ABSTRACT:Male sex is a well-established risk factor for poor neurodevelopmental outcome after premature birth. The mechanisms behind this sex-related difference are unknown. The damage associated with prematurity can be mimicked in rodents by prolonged exposure to sublethal postnatal hypoxia. This chronic hypoxia leads to anatomical changes in mice that strongly resemble the loss of volume, decreased myelination, and ventriculomegaly seen in preterm newborns. However, no sex differences have been previously noted in this rodent model. We hypothesized that sex comparisons in hypoxic mice would show sex-related differences in brain volume and white matter loss in response to the same degree of hypoxic insult. Mice were placed in chronic sublethal hypoxia from postnatal day 3-11. Cortical, hippocampal, and cerebellar volumes and myelination indices were measured. We found that the male hippocampus, normally larger than the female, undergoes a greater volume loss compared with females (p Ͻ 0.05). Myelination, generally greater in males, was significantly disrupted by hypoxia in neonatal male forebrain. These results support the use of this rodent model to investigate the basis of sex-related susceptibility to brain damage and develop new sex-based neuroprotective strategies. (Pediatr Res 66: 248-253, 2009) M ore than 400,000 infants are born prematurely in the United States each year, with 20% of these being very preterm (Ͻ32 wk gestation) (1). Preterm birth can lead to abnormal brain development with subsequent physical, cognitive, and behavioral deficits (2,3). Even late preterm birth (32-37 wk gestation) may have subtle neurologic consequences (4). The numbers of children born preterm and the numbers of survivors continues to rise along with the significant costs associated with their poor neurologic outcome (5).Risk factors for these poor neurologic outcomes have been identified across multiple studies. Increased risk is independently associated with both bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) and male sex (3,6). The biology that underlies these risk factors is poorly understood. Male susceptibility is of particular interest because it implies that there may be hormonal factors that, if better understood, might provide new avenues in neuroprotective strategies.Neuroimaging has demonstrated specific reductions in brain volume (age corrected) in the cortex, hippocampus, and cerebellum plus ventriculomegaly, particularly in male children with history of BPD after preterm birth (6,7). These deficits, particularly in the hippocampus and cerebellum, often correlate with later cognitive deficits (8). Although longitudinal studies on human preterm infants suggest factors that correlate with damage, rapid progress requires animal models in which damage can be mimicked, physical and behavioral changes can be assessed, mechanisms can be unraveled, and interventions can be stringently tested.In the past decade, chronic sublethal hypoxia treatment of neonatal rodents has been developed as a model of BPDrelated preterm brain damage...

Recent studies have revealed that activation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK) may contribute to apoptosis, a cell death process involved in oxidative stress. We examined phosphorylation of ERK1/2 and oxidative stress after transient focal cerebral ischemia (FCI) using transgenic (Tg) mice that overexpress copper/zinc superoxide dismutase (SOD1). The mice were subjected to 60 min of middle cerebral artery (MCA) occlusion by intraluminal suture blockade followed by 1, 4, and 24 hr of reperfusion. Immunohistochemistry and Western blot analysis showed that phospho-ERK1 was markedly increased in the cortex within the MCA territory at 1 hr of reperfusion (p < 0.01), followed by a decrease at 24 hr in wild-type mice. Double staining with phospho-ERK1/2 and neuron-specific nuclear protein showed that phospho-ERK1/2 was primarily expressed in neurons. In SOD1 Tg mice, phospho-ERK1/2 was prominently reduced compared with nonischemic controls, shown by immunohistochemistry. Western blot analysis confirmed a significant decrease in phospho-ERK1/2 1 hr after FCI in the ischemic cortex (p < 0.005). Apoptotic-related DNA fragmentation was reduced in the ischemic cortex of SOD1 Tg mice compared with wild-type mice using a cell death assay. These results suggest that phosphorylation of ERK1/2 may be involved in apoptosis or cell death after transient FCI and that SOD1 may attenuate apoptotic cell death mediated by the mitogen-activated protein kinase/ERK pathway.

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Glucagon-expressing retinal amacrine cells have been implicated in regulating postnatal ocular growth. Furthermore, experimentally accelerated rates of ocular growth increase the number of neurons added to the peripheral edge of the retina. Accordingly, we assayed whether glucagon-expressing neurons within the retina regulate the proliferation of progenitors in the circumferential marginal zone (CMZ) of the postnatal chicken eye. We found that glucagon-containing neurites are heavily clustered within the CMZ at the peripheral edge of the retina. Many of these neurites originate from a cell type that is distinct from other types of retinal neurons, which we termed large glucagon-expressing neurons (LGENs). The LGENs are immunoreactive for glucagon and glucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP1), have a unipolar morphology, produce an axon that projects into the CMZ, and are found only in ventral regions of the retina. In dorsal regions of the retina, a smaller version of the LGENs densely ramifies neurites in the CMZ. Intraocular injections of glucagon or GLP1 suppressed the proliferation of progenitors in the CMZ, whereas a glucagon-receptor antagonist promoted proliferation. In addition, we found that glucagon, GLP1, and glucagon antagonist influenced the number of progenitors in the CMZ. We conclude that the LGENs may convey visual information to the CMZ to control the addition of new cells to the edge of the retina. We propose that glucagon/GLP1 released from LGENs acts in opposition to insulin (or insulin-like growth factor) to regulate precisely the proliferation of retinal progenitors in the CMZ.

Purpose To characterize a canine model of autosomal recessive RP due to a PDE6A gene mutation. Methods Affected and breed- and age-matched control puppies were studied by electroretinography (ERG), light and electron microscopy, immunohistochemistry and by assay for retinal PDE6 levels and enzymatic activity. Results The mutant puppies failed to develop normal rod-mediated ERG responses and had reduced light-adapted a-wave amplitudes from an early age. The residual ERG waveforms originated primarily from cone-driven responses. Development of photoreceptor outer segments was halted and rod cells were lost by apoptosis. Immunohistochemistry demonstrated a marked reduction in rod-opsin immunostaining outer segments and relative preservation of cones early in the disease process. With exception of rod bipolar cells that appeared to be reduced in number relatively early in the disease process other inner retinal cells were preserved in the early stages of the disease although there was marked and early activation of Müller glia. Western blotting showed that the PDE6A mutation not only resulted in a lack of PDE6A protein but the affected retinas also lacked the other PDE6 subunits, suggesting expression of PDE6A is required for normal expression of PDE6B and PDE6G. Affected retinas lacked PDE6 enzymatic activity. Conclusions This represents the first characterization of a PDE6A model of autosomal recessive retinitis pigmentosa and the PDE6A mutant dog shows promise as a large animal model for investigation of therapies to rescue mutant rod photoreceptors and to preserve cone photoreceptors in the face a rapid loss of rod cells.