Trans-synaptic activation of gene expression is linked to long-term plastic adaptations in the nervous system. To examine the molecular program induced by synaptic activity, we have employed molecular cloning techniques to identify an immediate early gene that is rapidly induced in the brain. We here report the entire nucleotide sequence of the cDNA, which encodes an open reading frame of 396 amino acids. Within the hippocampus, constitutive expression was low. Basal levels of expression in the cortex were high but can be markedly reduced by blockade of N-methyl-D-aspartate receptors. By contrast, synaptic activity induced by convulsive seizures increased mRNA levels in neurons of the cortex and hippocampus. High-frequency stimulation of the perforant path resulted in long-term potentiation and a spatially confined dramatic increase in the level of mRNA in the granule cells of the ipsilateral dentate gyrus. Transcripts were localized to the soma and to the dendrites of the granule cells. The dendritic localization of the transcripts offers the potential for local synthesis of the protein at activated postsynaptic sites and may underlie synapse-specific modifications during longterm plastic events.Activity-dependent alterations of neuronal connectivity are characteristic of plastic events in the nervous system. Plasticity is associated with physiological processes such as learning and memory as well as neuropathological states, including epilepsy. Seizure episodes set in motion a cascade of events that include gene expression, sprouting of fibers, and the establishment of new synaptic contacts (1). These long-lasting alterations are reminiscent of changes that occur during long-term potentiation (LTP) of synaptic transmission in the mammalian brain. LTP is an activity-dependent and persistent enhancement of synaptic efficacy that may underlie certain forms of long-term memory (2, 3). In both invertebrates and vertebrates, longterm memory differs from short-term memory in that it requires RNA and protein synthesis (4, 5). As is the case for memory in the intact animal, LTP is blocked by inhibitors of RNA and protein synthesis (6-9). Attention therefore has been focused on identifying activity-induced genes. In invertebrates, behavioral training elicits changes in the level of specific mRNAs in cells involved in learning (10, 11). In mammalian brain and spinal chord neurons, a variety of physiological and pathological stimuli induce rapid and transient activation of immediate early genes (IEGs) (12). Many of the IEGs encode transcription factors that may control the expression of downstream effector genes (13-15). More recent studies have identified genes that may themselves have effector function with the potential to quickly promote long-term alterations in neuronal phenotype during plastic processes, The publication costs of this article were defrayed in part by page charge payment. This article must therefore be hereby marked "advertisement" in accordance with 18 U.S.C. §1734 solely to indicate this fac...

The serum- and glucocorticoid-regulated kinase (sgk1) is induced by mineralocorticoids and, in turn, upregulates heterologously expressed renal epithelial Na+ channel (ENaC) activity in Xenopus oocytes. Accordingly, Sgk1 is considered to mediate the mineralocorticoid stimulation of renal ENaC activity and antinatriuresis. Here we show that at standard NaCl intake, renal water and electrolyte excretion is indistinguishable in sgk1-knockout (sgk1–/–) mice and wild-type (sgk1+/+) mice. In contrast, dietary NaCl restriction reveals an impaired ability of sgk1–/– mice to adequately decrease Na+ excretion despite increases in plasma aldosterone levels and proximal-tubular Na+ and fluid reabsorption, as well as decreases in blood pressure and glomerular filtration rate

We have generated an optimized inducible recombination system for conditional gene targeting based on a Cre recombinase-steroid receptor fusion. This configuration allows efficient Cre-mediated recombination in most organs of the mouse upon induction, without detectable background activity. An ES cell line, was established that carries the inducible recombinase and a loxP-flanked lacZ reporter gene. Out of this line, completely ES cell-derived mice were efficiently produced through tetraploid blastocyst complementation, without the requirement of mouse breeding. Our findings provide a new concept allowing the generation of inducible mouse mutants within 6 months, as compared to 14 months using the current protocol.

Long-term potentiation (LTP) is a cellular model for persistent synaptic plasticity in the mammalian brain. Like several forms of memory, long-lasting LTP requires cAMP-mediated activation of protein kinase A (PKA) and is dependent on gene transcription. Consequently, activity-dependent genes such as c-fos that contain cAMP response elements (CREs) in their 5' regulatory region have been studied intensely. More recently, arg3.1/arc became of interest, because after synaptic stimulation, arg3.1/arc mRNA is rapidly induced and distributed to dendritic processes and may be locally translated there to facilitate synapse-specific modifications. However, to date nothing is known about the signaling mechanisms involved in the induction of this gene. Here we report that arg3.1/arc is robustly induced with LTP stimulation even at intensities that are not sufficient to activate c-fos expression. Unlike c-fos, the 5' regulatory region of arg3.1/arc does not contain a CRE consensus sequence and arg3.1/arc is unresponsive to cAMP in NIH3T3 and Neuro2a cells. However, in PC12 cells and primary cultures of hippocampal neurons, arg3.1/arc can be induced by cAMP and calcium. This induction requires the activity of PKA and mitogen-activated protein kinase, suggesting a neuron-specific pathway for the activation of arg3.1/arc expression.

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