In utero and Lactational Exposure to Acetamiprid Induces Abnormalities in Socio-Sexual and Anxiety-Related Behaviors of Male Mice

The basal forebrain cholinergic complex comprising medial septum, horizontal and vertical diagonal band of Broca, and nucleus basalis of Meynert provides the mayor cholinergic projections to the cerebral cortex and hippocampus. The cholinergic neurons of this complex have been assumed to undergo moderate degenerative changes during aging, resulting in cholinergic hypofunction that has been related to the progressing memory deficits with aging. However, the previous view of significant cholinergic cell loss during aging has been challenged. Neuronal cell loss was found predominantly in pathological aging, such as Alzheimer's disease, while normal aging is accompanied by a gradual loss of cholinergic function caused by dendritic, synaptic, and axonal degeneration as well as a decrease in trophic support. As a consequence, decrements in gene expression, impairments in intracellular signaling, and cytoskeletal transport may mediate cholinergic cell atrophy finally leading to the known age-related functional decline in the brain including aging-associated cognitive impairments. However, in pathological situations associated with cognitive deficits, such as Parkinsons's disease, Down-syndrome, progressive supranuclear palsy, Jakob-Creutzfeld disease, Korsakoff's syndrome, traumatic brain injury, significant degenerations of basal forebrain cholinergic cells have been observed. In presenile (early onset), and in the advanced stages of late-onset Alzheimer's disease (AD), a severe loss of cortical cholinergic innervation has extensively been documented. In contrast, in patients with mild cognitive impairment (MCI, a prodromal stage of AD), and early forms of AD, apparently no cholinergic neurodegeneration but a loss of cholinergic function occurs. In particular imbalances in the expression of NGF, its precursor proNGF, the high and low NGF receptors, trkA and p75NTR, respectively, changes in acetylcholine release, high-affinity choline uptake, as well as alterations in muscarinic and nicotinic acetylcholine receptor expression may contribute to the cholinergic dysfunction. These observations support the suggestion of a key role of the cholinergic system in the functional processes that lead to AD. Malfunction of the cholinergic system may be tackled pharmacologically by intervening in cholinergic as well as neurotrophic signaling cascades that have been shown to ameliorate the cholinergic deficit at early stages of the disease, and slow-down the progression. However, in contrast to many other, dementing disorders, in AD the cholinergic dysfunctions are accompanied by the occurrence of two major histopathological hallmarks such as β-amyloid plaques and neurofibrillary tangles, provoking the question whether they play a particular role in inducing or mediating cholinergic dysfunction in AD. Indeed, there is abundant evidence that β-amyloid may trigger cholinergic dysfunction through action on α7 nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, affecting NGF signaling, mediating tau phosphorylation, interacting with acetylcholinesterase, and specifically affecting the proteome in cholinergic neurons. Therefore, an early onset of an anti β-amyloid strategy may additionally be potential in preventing aging-associated cholinergic deficits and cognitive impairments. Copyright © 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Unchecked aggression and violence exact a significant toll on human societies. Aggression is an umbrella term for behaviours that are intended to inflict harm. These behaviours evolved as adaptations to deal with competition, but when expressed out of context, they can have destructive consequences. Uncontrolled aggression has several components, such as impaired recognition of social cues and enhanced impulsivity. Molecular approaches to the study of aggression have revealed biological signals that mediate the components of aggressive behaviour. These signals may provide targets for therapeutic intervention for individuals with extreme aggressive outbursts. This Review summarizes the complex interactions between genes, biological signals, neural circuits and the environment that influence the development and expression of aggressive behaviour.

Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors (nAChRs) regulate critical aspects of brain maturation during the prenatal, early postnatal, and adolescent periods. During these developmental windows, nAChRs are often transiently upregulated or change subunit composition in those neural structures that are undergoing major phases of differentiation and synaptogenesis, and are sensitive to environmental stimuli. Nicotine exposure, most often via tobacco smoke, but increasingly via nicotine replacement therapy, has been shown to have unique effects on the developing human brain. Consistent with a dynamic developmental role for acetylcholine, exogenous nicotine produces effects that are unique to the period of exposure and that impact the developing structures regulated by acetylcholine at that time. Here we present a review of the evidence, available from both the clinical literature and preclinical animal models, which suggests that the diverse effects of nicotine exposure are best evaluated in the context of regional and temporal expression patterns of nAChRs during sensitive maturational periods, and disruption of the normal developmental influences of acetylcholine. We present evidence that nicotine interferes with catecholamine and brainstem autonomic nuclei development during the prenatal period of the rodent (equivalent to first and second trimester of the human), alters the neocortex, hippocampus, and cerebellum during the early postnatal period (third trimester of the human), and influences limbic system and late monoamine maturation during adolescence.