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Adolescent development of neuron structure in dentate gyrus granule cells of male syrian hamsters
Author(s) -
Zehr Julia L.,
Nichols Liana R.,
Schulz Kalynn M.,
Sisk Cheryl L.
Publication year - 2008
Publication title -
developmental neurobiology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.716
H-Index - 129
eISSN - 1932-846X
pISSN - 1932-8451
DOI - 10.1002/dneu.20675
Subject(s) - dentate gyrus , hippocampal formation , biology , neuroscience , dendritic spine , granule cell , soma , neuron , anatomy
Hippocampal function, including spatial cognition and stress responses, matures during adolescence. In addition, hippocampal neuron structure is modified by gonadal steroid hormones, which increase dramatically at this time. This study investigated pubertal changes in dendritic complexity of dentate gyrus neurons. Dendrites, spines, and cell bodies of Golgi‐impregnated neurons from the granule cell layer were traced in pre‐, mid‐, and late‐pubertal male Syrian hamsters (21, 35, and 49 days of age). Sholl analysis determined the number of intersections and total dendritic length contained in concentric spheres set at 25‐μm increments from the soma. Spine densities were quantified separately in proximal and distal segments of a subset of neurons used for the Sholl analysis. We found that the structure of neurons in the lower, but not upper, blade of the dentate gyrus changed during adolescence. The lower, infrapyramidal blade showed pruning of dendrites close to the cell body and increases in distal dendritic spine densities across adolescence. These data demonstrate that dentate gyrus neurons undergo substantial structural remodeling during adolescence and that patterns of maturation are region specific. Furthermore, these changes in dendrite structure, which alter the electrophysiological properties of granule cells, are likely related to the adolescent development of hippocampal‐dependent cognitive functions such as learning and memory, as well as hippocampus‐mediated stress responsivity. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol, 2008.