firing of place cells in the CA1
and CA3 regions signal the animal's moment-to-moment location
within the environment. This map is interesting because it is the
best example in the brain of a complex internal representation, a
true cognitive map. It differs in several ways from the classical
sensory maps found, for example, in the visual or somatosensory
systems. Unlike sensory maps, the map of space is not topographic
because neighboring cells in the hippocampus do not represent
neighboring regions in the environment. Moreover, the firing of
place cells can persist after salient sensory cues are removed and
even in the dark. Thus, although the activity of a place cell can
be modulated by sensory input, in contrast to neurons in sensory
system, activity is not dominated by such sensory input (Muller,
1996).
[0526] If hippocampal neurons encode an internal representation of
space that is used to solve memory problems, how is this spatial
map altered when LTP is interfered with genetically? To address
this issue, we examined the positional firing properties of
pyramidal neurons in the hippocampus of mice expressing the
Ca-MKII-Asp286 transgene (Rotenberg et al., 1996). The experimental
arrangement for studying place cells is shown in FIG. 6. A mouse is
fitted with a recording electrode implanted in the hippocampus.
Action potential firing from a single hippocampal neuron can be
reliably recorded from the electrode for a period of several weeks.
The mouse is placed in a cylindrical arena and allowed to explore
for 16 minutes while the animal's location and the firing of the
hippocampal neuron are simultaneously recorded. As shown in FIG.
6b, the firing rate of the neuron when the mouse is at each
location in the cylinder can be plotted. These studies show that
different cells have fields in different parts of the apparatus and
that place fields are found with about equal density everywhere in
the apparatus--reinforcing the idea that the place cells are
elements of a map (Muller et al., 1987).
[0527] Sequential recordings of place cells from wild-type mice in
a familiar environment show that their fields are stable (FIG. 7).
Firing fields also form in CaMKII-Asp286 transgenic mice,
indicating that LTP in the 5-10 Hz range is not required for
hippocampal pyramidal cells to transform sensory information into
spatial information. However, the place cells of CaMKII-Asp286
transgenic mice have several deficits. First, the firing fields are
less well-defined, appearing fuzzier, with the boundaries between
high and low firing rate regions less distinct. Second, place cell
firing rates in the transgenic mice are reduced. This effect could
be a direct consequence of the abnormal generation of LTD instead
of LTP in response to stimulation in the 5-10 Hz range. Third, the
place cells in transgenic mice are unstable. When a place cell is
recorded from a wild-type mouse, and the mouse is then removed from
the recording environment for a period of time and then retested,
the place cells firing field remains remarkably stable (FIG. 7).
Thus, when the animal is repeatedly exposed to the same
environment, as in a spatial problem-solving paradigm, information
gained about that environment remains stable. However, when a
similar experiment is performed on a CaMKII-Asp286 mouse, the place
field is unstable and in a different location during different
sessions (FIG. 7).
[0528] Which defect accounts for the deficits in spatial memory? By
themselves, the less precise firing fields and the lower firing
rates of place cells in CaMKII-Asp286 transgenic mice might account
for spatial memory deficits by providing the animal with a less
precise representation of its environment. Nevertheless, given
hundreds of thousands of place cells, it is not clear that the map
of the environment would be so degraded as to be unable to support
normal navigation. However, a deficit in the stability of place
cells would severely impair an animal's ability to learn spatial
tasks--information gained on a given training session would be
lost, and on a subsequent training session it would be as if the
animal was presented with the task for the first time. If the place
cells are the building blocks of a cognitive map, the instability
of place cells would suggest that the map itself is unstable and
therefore not suitable for the efficient calculation of
navigational paths. In fact, the deficit at the neuronal level is
very similar to the memory deficits seen in human patients with
medial temporal lobe lesions. A classic example is patient H.M.,
for whom explicit information on each session of a multi-session
learning test is like the first: he does not remember that the
experiment took place previously, or even recognize the
psychologists that administered the test.
[0529] In a parallel set of studies, Wilson and colleagues (1996)
investigated the positional firing properties of CA1 pyramidal
cells in mice with a CA1-specific knockout of the NMDA R1 subunit.
These cells had stable firing fields, but the fields were larger
than those in wild-type mice and, instead of having a single peak,
the firing fields had multiple peaks. Furthermore, CA1place cells
with firing fields that overlapped did not tend to fire together in
time (in significant temporal firing covariance). Thus, up to now,
the properties of place cells have been examined in two types of
mice with genetically altered LTP in the CA3-CA1 Schaffer
collateral pathway. The results indicate that LTP is not required
for the transformation of afferent information in place fields.
Rather, LTP is needed for the fine-tuning of higher-order place
field properties such as stability and synchronous firing. It is
these features of place fields that seem to be necessary for
spatial memory.
[0530] Overall View
[0531] The study of explicit memory storage has clearly benefited
from the use of new technologies to produce genetically modified
mice. First by using the CaMKII.alpha. promoter, it has been
possible to drive transgene expression in the medial temporal
system and, in particular, in the neurons of the hippocampus.
Second, by combining the CaMKII.alpha. promoter with Cre
recombinase, it has become possible to restrict expression to the
CA1 region of the hippocampus and to delete genes in this region.
Third, by combining the CaMKII.alpha. promoter and the
tetracycline-responsive tTA transcription factor, it has become
possible to run transgenes off and on in limited groups of neurons
in the brain. Finally, the analysis of the firing properties of
place cells in the genetically modified mice adds a new dimension
to our understanding of the cellular and molecular basis of memory.
For example, a change in a single amino acid causes CaMKII, an
enzyme important in Ca.sup.2+ signal transduction, to become
constitutively active. This elevation in the activity of
CaMKII.alpha. leads to a deficit in the LTP response to 5-10 Hz
stimulation, presumably by reducing the ability to store
information at synapses between cells that signal the spatial
location of an animal. This loss of storage capacity in the spatial
map may destabilize the positional firing patterns of place cells
and cause the severe deficit in performance on spatial memory tasks
in CaMKII-Asp186 transgene mice.
[0532] The combination of new genetic techniques with analysis of
synaptic function in vitro and of neuronal firing patterns in vivo
provides a powerful set of tools for the study of mammalian
behavior--from the level of a single molecule to memory in the
whole animal. However, as the complexity of the circuitry of the
medial temporal lobe system indicates (FIG. 2), in studying
explicit memory storage we are only at the foothills of a great
mountain range. The next step is to advance these methodologies
further. One needs to be able to evaluate the contribution to
memory storage of each of the major regions of the hippocampus
(FIG. 2). Do these regions store different types of information or
do they process the same type of information, but differ in their
role in memory per se? Are some regions specialized in encoding,
consolidation or storage, while others are specialized in
retrieval?
[0533] Answers to these questions will require still further
generation of genetically modified mice using promoters to restrict
expression to the various individual regions of the medial temporal
lobe. In addition, attempts are underway to extend the tTA system
so as to make it more useful in furthering the genetic analysis of
behavior. For example, it might be possible to produce graded
changes in the level of transgene expression by administering lower
levels of doxycycline to the animals. Also, Bujard's group (Gossen
et al., 1995) has generated a mutant of the tTA molecule that
displays a reversed response to doxycycline. This reversed tTA
allows one to keep expression of a transgene off during
development, then rapidly turn it on by administering doxycycline
to the adult mouse (Kistner et al., 1996 and authors' unpublished
observations). The use of such an inducible system combined with
the Cre recombinase should provide a way for inducibly knocking
genes out in the brain. Other systems for regulating gene
expression and gene deletion are also being explored (Feil et al.,
1996; No et al., 1996). With appropriate promoters, these
technologies should prove generally useful for the selective
genetic modification of precisely defined neuronal circuits
controlling behavior. Moreover, this approach should allow one to
explore not only the individual genes but also the genetic pathways
important for LTP.
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[0582] Figure Descriptions for Example 5. Figures may be found in
Mayford et al., Current Biology, 1997, pR580-R589.
[0583] FIG. 1. A comparison of the medial temporal lobe system in
rodents, primates, and humans. At the top is shown the lateral
surface of the rat brain, the ventral surface of the monkey brain
and the medial surface of the human brain. Below each of these
views of the brain is an unfolded two-dimensional map of the
entorhinal cortex the perirhinal cortex and the parahippocampal
postrhinal cortices. As these comparisons illustrate, rodents,
primates and humans have an organization of their medial temporal
lobe structures that is largely conserved among mammals (Burwell et
al., 1996). Abbreviations: R, rostral; C, caudal; D, dorsal; V,
ventral.
[0584] FIG. 2. The flow of information in the medial temporal
memory system in primates (Burwell et al., 1996). This extended
view of the medial temporal lobe system emphasizes the importance
of the direct projects from layers II and III of the entorhinal
cortex (EC) to the CA3, CA1 and subicular regions.
[0585] FIG. 3. Regional specificity of transgene expression with
the CaMKII.alpha. promoter (Mayford et al., 1996).
Regional--distribution of the CaMKII-Asp286 transgene mRNA when
expressed under the control of the CaMKII.alpha. promoter alone (a)
or in combination with the tTA system (b). In (a), areas CA1, CA2
and CA3 and dentate gyrus (DG) in the hippocampus, and in neocortex
(Ctx), striatum (Str), Amygdala (Amy), and subiculum (Sub). In (b),
expression is found only in CA1 and dentate gyrus in the
hippocampus, and in striatum and amygdala.
[0586] FIG. 4. Regional specificity of gene knockout with the
CaMKII.alpha. promoter in combination with Cre-loxP system. (a)
strategy used to obtain CA1-restricted gene knockout. Two
independent lines of transgenic mice are generated: mouse 1 carries
the CaMKII.alpha. promoter fused to the Cre transgene; in mouse 2,
the gene of interest is flanked by two loxP sequences. The
transgene is introduced into the mouse with the loxP-flanked gene
through mating. In mice carrying both genetic modifications (mouse
1+2), the loxP-flanked sequence is deleted only in the CA1 neurons.
(b,c) Pattern of recombination in a `reporter` mouse carrying the
CaMKII.alpha. promoter-Cre transgene and a lacZ gene that is
interrupted by a stop sequence flanked by two loxP sequences. In
this reporter mouse, recombination by Cre removes the stop sequence
that prevents lacZ from being expressed. (b) Saggital section of a
28 day old mouse brain showing blue staining (X-gal) in CA1
pyramidal cells in the hippocampus that indicates recombination in
these cells (I.M.M., M. M., and E.R.K., unpublished results). (c)
High-magnification view of the hippocampus.
[0587] FIG. 5. Temporal and regional expression of the
CaMKII-Asp286 transgene with the tTA system. (a) Strategy used to
obtain forebrain-specific transgene expression regulated by
doxycycline. Mouse 1 carries the CaMKII.alpha. promoter fused to
the tTA transgene; mouse 2 carries the tetO promoter fused to the
CaMKII-Asp286 transgene. The two transgenes are introduced into a
single mouse through mating. (b) The memory task undertaken by the
mice--the spatial version of the Barnes maze. This circular maze
has 40 holes in the perimeter and a hidden escape tunnel under one
of the holes. The mouse is placed in the center of the maze and
motivated to escape by bright lights and an aversive buzzer. To
find the tunnel, the mouse needs to remember and use the
relationships among the distal cues in the environment. To achieve
the learning criterion on this task, the mouse must make three or
less errors across five out of six consecutive trials. Errors are
defined as searching any hole that did not have a tunnel beneath
it.
[0588] FIG. 6. Place cell recordings from mice (modified from
Rotenberg et al., 1996). (a) The recording setup. A mouse is
trained to run all over the floor of a 49 cm diameter cylinder.
Recordings are simultaneously made of the spike activity of one or
more pyramidal cells and of the position of the mouse's head in the
environment. Tracking is done with an overhead TV camera whose
signal if fed to a detector that digitizes the position of a light
on the mouse's head. (b) The positional firing patterns of three
place cells recorded sequentially for 16 min each from one
wild-type mouse. The circles are overhead views of the cylinder,
and color represents the firing rate in each small square region
(pixel). The cell's firing field is the darkly colored region. When
the animal's head is in this region, the cell fires approximately
10 spikes/sec. Outside the firing field, the discharge rate is
virtually zero as indicated by the yellow pixels. Thus, the
positional signal is extremely strong. Note that the firing fields
of the example cells are in different places in the environment. If
many cells were shown, it would be clear that the fields cover the
surface of the cylinder.
[0589] FIG. 7. Single place cells repeatedly recorded form
wild-type mice and CaMKII-Asp286 transgenic mice (Rotenberg et al.,
1996). The four 16 min recording sessions in the top row for the
wild-type mouse were done in two pairs. Sessions 1 and 2 were done
within 3 min of each other, without removing the mouse from the
cylinder. Similarly, sessions 3 and 4 were done within 2 min of
each other, again with the mouse continuously present in the
cylinder. Between sessions 2 and 3, however, the mouse was removed
from the cylinder for about 1 h before being replaced. Note that
the position of the firing field is constant at about 10:30 o'clock
across all four sessions. When the same time sequence of four
recording sessions is repeated in a CaMKII-Asp286 transgenic mouse,
the firing field moves from position to position between sessions.
In this example, the change in field position was greater after the
mouse was removed from and replaced into the apparatus than for
session pairs done at 2 min intervals. Over many cells, however,
the instability was about the same for session pairs separated by
minutes or by an hour.
Sequence CWU 1
1
8125PRTSIMIAN VIRUS 40 1Ser Ser Asp Asp Glu Ala Thr Ala Asp Ser Gln
His Ser Thr Pro Pro1 5 10 15Lys Lys Lys Arg Lys Val Glu Asp Pro 20
25235DNAARTIFICIAL SEQUENCEPROBE 2gtgcatctgc cagtttgagg ggacgacgac
agtat 35342DNAARTIFICIAL SEQUENCEPROBE 3gccggaaacc aggcaaagcg
ccattcgcca ttcaggctgc gc 42441DNAARTIFICIAL SEQUENCEPROBE
4gtaaccgacc cagcgcccgt tgcaccacag atgaaacgcc g 41527DNAARTIFICIAL
SEQUENCEPROBE 5cttcaggcag tcgacgtcct gtctgtg 27630DNAARTIFICIAL
SEQUENCEPRIMER 6gcaggatccg cttgggctgc agttggacct 30724DNAARTIFICIAL
SEQUENCEPRIMER 7cctgcagcac aataatttgt tatc 24824DNAARTIFICIAL
SEQUENCEPROBE 8taggtgacac tatagaatag ggcc 24
* * * * *