Longitudinal Volumetric Assessment of Ventricular Enlargement in Pet Dogs Trained for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) Studies

Gunde, Eva; Czeibert, Kálmán; Gábor, Anna; Szabó, Dóra; Kis, Anna; Arany‐Tóth, Attila; Andics, Attila; Gácsi, Márta; Kubinyi, Enikő

doi:10.3390/vetsci7030127

Cited by 3 publications

(2 citation statements)

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“… 45 ), cognition (e.g. 46 ), brain anatomy (e.g., 47 ) or neural processes (e.g., 7 ), consists of studies with ‘adult’, i.e., 12-month-old or older animals or declare that dogs older than 12 months of age are adults (e.g. 48 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Developmental features of sleep electrophysiology in family dogs

Reicher

Bunford

Kis

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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Age-related differences in dog sleep and the age at which dogs reach adulthood as indexed by sleep electrophysiology are unknown. We assessed, in (1) a Juvenile sample (n = 60) of 2–14-month-old dogs (weight range: 4–68 kg), associations between age, sleep macrostructure, and non-rapid eye movement (NREM) EEG power spectrum, whether weight moderates associations, and (2) an extended sample (n = 91) of 2–30-months-old dogs, when sleep parameters stabilise. In Juvenile dogs, age was positively associated with time in drowsiness between 2 and 8 months, and negatively with time in rapid eye movement (REM) sleep between 2 and 6 months. Age was negatively associated with delta and positively with theta and alpha power activity, between 8 and 14 months. Older dogs exhibited greater sigma and beta power activity. Larger, > 8-month-old dogs had less delta and more alpha and beta activity. In extended sample, descriptive data suggest age-related power spectrum differences do not stabilise by 14 months. Drowsiness, REM, and delta power findings are consistent with prior results. Sleep electrophysiology is a promising index of dog neurodevelopment; some parameters stabilise in adolescence and some later than one year. Determination of the effect of weight and timing of power spectrum stabilisation needs further inquiry. The dog central nervous system is not fully mature by 12 months of age.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Developmental features of sleep electrophysiology in family dogs

Reicher

Bunford

Kis

et al. 2021

Sci Rep

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“…Furthermore, brain imaging (MRI) studies on dogs (e.g. [72]) suggest that the distance from the brain to the skull might differ between the anatomical points used in the current study for electrode placements. Another potential factor that might affect EEG signals electrode-wise is the ratio of ventriculus, bone and other tissues between the recording sites and the brain.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Differences in dogs’ event-related potentials in response to human and dog vocal stimuli; a non-invasive study

et al. 2022

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Recent advances in the field of canine neuro-cognition allow for the non-invasive research of brain mechanisms in family dogs. Considering the striking similarities between dog's and human (infant)'s socio-cognition at the behavioural level, both similarities and differences in neural background can be of particular relevance. The current study investigates brain responses of n = 17 family dogs to human and conspecific emotional vocalizations using a fully non-invasive event-related potential (ERP) paradigm. We found that similarly to humans, dogs show a differential ERP response depending on the species of the caller, demonstrated by a more positive ERP response to human vocalizations compared to dog vocalizations in a time window between 250 and 650 ms after stimulus onset. A later time window between 800 and 900 ms also revealed a valence-sensitive ERP response in interaction with the species of the caller. Our results are, to our knowledge, the first ERP evidence to show the species sensitivity of vocal neural processing in dogs along with indications of valence sensitive processes in later post-stimulus time periods.

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Age-Related Brain Atrophy and the Positive Effects of Behavioral Enrichment in Middle-Aged Beagles

Noche,

Radhakrishnan,

Ubele

et al. 2024

J. Neurosci.

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Aging dogs serve as a valuable preclinical model for Alzheimer's disease (AD) due to their natural age-related development of beta-amyloid (Aβ) plaques, human-like metabolism, and large brains that are ideal for studying structural brain aging trajectories from serial neuroimaging. Here we examined the effects of chronic treatment with the calcineurin inhibitor (CNI) tacrolimus or the nuclear factor of activated T cells (NFAT)-inhibiting compound Q134R on age-related canine brain atrophy from a longitudinal study in middle-aged beagles (36 females, 7 males) undergoing behavioral enrichment. Annual MRI was analyzed using modern, automated techniques for region-of-interest -based and voxel-based volumetric assessments. We found that the frontal lobe showed accelerated atrophy with age, while the caudate nucleus remained relatively stable. Remarkably, the hippocampus increased in volume in all dogs. None of these changes were influenced by tacrolimus or Q134R treatment. Our results suggest that behavioral enrichment can prevent atrophy and increase the volume of the hippocampus but does not prevent aging-associated prefrontal cortex atrophy.Significance StatementAging canines naturally show significant neuropathological similarities to human aging and AD, making them valuable translational models for testing disease-modifying treatments. We applied modern, state-of-the-art longitudinal volumetric analysis approaches to evaluate treatment effects from structural MRI in a large cohort of middle-aged beagles treated with the FDA approved calcineurin inhibitor, tacrolimus, or the experimental NFAT inhibitor, Q134R, while undergoing extensive behavioral enrichment. We show increased hippocampal volumes across all dogs, even control placebo dogs, compelling evidence for a strong enrichment-related benefit on hippocampal structural integrity. Our findings are the first of its kind to demonstrate benefits of behavioral intervention on longitudinal structural brain changes in a higher mammalian model of aging and AD.

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Longitudinal Volumetric Assessment of Ventricular Enlargement in Pet Dogs Trained for Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging (fMRI) Studies

Cited by 3 publications

References 35 publications

Developmental features of sleep electrophysiology in family dogs

Developmental features of sleep electrophysiology in family dogs

Differences in dogs’ event-related potentials in response to human and dog vocal stimuli; a non-invasive study

Age-Related Brain Atrophy and the Positive Effects of Behavioral Enrichment in Middle-Aged Beagles

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