Cerebellar Learning Properties Are Modulated by the CRF Receptor

Gili Ezra-Nevo, Francesca Prestori, Francesca Locatelli, Teresa Soda, Michiel M. ten Brinke, Mareen Engel, Henk-Jan Boele, Laura Botta, Dena Leshkowitz, Assaf Ramot, Michael Tsoory, Inbal E. Biton, Jan Deussing, Egidio D'Angelo, Chris I. De Zeeuw, Alon Chen

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) and its type 1 receptor (CRFR1) play an important role in the responses to stressful challenges. Despite the well established expression of CRFR1 in granular cells (GrCs), its role in procedural motor performance and memory formation remains elusive. To investigate the role of CRFR1 expression in cerebellar GrCs, we used a mouse model depleted of CRFR1 in these cells. We detected changes in the cellular learning mechanisms in GrCs depleted of CRFR1 in that they showed changes in intrinsic excitability and long-term synaptic plasticity. Analysis of cerebella transcriptome obtained from KO and control mice detected prominent alterations in the expression of calcium signaling pathways components. Moreover, male mice depleted of CRFR1 specifically in GrCs showed accelerated Pavlovian associative eye-blink conditioning, but no differences in baseline motor performance, locomotion, or fear and anxiety-related behaviors. Our findings shed light on the interplay between stress-related central mechanisms and cerebellar motor conditioning, highlighting the role of the CRF system in regulating particular forms of cerebellar learning.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)6751-6765
Number of pages15
JournalJournal of Neuroscience
Volume38
Issue number30
DOIs
StatePublished - 25 Jul 2018

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Neuroscience

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Cerebellar Learning Properties Are Modulated by the CRF Receptor'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this