Efferent projections of prokineticin 2 expressing neurons in the mouse suprachiasmatic nucleus

The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in the hypothalamus is the predominant circadian clock in mammals. To function as a pacemaker, the intrinsic timing signal from the SCN must be transmitted to different brain regions. Prokineticin 2 (PK2) is one of the candidate output molecules from the SCN. In thi...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:PloS one 2009-09, Vol.4 (9), p.e7151-e7151
Main Authors: Zhang, Chengkang, Truong, Kimberly K, Zhou, Qun-Yong
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Artificial chromosomes
Bacteria
Bacterial artificial chromosomes
Body temperature
Brain
Brain - metabolism
Chromosomes, Artificial, Bacterial
Circadian rhythm
Circadian rhythms
Cloning
Fluorescence
Gastrointestinal Hormones - biosynthesis
Gene expression
Gene Expression Regulation
Genes, Reporter
Genetic engineering
Green Fluorescent Proteins - metabolism
Hypothalamus
Hypothalamus (lateral)
Hypothalamus - metabolism
In Situ Hybridization, Fluorescence
Localization
Mice
Mice, Transgenic
Nervous system
Neurogenesis
Neurons
Neurons - metabolism
Neuropeptides - biosynthesis
Neuroscience
Neuroscience/Behavioral Neuroscience
Neuroscience/Neuronal and Glial Cell Biology
Oscillometry
Paraventricular nucleus
Pharmacology
Physiology
Polypeptides
Preoptic area
Promoter Regions, Genetic
Reporter gene
Rodents
Septum
Suprachiasmatic nucleus
Suprachiasmatic Nucleus - metabolism
Thalamus
Transgenic animals
Transgenic mice
Transplants & implants
Trends
Vasopressins - metabolism
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Summary:The suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) in the hypothalamus is the predominant circadian clock in mammals. To function as a pacemaker, the intrinsic timing signal from the SCN must be transmitted to different brain regions. Prokineticin 2 (PK2) is one of the candidate output molecules from the SCN. In this study, we investigated the efferent projections of PK2-expressing neurons in the SCN through a transgenic reporter approach. Using a bacterial artificial chromosome (BAC) transgenic mouse line, in which the enhanced green fluorescence protein (EGFP) reporter gene expression was driven by the PK2 promoter, we were able to obtain an efferent projections map from the EGFP-expressing neurons in the SCN. Our data revealed that EGFP-expressing neurons in the SCN, hence representing some of the PK2-expressing neurons, projected to many known SCN target areas, including the ventral lateral septum, medial preoptic area, subparaventricular zone, paraventricular nucleus, dorsomedial hypothalamic nucleus, lateral hypothalamic area and paraventricular thalamic nucleus. The efferent projections of PK2-expressing neurons supported the role of PK2 as an output molecule of the SCN.
ISSN:1932-6203
1932-6203
DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0007151