Open AccessCortical Network Dynamics Is Altered in Mouse Models of Huntington’s Disease
Author(s) -
Elissa J. Donzis,
Ana María EstradaSánchez,
Tim Indersmitten,
Katerina D. Oikonomou,
Conny Tran,
Catherine Wang,
Shahrzad Latifi,
Peyman Golshani,
Carlos Cepeda,
Michael S. Levine
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
cerebral cortex
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.694
H-Index - 250
eISSN - 1460-2199
pISSN - 1047-3211
DOI - 10.1093/cercor/bhz245
Subject(s) - neuroscience , huntington's disease , motor cortex , genetically modified mouse , biology , phenotype , bursting , cerebral cortex , cortex (anatomy) , psychology , disease , transgene , medicine , gene , stimulation , genetics
Huntington's disease (HD) is a neurodegenerative disorder characterized by involuntary movements, cognitive deficits, and psychiatric disturbances. Although evidence indicates that projections from motor cortical areas play a key role in the development of dysfunctional striatal activity and motor phenotype, little is known about the changes in cortical microcircuits and their role in the development of the HD phenotype. Here we used two-photon laser-scanning microscopy to evaluate network dynamics of motor cortical neurons in layers II/III in behaving transgenic R6/2 and knock-in Q175+/- mice. Symptomatic R6/2 mice displayed increased motion manifested by a significantly greater number of motion epochs, whereas symptomatic Q175 mice displayed decreased motion. In both models, calcium transients in symptomatic mice displayed reduced amplitude, suggesting decreased bursting activity. Changes in frequency were genotype- and time-dependent; for R6/2 mice, the frequency was reduced during both motion and nonmotion, whereas in symptomatic Q175 mice, the reduction only occurred during nonmotion. In presymptomatic Q175 mice, frequency was increased during both behavioral states. Interneuronal correlation coefficients were generally decreased in both models, suggesting disrupted interneuronal communication in HD cerebral cortex. These results indicate similar and contrasting effects of the HD mutation on cortical ensemble activity depending on mouse model and disease stage.