Exploring behavioral patterns and hippocampal neurogenesis in autism spectrum disorder mice
10.16098/j.issn.0529-1356.2025.02.007
- VernacularTitle:自闭症谱系障碍模型小鼠的行为模式及海马神经发生
- Author:
Xiao-Jie NIU
1
;
Jiao LIU
;
Xin-Wei ZHANG
;
Ze-Tao WANG
;
Ke-Qi YAN
;
Qi-Yuan LIU
;
Wan-Yun HAO
;
Pei-Jun ZHANG
Author Information
1. 山西大同大学医学院人体解剖学教研室
- Keywords:
Autism spectrum disorder;
Chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 8;
Hippocampus;
Neurogenesis;
Behavioral test;
Mouse
- From:
Acta Anatomica Sinica
2025;56(2):171-179
- CountryChina
- Language:Chinese
-
Abstract:
Objective To explore the behavioral patterns and hippocampal neurogenesis of CHD8+mice,and to provide behavioral and morphological basis for improving autism like behavior and neurogenesis.Methods Genotype of wild type(WT)and CHD8+/-mice was identified.Weight measurement was conducted on both male and female mice of the WT and CHD8+/-strains.Subsequently,a battery of behavioral tests was administered,which included three-chamber test,self-grooming test,nesting test,Y-maze spontaneous alternation test,food burial test,open-field test and light-dark transition test.Afterwards,the mice were administered 2％pentobarbital sodium(2 ml/kg)to induce anesthesia.Their brains were frozen with 4％paraformaldehyde,removed for photography and analysis to identify any alterations in brain size.Western blotting and immunofluorescent labeling were used to detect changes in the process of hippocampus neurogenesis.Results Western blotting analysis demonstrated a decrease in the amounts of chromodomain helicase DNA binding protein 8(CHD8)protein in both male and female mice with CHD8+genotype,as compared to WT mice.There were no notable disparities in body weight between male and female WT and CHD8+mice,as well as in brain size.The three-chamber social behavior test revealed that both male and female CHD8+/-mice had social deficiencies(P＜0.05).During the open field test,there was no significant difference in the total distance moved by male and female WT and CHD8+/-mice.However,the amount of time spent in the central region was considerably lower in CHD8+/-mice compared to the WT mice(P＜0.01).Furthermore,the light-dark transition test revealed that both male and female CHD8+/-mice spent considerably less time investigating the white box compared to the WT mice(P＜0.05).Nevertheless,there were no notable alterations found in self-grooming,nesting,spontaneous alternation of Y-maze,and food burial experiments.In addition,Western blotting result demonstrated a significant drop in doublecortin(DCX)expression(P＜0.001),and immunofluorescent staining revealed a notable reduction in the number of DCX+cells(P＜0.01)in the hippocampus of CHD8+/-mice.Conclusion CHD8+/-mice exhibit social disorders and anxiety-like behaviors,with a decrease in the number of newly generated neurons in the hippocampus and neurogenesis disorders.
