Article abstract


Nature Neuroscience 11, 1153 - 1161 (2008)
Published online: 31 August 2008 | doi:10.1038/nn.2185

Roles of continuous neurogenesis in the structural and functional integrity of the adult forebrain

Itaru Imayoshi1,2,3, Masayuki Sakamoto1,2, Toshiyuki Ohtsuka1,3, Keizo Takao4,5,6, Tsuyoshi Miyakawa4,5,6, Masahiro Yamaguchi7, Kensaku Mori7, Toshio Ikeda8,9, Shigeyoshi Itohara8 & Ryoichiro Kageyama1,3


Neurogenesis occurs continuously in the forebrain of adult mammals, but the functional importance of adult neurogenesis is still unclear. Here, using a genetic labeling method in adult mice, we found that continuous neurogenesis results in the replacement of the majority of granule neurons in the olfactory bulb and a substantial addition of granule neurons to the hippocampal dentate gyrus. Genetic ablation of newly formed neurons in adult mice led to a gradual decrease in the number of granule cells in the olfactory bulb, inhibition of increases in the granule cell number in the dentate gyrus and impairment of behaviors in contextual and spatial memory, which are known to depend on hippocampus. These results suggest that continuous neurogenesis is required for the maintenance and reorganization of the whole interneuron system in the olfactory bulb, the modulation and refinement of the existing neuronal circuits in the dentate gyrus and the normal behaviors involved in hippocampal-dependent memory.

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  1. Institute for Virus Research, Kyoto University, Shogoin-Kawahara, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan.
  2. Kyoto University Graduate School of Biostudies, Yoshida-Konoe, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.
  3. Japan Science and Technology Agency, CREST, Shogoin-Kawahara, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8507, Japan.
  4. Kyoto University Graduate School of Medicine, Yoshida-Konoe, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto 606-8501, Japan.
  5. Fujita Health University, 1-98 Dengakugakubo, Kutsukake-cho, Toyoake, Aichi 470-1192, Japan.
  6. Institute for Bioinformatics Research and Development and CREST, 4-1-8, Honcho, Kawaguchi, Saitama 332-0012, Japan.
  7. Graduate School of Medicine, University of Tokyo, 7-3-1, Hongo, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-0033, Japan.
  8. RIKEN Brain Science Institute, 2-1 Hirosawa, Wako, Saitama 351-0198, Japan.
  9. Present address: National Institute for Longevity Sciences, 36-3, Gengo, Morioka, Obu, Aichi 474-8511, Japan.

Correspondence to: Ryoichiro Kageyama1,3 e-mail: rkageyam@virus.kyoto-u.ac.jp



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