Biology subjects

Rea, J. J.

Publications and source records attributed to Rea, J. J..

4 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2024

Oxytocin neurons in the paraventricular and supraoptic hypothalamic nuclei bidirectionally modulate food intake

Oxytocin (OT) is a neuropeptide produced in the paraventricular (PVH) and supraoptic (SON) nuclei of the hypothalamus. Either peripheral or central administration of OT suppresses food intake through reductions in meal size. However, pharmacological approaches do not differentiate whether observed effects are mediated by OT neurons located in the PVH or in the SON. To address this, we targeted OT neuron-specific designer receptors exclusively activated by designer drugs (DREADDs) in either the PVH or SON in rats, thus allowing for evaluation of food intake following selective activation of OT neurons separately in each nucleus. Results revealed that DREADDs-mediated excitation of PVH OT neurons reduced consumption of both standard chow and a high fat high sugar diet (HFHS) via reductions in meal size. On the contrary, SON OT neuron activation had the opposite effect by increasing both standard chow and liquid sucrose consumption, with the former effect mediated by an increase in meal size. To further examine the physiological role of OT neurons in eating behavior, a viral-mediated approach was used to silence synaptic transmission of OT neurons separately in either the PVH or SON. Results from these studies revealed that PVH OT neuron silencing significantly increased consumption of HFHS by increasing meal size whereas SON OT neuron silencing reduced chow consumption by decreasing meal size. Collectively these data reveal that PVH and SON OT neurons differentially modulate food intake by either increasing or decreasing satiation signaling, respectively.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2024

Hippocampus oxytocin signaling promotes prosocial eating in rats

The hypothalamic neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) influences both food intake and social behavior. Given that food preference and consumption are heavily affected by social factors in mammals, it is critical to understand the extent that OTs role in regulating these two fundamental behaviors is interconnected. Here we evaluated the role of OT signaling in the dentate gyrus of the dorsal hippocampus (HPCd), a brain region recently linked with eating and social memory, on food preference and consumption in rats under conditions that vary with regards to social presence and conspecific familiarity. Results from neuropharmacological and virogenetic knockdown approaches reveal that HPCd OT signaling promotes eating in the presence of a familiar but not an unfamiliar conspecific. Additionally, HPCd OT receptor signaling is required for the social transmission of food preference. These findings collectively identify the HPCd as a novel substrate where oxytocin synergistically influences eating and social behaviors.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2023

Early- but not late-adolescent Western diet consumption programs for long-lasting memory impairments in male but not female rats

Early life Western diet (WD) consumption leads to impaired memory function, particularly for processes mediated by the hippocampus. However, the precise critical developmental window(s) during which WD exposure negatively impacts hippocampal function are unknown. Here, we exposed male and female rats to a WD model involving free access to a variety of high-fat and/or high-sugar food and drink items during either the early-adolescent period (postnatal days [PN] 26-41; WD-EA) or late-adolescent period (PN 41-56; WD-LA). Control (CTL) rats were given healthy standard chow throughout both periods. To evaluate long-lasting memory capacity well beyond the early life WD exposure periods, we performed behavioral assessments after both a short (4 weeks for WD-EA, 2 weeks for WD-LA) and long (12 weeks for WD-EA, 10 weeks for WD-LA) period of healthy diet intervention. Results revealed no differences in body weight or body composition between diet groups, regardless of sex. Following the shorter period of healthy diet intervention, both male and female WD-EA and WD-LA rats showed deficits in hippocampal-dependent memory compared to CTL rats. Following the longer healthy diet intervention period, memory impairments persisted in male WD-EA but not WD-LA rats. In contrast, in female rats the longer healthy diet intervention reversed the initial memory impairments in both WD-EA and WD-LA rats. Collectively, these findings reveal that early-adolescence is a critical period of long-lasting hippocampal vulnerability to dietary insults in male but not female rats, thus highlighting developmental- and sex-specific effects mediating the relationship between the early life nutritional environment and long-term cognitive health.

animal behavior and cognition↗

bioRxiv2023

Western diet consumption impairs memory function via dysregulated hippocampus acetylcholine signaling

Western diet (WD) consumption during development yields long-lasting memory impairments, yet the underlying neurobiological mechanisms remain elusive. Here we developed an early life WD rodent model to evaluate whether dysregulated hippocampus (HPC) acetylcholine (ACh) signaling, a pathology associated with memory impairment in human dementia, is causally-related to WD-induced cognitive impairment. Rats received a cafeteria-style WD (access to various high-fat/high-sugar foods; CAF) or healthy chow (CTL) during the juvenile and adolescent periods (postnatal days 26-56). Behavioral, metabolic, and microbiome assessments were performed both before and after a 30-day healthy diet intervention beginning at early adulthood. Results revealed CAF-induced HPC-dependent contextual episodic memory impairments that persisted despite healthy diet intervention, whereas CAF was not associated with long-term changes in body weight, body composition, glucose tolerance, anxiety-like behavior, or gut microbiome. HPC immunoblot analyses after the healthy diet intervention identified reduced levels of vesicular ACh transporter in CAF vs. CTL rats, indicative of chronically reduced HPC ACh tone. To determine whether these changes were functionally related to memory impairments, we evaluated temporal HPC ACh binding via ACh-sensing fluorescent reporter in vivo fiber photometry during memory testing, as well as whether the memory impairments could be rescued pharmacologically. Results revealed dynamic HPC ACh binding during object-contextual novelty recognition was highly predictive of memory performance and was disrupted in CAF vs. CTL rats. Further, HPC alpha-7 nicotinic receptor agonist infusion during consolidation rescued memory deficits in CAF rats. Overall, these findings identify dysregulated HPC ACh signaling as a mechanism underlying early life WD-associated memory impairments.

neuroscience↗