In zebrafish, the ventilatory response to hypoxia first develops at 3 days post-fertilization (d.p.f.) before O2-chemoreceptive neuroepithelial cells (NECs) of the gill appear at 7 d.p.f. This indicates the presence of extrabranchial chemoreceptors in embryos and a developmental transition to primarily gill O2 sensing. This thesis examined the skin NECs, which reach peak density in embryos but decline as gill NECs appear. Exposure of embryos and larvae to chronic hypoxia prevented the loss of skin NECs, shifted peak basal ventilation to a later developmental stage, and induced a hypoventilatory response to acute hypoxia. Chronic exposure to hyperoxia rapidly diminished skin NECs, shifted peak ventilation to earlier stages and eliminated the response to acute hypoxia. Administration of the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine degraded nerve terminals that contact skin NECs and reduced both basal ventilation frequency and the hypoxic ventilatory response. Thus, skin NECs are candidates for extrabranchial O2 chemoreceptors in developing zebrafish.

De nombreuses études ont établi que la majorité des neurones libèrent plus qu’une substance chimique. Il est bien connu que les neurones peuvent co-exprimer et co-libérer des neuropeptides en plus de leur neurotransmetteur, mais des évidences de la co-libération de deux petits neurotransmetteurs à action rapide se sont accumulées récemment. Des enregistrements électrophysiologiques ont aussi montré que des neurones sérotoninergiques et dopaminergiques isolés peuvent libérer du glutamate quand ils sont placés en culture. De plus, la présence de glutamate et de glutaminase a été détectée dans des neurones sérotoninergiques, dopaminergiques et noradrénergiques par immunomarquage sur des tranches de cerveau. Malheureusement, en considérant le rôle métabolique du glutamate, sa détection immunologique n’est pas suffisante pour assurer le phénotype glutamatergique d’un neurone. Récemment, la découverte de trois transporteurs vésiculaires du glutamate (VGLUT1-3) a grandement facilité l’identification des neurones glutamatergiques. Ces transporteurs sont nécessaires pour la libération de glutamate et constituent les premiers marqueurs morphologiques du phénotype glutamatergique. Il a été démontré que des neurones noradrénergiques expriment VGLUT2 et que des neurones sérotoninergiques expriment VGLUT3. Mais aucune évidence d’expression d’un des sous-types de VGLUT n’a été reportée pour les neurones dopaminergiques. Le but de notre travail était d’identifier quel sous-type de VGLUT est exprimé par les neurones dopaminergiques mésencéphaliques, et de déterminer si le phénotype glutamatergique de ces neurones peut être modulé dans des conditions particulières. Premièrement, nous avons utilisé des microcultures pour isoler les neurones dopaminergiques et des doubles marquages immunocytochimiques pour observer l’expression de VGLUT dans les neurones positifs pour la tyrosine hydroxylase (TH). Nous avons montré que la majorité (80%) des neurones TH+ isolés exprime spécifiquement VGLUT2. Cette expression est précoce au cours du développement in vitro et limitée aux projections axonales des neurones dopaminergiques. Toutefois, cette forte expression in vitro contraste avec la non-détection de ce transporteur dans les rats adultes in vivo. Nous avons décidé ensuite de regarder si l’expression de VGLUT2 pouvait être régulée pendant le développement cérébral de jeunes rats et sous des conditions traumatiques, par double hybridation in situ. Entre 14 et 16 jours embryonnaires, les marquages de VGLUT2 et de TH montraient une superposition significative qui n’était pas retrouvée à des stades ultérieurs. Dans le mésencéphale de jeunes rats postnataux, nous avons détecté l’ARNm de VGLUT2 dans environs 1-2% des neurones exprimant l’ARNm de TH dans la substance noire et l’aire tegmentaire ventrale (ATV). Pour explorer la régulation de l’expression de VGLUT2 dans des conditions traumatiques, nous avons utilisé la 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) pour léser les neurones dopaminergiques dans les jeunes rats. Dix jours après la chirurgie, nous avons trouvé que 27% des neurones dopaminergiques survivants dans l’ATV exprimaient l’ARNm de VGLUT2 dans les rats 6-OHDA. Finalement, nous avons observé la colocalisation de la protéine VGLUT2 dans les terminaisons TH positives par microscopie électronique. Dans les rats normaux, la protéine VGLUT2 est retrouvée dans 28% des terminaisons axonales TH dans le noyau accumbens. Dans les rats lésés à la 6-OHDA, nous avons observé une diminution considérable des terminaisons TH positives, et une augmentation dans la proportion (37%) des terminaisons dopaminergiques présentant du VGLUT2. Nos résultats suggèrent que le phénotype glutamatergique des neurones dopaminergiques est régulé au cours du développement, peut être réactivé dans des états pathologiques, et que ces neurones peuvent libérer du glutamate dans conditions spécifiques. / Numerous studies have established that the majority of neurons release more than one chemical substance. It is well known that neurons can co-express and co-release neuropeptides in addition to their neurotransmitter, but evidence of co-release of two small and fast-acting neurotransmitters has been accumulated recently. Electrophysiological recordings have also shown that isolated serotonine and dopamine neurons can release glutamate as a co-transmitter when they are placed in culture. Furthermore, the presence of glutamate and glutaminase has been detected in serotonine, dopamine and noradrenaline neurons by immunolabelling in brain slices. Unfortunately, considering the metabolic role of glutamate, its immunodetection is not sufficient to assert the glutamatergic phenotype of a neuron. Recently, the discovery of three vesicular glutamate transporters (VGLUT1-3) has greatly facilitated the identification of glutamate neurons. These transporters are necessary for the glutamate release by neurons and constitute the first molecular markers of a glutamatergic phenotype. Interestingly, it was demonstrated that some noradrenaline neurons express VGLUT2 and that some serotonin neurons express VGLUT3. But no evidence for expression of any VGLUT subtypes was initially reported for dopamine neurons. The goal of our work was to identify which VGLUT subtype is expressed by mesencephalic dopamine neurons, and to determine if the glutamatergic phenotype of these neurons can be modulated under specific conditions. First, we used microcultures to isolate dopamine neurons and double immunocytochemistry to visualize VGLUT expression in tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) positive neurons. We showed that the majority (80%) of isolated TH+ neurons express specifically VGLUT2. This expression occurred early during in vitro development and was limited to axonal projections of dopamine neurons. However, this strong expression in vitro contrasted with the lack of detection of this transporter in adult rats in vivo. We next decided to investigate if VGLUT2 expression could be regulated during brain development of young rats and under traumatic conditions, using double in situ hybridization. At embryonic days 14 to 16, VGLUT2 and TH labelling displayed significant overlap which was no longer found at later stages. In postnatal mesencephalon of young rats, we detected VGLUT2 mRNA in approximately 1-2% of neurons expressing TH mRNA in the substantia nigra and in ventral tegmental area (VTA). To explore the regulation of VGLUT2 expression under traumatic condition, we used 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) to damage dopamine neurons in young rats. Ten days post-surgery, we found that 27% of surviving dopamine neurons in the VTA expressed VGLUT2 mRNA in 6-OHDA animals. Finally, we observed the colocalisation of VGLUT2 protein in TH positive terminals by electron microscopy. In normal rats, VGLUT2 protein was found in 28% of TH positive axon terminals in nucleus accumbens. In 6 OHDA-lesioned rats, we observed a considerable reduction of TH positive terminals, and an increase in the proportion (37%) of dopamine terminals displaying VGLUT2. Our results suggest that the glutamatergic phenotype of dopamine neurons is developmentally regulated, can be reactivated under pathological states, and that these neurons are able to release glutamate under specific conditions.

In zebrafish, the ventilatory response to hypoxia first develops at 3 days post-fertilization (d.p.f.) before O2-chemoreceptive neuroepithelial cells (NECs) of the gill appear at 7 d.p.f. This indicates the presence of extrabranchial chemoreceptors in embryos and a developmental transition to primarily gill O2 sensing. This thesis examined the skin NECs, which reach peak density in embryos but decline as gill NECs appear. Exposure of embryos and larvae to chronic hypoxia prevented the loss of skin NECs, shifted peak basal ventilation to a later developmental stage, and induced a hypoventilatory response to acute hypoxia. Chronic exposure to hyperoxia rapidly diminished skin NECs, shifted peak ventilation to earlier stages and eliminated the response to acute hypoxia. Administration of the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine degraded nerve terminals that contact skin NECs and reduced both basal ventilation frequency and the hypoxic ventilatory response. Thus, skin NECs are candidates for extrabranchial O2 chemoreceptors in developing zebrafish.

A infusão de 6-hidroxidopamina (6-OHDA) na via nigroestriatal em ratos é um modelo da Doença de Parkinson (DP). O Teste de Motricidade sobre Grade (TMG ou, em inglês, footfault test) é um teste comportamental utilizado para avaliar a função motora em ratos. Observamos que animais lesionados unilateralmente com 6-OHDA mostram atividade rotacional ipsilateral induzida pelo contexto quando colocados no aparato do TMG por 3 minutos e isso pode ser utilizado como índice para detectar animais lesionados. Nossos resultados mostraram que o TMG tem sensibilidade e especificidade de 100% para lesões maiores que 94 e 64%, respectivamente (Curva Operacional Característica: Área sob a curva = 0,988). Um modelo de regressão logística binária mostrou exp(B)= 1,116 (95% CI, 1,007-1,236) e C = -9,081 ± 4,554 (p = 0,046) utilizando a imunoistoquímica para tirosina-hidroxilase como técnica padrão (cada unidade representa 10% de lesão). Além disso, o TMG foi mais sensível que o teste de atividade rotacional induzida por apomorfina 1mg/kg quando os testes foram realizados em dias diferentes e foi menos sensível que o teste de atividade rotacional induzida por metilfenidato 40mg/kg (Teste do Sinal, p < 0,05). Portanto, o TMG pode ser bastante útil nesse modelo animal de DP para triagem de animais, uma vez que é um teste rápido, simples e não requer drogas para indução de atividade rotacional. / The administration of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the nigrostriatal pathway is a rat model of Parkinson’s Disease (PD). The footfault test is a behavioural task in which rodents have their motor functions assessed. Here, we observed that unilaterally 6-OHDA-lesioned animals show a context-induced ipsilateral rotational behaviour when placed on the footfault apparatus for 3 minutes and this may be used as index to detect lesioned animals. Our results showed a sensitivity and specificity of 100% for lesions higher than 94 and 64%, respectively (ROC curve: AUC = 0.988). A binary logistic regression model showed an exp(B)= 1.116 (95% CI, 1.007-1.236) and C = -9.081 ± 4.554 (p = 0.046) using the nigral tirosine hidroxylase immunocontent as standard (each unit represents a 10%-lesion extension). Additionally, the footfault test was more sensitive than apomorphine challenging at 1 mg/kg when these tests were carried out days apart and it was less sensitive than methylphenidate at 40 mg/kg (Sign Test, p < 0.05). Therefore, the footfault test may be very useful in the PD animal model for screening animals since it is fast and simple and it does not require a drug to induce rotational activity.

A infusão de 6-hidroxidopamina (6-OHDA) na via nigroestriatal em ratos é um modelo da Doença de Parkinson (DP). O Teste de Motricidade sobre Grade (TMG ou, em inglês, footfault test) é um teste comportamental utilizado para avaliar a função motora em ratos. Observamos que animais lesionados unilateralmente com 6-OHDA mostram atividade rotacional ipsilateral induzida pelo contexto quando colocados no aparato do TMG por 3 minutos e isso pode ser utilizado como índice para detectar animais lesionados. Nossos resultados mostraram que o TMG tem sensibilidade e especificidade de 100% para lesões maiores que 94 e 64%, respectivamente (Curva Operacional Característica: Área sob a curva = 0,988). Um modelo de regressão logística binária mostrou exp(B)= 1,116 (95% CI, 1,007-1,236) e C = -9,081 ± 4,554 (p = 0,046) utilizando a imunoistoquímica para tirosina-hidroxilase como técnica padrão (cada unidade representa 10% de lesão). Além disso, o TMG foi mais sensível que o teste de atividade rotacional induzida por apomorfina 1mg/kg quando os testes foram realizados em dias diferentes e foi menos sensível que o teste de atividade rotacional induzida por metilfenidato 40mg/kg (Teste do Sinal, p < 0,05). Portanto, o TMG pode ser bastante útil nesse modelo animal de DP para triagem de animais, uma vez que é um teste rápido, simples e não requer drogas para indução de atividade rotacional. / The administration of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) into the nigrostriatal pathway is a rat model of Parkinson’s Disease (PD). The footfault test is a behavioural task in which rodents have their motor functions assessed. Here, we observed that unilaterally 6-OHDA-lesioned animals show a context-induced ipsilateral rotational behaviour when placed on the footfault apparatus for 3 minutes and this may be used as index to detect lesioned animals. Our results showed a sensitivity and specificity of 100% for lesions higher than 94 and 64%, respectively (ROC curve: AUC = 0.988). A binary logistic regression model showed an exp(B)= 1.116 (95% CI, 1.007-1.236) and C = -9.081 ± 4.554 (p = 0.046) using the nigral tirosine hidroxylase immunocontent as standard (each unit represents a 10%-lesion extension). Additionally, the footfault test was more sensitive than apomorphine challenging at 1 mg/kg when these tests were carried out days apart and it was less sensitive than methylphenidate at 40 mg/kg (Sign Test, p < 0.05). Therefore, the footfault test may be very useful in the PD animal model for screening animals since it is fast and simple and it does not require a drug to induce rotational activity.

In zebrafish, the ventilatory response to hypoxia first develops at 3 days post-fertilization (d.p.f.) before O2-chemoreceptive neuroepithelial cells (NECs) of the gill appear at 7 d.p.f. This indicates the presence of extrabranchial chemoreceptors in embryos and a developmental transition to primarily gill O2 sensing. This thesis examined the skin NECs, which reach peak density in embryos but decline as gill NECs appear. Exposure of embryos and larvae to chronic hypoxia prevented the loss of skin NECs, shifted peak basal ventilation to a later developmental stage, and induced a hypoventilatory response to acute hypoxia. Chronic exposure to hyperoxia rapidly diminished skin NECs, shifted peak ventilation to earlier stages and eliminated the response to acute hypoxia. Administration of the neurotoxin 6-hydroxydopamine degraded nerve terminals that contact skin NECs and reduced both basal ventilation frequency and the hypoxic ventilatory response. Thus, skin NECs are candidates for extrabranchial O2 chemoreceptors in developing zebrafish.

A major challenge in developing disease altering therapeutics for the treatment of Parkinson’s disease (PD) has been the delivery of compounds across the blood-brain barrier (BBB) to the central nervous system (CNS). While direct surgical infusion has been utilized to deliver compounds to the brain that don’t cross the BBB, issues of poor biodistribution in the CNS due in part to properties of the molecules being delivered and/or infusion device protocols have limited the widespread success of this invasive approach. To avoid the issues of surgically delivering compounds to the CNS, numerous studies have examined the use of intranasal administration as a non-invasive delivery method. The data presented in this dissertation examines intranasal administration of dopamine neuron stimulating peptide-11 (DNSP-11), a small, amidated peptide with neuroprotective and restorative properties, and its effects on the nigrostriatal system in animal models of PD. Here we demonstrate that severely lesioned 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) F344 rats repeatedly administered DNSP-11 intranasally exhibited a decrease in damphetamine- induced rotation, dopamine (DA) turnover, and an increase in tyrosine hydroxylase positive neuronal sparing. Additionally, tracer studies indicated rapid distributed throughout the CNS and CSF following a one-time bilateral intranasal dose of 125I-labeled DNSP-11. These results demonstrate that DNSP-11 can be delivered to the CNS intranasally, and maintains its neuroactive properties on the nigrostriatal system in a rat model of PD. In a dose escalation study of DNSP-11, we evaluated the efficacy of repeated intranasal administration in awake, vertically chaired trained, 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6- tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) hemiparkinsonian rhesus macaques using an atomizer system over a 10-week period. Here we report that animals did not exhibit observable adverse effects at the DNSP-11 concentrations examined, bilateral increases in fine motor performance of the upper limbs, and changes in tissue levels of DA and its metabolites. Finally, tracer studies indicated signal present throughout the CNS and CSF following a one-time bilateral intranasal dose of 125I-labeled DNSP-11. These studies support the efficacy of the repeated intranasal administration of DNSP-11 in awake Rhesus macaques over 10-weeks, while also enhancing motor performance and striatal neurochemistry in a non-human primate model of PD.

The neonatally 6-hydroxydopamine (n6-OHDA)-lesioned rat has been the standard for 40 years, as an animal model of attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). Rats so lesioned during postnatal ontogeny are characterized by ∽99% destruction of dopaminergic nerves in pars compacta substantia nigra, with comparable destruction of the nigrostriatal tract and lifelong ∽99 % dopaminergic denervation of striatum, with lesser destructive effect on the ventral tegmental nucleus and associated lesser dopaminergic denervation of nucleus accumbens and prefrontal cortex. As a consequence of striatal dopaminergic denervation, reactive serotoninergic hyperinnervation of striatum ensues. The striatal extraneuronal milieu of DA and serotonin is markedly altered. Also, a variety of sensitization changes occur for dopaminergic D1 and D2 receptors, and for serotoninergic receptors. Behaviorally, these rats in adulthood display spontaneous hyperlocomotor activity, attentional deficits, and cognitive impairment-all of which are acutely attenuated by the psychostimulants amphetamine (AMPH) and methylphenidate (MPH) (i.e.,opposite to the acute effects of AMPH and MPH in intact control rats). The acute behavioral effects of AMPH and MPH in intact and lesioned rats are analogous to their respective acute effects in non-ADHD and in ADHD humans. The neurochemical template of brain, and behavioral series of changes in n6-OHDA-lesioned rats, is described in the review. Despite the fact that nigrostriatal damage is not an underlying pathophysiological process of human ADHD (i.e.,lacking construct validity), the described animal model has face validity (behavioral profile) and predictive validity (mirror of ADHD/MPH effects, as well as putative and new ADHD treatment effects). Also described in this review is a modification of the n6-OHDA rat, produced by adulthood partial lesioning of the serotoninergic fiber overgrowth. This ADHD model has even more accentuated hyperlocomotor and attentional deficits, counteracted by AMPH-thus providing a more robust means of animal modeling of ADHD. The n6-OHDA rat as a model of ADHD continues to be important in the search for new ADHD treatments.

The classic rodent model of Parkinson’s disease (PD) is produced by unilateral lesioning of pars compacta substantia nigra (SNpc) in adult rats, producing unilateral motor deficits which can be assessed by dopamine (DA) D2 receptor (D2-R) agonist induction of measurable unilateral rotations. Bilateral SNpc lesions in adult rats produce life-threatening aphagia, adipsia, and severe motor disability resembling paralysis-a PD model that is so compromised that it is seldom used. Described in this paper is a PD rodent model in which there is bilateral 99% loss of striatal dopaminergic innervation, produced by bilateral intracerebroventricular or intracisternal 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) administration to perinatal rats. This procedure produces no lethality and does not shorten the life span, while rat pups continue to suckle through the pre-weaning period; and eat without impairment post-weaning. There is no obvious motor deficit during or after weaning, except with special testing, so that parkinsonian rats are indistin-guishable from control and thus allow for behavioral assessments to be conducted in a blinded manner. L-DOPA (L-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine) treatment increases DA content in striatal tissue, also evokes a rise in extraneuronal (i.e.,in vivo microdialysate) DA, and is able to evoke dyskinesias. D2-R agonists produce effects similar to those of L-DOPA. In addition, effects of both D1-and D2-R agonist effects on overt or latent receptor supersensitization are amenable to study. Elevated basal levels of reactive oxygen species (ROS), namely hydroxyl radical, occurring in dopaminergic denervated striatum are suppressed by L-DOPA treatment. Striatal serotoninergic hyperinnervation ensuing after perinatal dopaminergic denervation does not appear to interfere with assessments of the dopaminergic system by L-DOPA or D1-or D2-R agonist challenge. Partial lesioning of serotonin fibers with a selective neurotoxin either at birth or in adulthood is able to eliminate sero-toninergic hyperinnervation and restore the normal level of serotoninergic innervation. Of all the animal models of PD, that produced by perinatal 6-OHDA lesioning provides the most pronounced destruction of nigrostriatal neurons, thus representing a model of severe PD, as the neurochemical outcome resembles the status of severe PD in humans but without obvious motor deficits.

Rats lesioned shortly after birth with 6-OHDA have been proposed to be a near-ideal model of severe Parkinson's disease, because of non-lethality of the procedure, near-total destruction of nigrostriatal dopaminergic fibers, and near-total dopamine (DA) denervation of striatum. There are scarce data that in Parkinson's disease, activity of the central histaminergic system is increased. Therefore, the aim of this study was to determine histamine content in the brain and the effect of histamine receptor antagonists on behavior of adult rats. At 3 days after birth, Wistar rats were pretreated with desipramine (20.0 mg/kg ip) 1 h before bilateral icv administration of the catecholaminergic neurotoxin 6-OHDA (67 μg base, on each side) or saline-ascorbic acid (0.1%) vehicle (control). At 8 weeks levels of DA and its metabolites l-3,4- dihydroxyphenylalanine (DOPAC) and homovanillic acid (HVA) were estimated in the striatum and frontal cortex by HPCL/ED technique. In the hypothalamus, hippocampus, frontal cortex, and medulla oblongata, the level of histamine was analyzed by immunoenzymatic method. Behavioral observations (locomotion, exploratory-, oral-, and stereotyped-activity) were additionally made on control and 6-OHDA neonatally lesioned rats. Effects of DA receptor agonists (SKF 38393, apomorphine) and histamine receptor antagonists (e.g., S(+)chlorpheniramine, H 1 ; cimetidine, H 2 ; thioperamide, H 3 agonist) were determined. We confirmed that 6-OHDA significantly reduced contents of DA and its metabolites in the brain in adulthood. Histamine content was significantly increased in the hypothalamus, hipocampus, and medulla oblongata. Moreover, in 6-OHDA-lesioned rats behavioral response was altered mainly by thioperamide (H 3 antagonist). These findings indicate that histamine and the central histaminergic system are altered in the brain of rats lesioned to model Parkinson's disease, and that histaminergic neurons exert a modulating role in Parkinsonian 6-OHDA-lesioned rats.