Group and individual regulation of physiology and behavior: A behavioral, thermographic, and acoustic study of mouse development

Harshaw, Christopher; Alberts, Jeffrey R.

doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2012.05.002

Cited by 44 publications

(72 citation statements)

References 69 publications

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“…When mouse pups are tested as a group, they tend to huddle up with littermates at low temperatures to keep warm. Under such test conditions, there is no significant difference between the numbers or the sizes (measured as perimeter) of the huddling aggregates, or ultrasonic vocalization between P4 and P8 pups [57]. Similarly in rats, thermoregulation is consistently poor up to P7 and improves significantly only afterward [58].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of Electrophysiological Properties of Nucleus Gigantocellularis Neurons Correlated with Increased CNS Arousal

Liu¹,

Pfaff²,

Calderon³

et al. 2016

Dev Neurosci

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Many types of data have suggested that neurons in the nucleus gigantocellularis (NGC) in the medullary reticular formation are critically important for CNS arousal and behavioral responsiveness. To extend this topic to a developmental framework, whole-cell patch-recorded characteristics of NGC neurons in brainstem slices and measures of arousal-dependent locomotion of postnatal day 3 (P3) to P6 mouse pups were measured and compared. These neuronal characteristics developed in an orderly, statistically significant monotonic manner over the course of P3-P6: (1) proportion of neurons capable of firing action potential (AP) trains, (2) AP amplitude, (3) AP threshold, (4) amplitude of inward and outward currents, (5) amplitude of negative peak currents, and (6) steady state currents (in I-V plot). These measurements reflect the maturation of sodium and certain potassium channels. Similarly, all measures of locomotion, latency to first movement, total locomotion duration, net locomotion distance, and total quiescence time also developed monotonically over P3-P6. Most importantly, electrophysiological and behavioral measures were significantly correlated. Interestingly, the behavioral measures were not correlated with frequency of excitatory postsynaptic currents or the proportion of neurons showing these currents, responses to a battery of neurotransmitter agents, or rapid activating potassium currents (including I_A). Considering the results here in the context of a large body of literature on NGC, we hypothesize that the developmental increase in NGC neuronal excitability participates in causing the increased behavioral responsivity during the postnatal period from P3 to P6.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Development of Electrophysiological Properties of Nucleus Gigantocellularis Neurons Correlated with Increased CNS Arousal

Liu¹,

Pfaff²,

Calderon³

et al. 2016

Dev Neurosci

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“…We tested the hypothesis that manipulating the environment of the mouse, without changing the T a from 20°C, would alleviate the cold stress through behavioral thermoregulation (13,16). When mice are housed in groups of two or more, mice typically huddle, decrease their collective surface area, and conserve heat (21). The density of a huddle increases with a corresponding decrease in T a (21).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…When mice are housed in groups of two or more, mice typically huddle, decrease their collective surface area, and conserve heat (21). The density of a huddle increases with a corresponding decrease in T a (21). Huddling confers a thermoregulatory advantage; group-housed infant mice (4 days postnatal) exhibit a delay in brown-fat-induced thermogenesis upon cold exposure but no significant long-term inhibition of BAT activity (11).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Group housing and nest building only slightly ameliorate the cold stress of typical housing in female C57BL/6J mice

Maher

Barbash

Lynch

et al. 2015

American Journal of Physiology-Regulatory, Integrative and Comp

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Maher RL, Barbash SM, Lynch DV, Swoap SJ. Group housing and nest building only slightly ameliorate the cold stress of typical housing in female C57BL/6J mice. Am J Physiol Regul Integr Comp Physiol 308: R1070 -R1079, 2015. First published April 15, 2015 doi:10.1152/ajpregu.00407.2014.-Huddling and nest building are two methods of behavioral thermoregulation used by mice under cold stress. In the laboratory, mice are typically housed at an ambient temperature (T a) of 20°C, well below the lower end of their thermoneutral zone. We tested the hypothesis that the thermoregulatory benefits of huddling and nest building at a T a of 20°C would ameliorate this cold stress compared with being singly housed at 20°C as assessed by heart rate (HR), blood pressure (BP), triiodothyronine (T3), brown adipose (BAT) expression of Elovl3 mRNA, and BAT lipid content. A series of experiments using C57BL/6J female mice exposed to 20°C in the presence or absence of nesting material and/or cage mates was used to test this hypothesis. Mice showed large differences in HR, BP, shivering, and core body temperature (T b) when comparing singly housed mice at 20°C and 30°C, but only a modest reduction in HR with the inclusion of cage mates or bedding. However, group housing and/or nesting at 20°C decreased T3 levels compared with singly housed mice at 20°C. Singly housed mice at 20°C had a 22-fold higher level of BAT Elovl3 mRNA expression and a significantly lower triacylglycerol (TAG) content of BAT compared with singly housed mice at 30°C. Group housing at 20°C led to blunted changes in both Elovl3 mRNA and TAG levels. These findings suggest that huddling and nest building have a limited effect to ameliorate the cold stress associated with housing at 20°C. ambient temperature; blood pressure; brown fat; nesting THE MOUSE (MUS MUSCULUS) IS an important model system for mammalian studies. Its genetic tractability with a short reproductive time, coupled with advances in the miniaturization of physiological tools, create an increased ease for the merging of physiological studies and "omic" studies. The ambient temperature (T a ) of animal housing facilities is within a standard range that, while comfortable for human caretakers, falls well below the mouse thermoneutral zone (TNZ), the range of T a s in which endotherms do not elevate their metabolic rate to maintain core body temperature (T b ) (19, 23). The T a at which metabolic rate begins to rise to offset heat loss (i.e., the lower critical temperature) is ϳ29 -30°C for mice (18). Housed at temperatures below this zone, mice are under cold stress (8).To elevate metabolic rate and minimize heat loss when exposed to cooler temperatures, endotherms engage one of many behavioral changes and/or several physiological adaptations, which vary across species and which are not mutually exclu-

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“…The smaller Cbx3 hypo/hypo newborns would lose heat more rapidly compared to Prlr −/− newborns because of the former's greater surface-to-volume ratio (the 'square-cube law'; Haldane 1926). Moreover, heat loss may be further compounded because, in addition to thermoregulation via BAT, thermoregulation in newborn altricial rodents has a behavioural component termed huddling (Alberts 1978;Sokoloff and Blumberg 2001;Harshaw and Alberts 2012). Huddling close to littermates is protective against the rapid heat loss that occurs during the brief exposure to cool ambient temperatures that isolated pups experience when the dam leaves the nest (Harshaw and Alberts 2012).…”

Section: Loss Of Energy Homeostasis In Cbx3 Hypo/hypo Neonatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Moreover, heat loss may be further compounded because, in addition to thermoregulation via BAT, thermoregulation in newborn altricial rodents has a behavioural component termed huddling (Alberts 1978;Sokoloff and Blumberg 2001;Harshaw and Alberts 2012). Huddling close to littermates is protective against the rapid heat loss that occurs during the brief exposure to cool ambient temperatures that isolated pups experience when the dam leaves the nest (Harshaw and Alberts 2012). Notably, in a huddle of newborns there is competition between pups and pups with functional BAT thermogenesis tend to avoid contact with pups whose BAT thermogenesis is blocked (Sokoloff and Blumberg 2001).…”

Section: Loss Of Energy Homeostasis In Cbx3 Hypo/hypo Neonatesmentioning

confidence: 99%

A hypomorphic Cbx3 allele causes prenatal growth restriction and perinatal energy homeostasis defects

et al. 2015

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Mammals have three HP1 protein isotypes HP1β (CBX1), HP1γ (CBX3) and HP1α (CBX5) that are encoded by the corresponding genes Cbx1, Cbx3 and Cbx5. Recent work has shown that reduction of CBX3 protein in homozygotes for a hypomorphic allele (Cbx3 hypo ) causes a severe postnatal mortality with around 99% of the homozygotes dying before weaning. It is not known what the causes of the postnatal mortality are. Here we show that Cbx3 hypo/hypo conceptuses are significantly reduced in size and the placentas exhibit a haplo-insufficiency. Late gestation Cbx3 hypo/hypo placentas have reduced mRNA transcripts for genes involved in growth regulation, amino acid and glucose transport. Blood vessels within the Cbx3 hypo/hypo placental labyrinth are narrower than wild-type. Newborn Cbx3 hypo/hypo pups are hypoglycemic, the livers are depleted of glycogen reserves and there is almost complete loss of stored lipid in brown adipose tissue (BAT). There is a 10-fold reduction in expression of the BAT-specific Ucp1 gene, whose product is responsible for nonshivering themogenesis. We suggest that it is the small size of the Cbx3 hypo/hypo neonates, a likely consequence of placental growth and transport defects, combined with a possible inability to thermoregulate that causes the severe postnatal mortality.[Aydin E, Kloos D-P, Gay E, Jonker W, Hu L, Bullwinkel J, Brown JP, Manukyan M, Giera M, Singh PB and Fundele R 2015 A hypomorphic Cbx3 allele causes prenatal growth restriction and perinatal energy homeostasis defects. J.

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Group and individual regulation of physiology and behavior: A behavioral, thermographic, and acoustic study of mouse development

Cited by 44 publications

References 69 publications

Development of Electrophysiological Properties of Nucleus Gigantocellularis Neurons Correlated with Increased CNS Arousal

Development of Electrophysiological Properties of Nucleus Gigantocellularis Neurons Correlated with Increased CNS Arousal

Group housing and nest building only slightly ameliorate the cold stress of typical housing in female C57BL/6J mice

A hypomorphic Cbx3 allele causes prenatal growth restriction and perinatal energy homeostasis defects

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