Age-dependent role for Ras-GRF1 in the late stages of adult neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus.

ABSTRACT: The dentate gyrus of the hippocampus plays a pivotal role in pattern separation, a process required for the behavioral task of contextual discrimination. One unique feature of the dentate gyrus that contributes to pattern separation is adult neurogenesis, where newly born neurons play a distinct role in neuronal circuitry. Moreover,the function of neurogenesis in this brain region differs in adolescent and adult mice. The signaling mechanisms that differentially regulate the distinct steps of adult neurogenesis in adolescence and adulthood remain poorly understood. We used mice lacking RASGRF1(GRF1), a calcium-dependent exchange factor that regulates synaptic plasticity and participates in contextual discrimination performed by mice, to test whether GRF1 plays a role in adult neurogenesis.

SUBMITTER: Darcy MJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4007399 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature