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10 Publications visible to you, out of a total of 10
Effects of Bile Duct Ligation and Ghrelin Treatment on the Colonic Barrier and Microbiome of Mice.

Abstract (Expand)

INTRODUCTION: Cholestatic liver disease (CLD) is associated with intestinal barrier dysfunction. The peptide hormone ghrelin may exert both hepatoprotective and barrier-strengthening effects. Here, we … have evaluated these effects under the conditions of experimental cholestasis. METHODS: C57BL/6J mice with bile duct ligation (BDL) or sham surgery were treated with ghrelin or solvent for 9 days. Liver injury was assessed by histological and laboratory analyses. Paracellular macromolecule permeability and transmural electrical resistance (TMER) of colonic tissues were measured using a Ussing chamber. Expression of tight junction (TJ) genes was quantified by real-time PCR. Amplicon metagenomic sequencing was employed to analyze bacterial 16S rRNA from colonic stool samples. RESULTS: Mice with BDL exhibited weight loss and signs of severe liver injury. These changes were unaffected by ghrelin treatment. FITC-4-kDa-dextran flux was increased and TMER decreased after BDL. Treatment with ghrelin tended to reduce these effects. Furthermore, application of ghrelin was associated with higher mRNA levels of claudin-4, occludin, and ZO-1 in colonic tissues of mice with BDL. Reduced alpha-diversity of the microbiome was observed in solvent-treated mice with BDL but not in ghrelin-treated animals. CONCLUSION: Ghrelin treatment did not improve weight loss and liver damage but increased gene expression of colonic TJ proteins and restored the alpha-diversity of the microbiome. Since protective effects of ghrelin might be masked by the severity of the model, we suggest follow-up studies in models of milder CLD.

Authors: L. Ehlers, L. A. W. Netz, J. Reiner, P. Berlin, K. Bannert, M. Bastian, D. Zechner, G. Lamprecht, R. Jaster

Date Published: 4th Nov 2022

Publication Type: Journal

K(v)7 and K(ir)6 Channels Shape the Slow AHP in Mouse Dentate Gyrus Granule Cells and Control Burst-like Firing Behavior.

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The slow afterhyperpolarizing potential (sAHP) can silence a neuron for hundreds of milliseconds. Thereby, the sAHP determines the discharge behavior of many types of neurons. In dentate granule cells … (DGCs), serving as a filter into the hippocampal network, mostly tonic or adapting discharge properties have been described. As under standard whole-cell recording conditions the sAHP is inhibited, we reevaluated the intrinsic functional phenotype of DGCs and the conductances underlying the sAHP, using gramicidine-perforated patch-clamp technique. We found that in 97/113 (86%) of the DGCs, a burst of action potentials (APs) to excitation ended by a large sAHP, despite continued depolarization. This result suggests that burst-like firing is the default functional phenotype of DGCs and that sAHPs are important for it. Indeed, burst-like firing DGCs showed a significantly higher sAHP-current (I(sAHP)) amplitude compared to spike-frequency adapting cells (16/113 = 14%). The I(sAHP) was mediated by K(v)7 and K(ir)6 channels by pharmacological inhibition using XE991 and tolbutamide, although heterogeneously among DGCs. The percent inhibition of I(sAHP) by these compounds also correlated with the AP number and AP burst length. Application of 100 microM nickel after XE991 and tolbutamide detected a third conductance contributing to burst-like firing and the sAHP, most likely mediated by T-type calcium channels. Lastly, medial perforant path-dentate gyrus long-term potentiation was amplified by XE991 and tolbutamide. In conclusion, the sAHP shapes intrinsic burst-like firing which, under physiological circumstances, could be controlled via cholinergic afferents and ATP metabolism.

Authors: D. Laker, F. Tolle, M. Stegen, M. Heerdegen, R. Kohling, T. Kirschstein, J. Wolfart

Date Published: 15th Jul 2021

Publication Type: Journal

Oral administration of the casein kinase 2 inhibitor TBB leads to persistent K(Ca)2.2 channel up-regulation in the epileptic CA1 area and cortex, but lacks anti-seizure efficacy in the pilocarpine epilepsy model.

Abstract (Expand)

Temporal lobe epilepsy (TLE) is the most common epileptic syndrome in adults and often presents with seizures that prove intractable with currently available anticonvulsants. Thus, there is still a … need for new anti-seizure drugs in this condition. Recently, we found that the casein kinase 2 inhibitor 4,5,6,7-tetrabromotriazole (TBB) prevented the emergence of spontaneous epileptic discharges in an acute in vitro epilepsy model. This prompted us to study the anti-seizure effects of TBB in the pilocarpine model of chronic epilepsy in vivo. To this end, we performed long-term video-EEG monitoring lasting 78-167 days of nine chronically epileptic rats and obtained a baseline seizure rate of 3.3 +/- 1.3 per day (baseline of 27-80 days). We found a significant age effect with more pronounced seizure rates in older animals as compared to younger ones. However, the seizure rate increased to 6.3 +/- 2.2 per day during the oral TBB administration (treatment period of 21-50 days), and following discontinuation of TBB, this rate remained stable with 5.2 +/- 1.4 seizures per day (follow-up of 30-55 days). After completing the video-EEG during the follow-up the hippocampal tissue was prepared and studied for the expression of the Ca(2+)-activated K(+) channel K(Ca)2.2. We found a significant up-regulation of K(Ca)2.2 in the epileptic CA1 region and in the neocortex, but in no other hippocampal subfield. Hence, our findings indicate that oral administration of TBB leads to persistent up-regulation of K(Ca)2.2 in the epileptic CA1 subfield and in the neocortex, but lacks anti-seizure efficacy in the pilocarpine epilepsy model.

Authors: R. Bajorat, K. Porath, J. Kuhn, E. Gossla, D. Goerss, T. Sellmann, R. Kohling, T. Kirschstein

Date Published: 17th Sep 2018

Publication Type: Journal

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