title: Increased anxiety in mice lacking vitamin D receptor gene.
abstract: Vitamin D is a steroid hormone with many important functions in the brain, mediated through the vitamin D nuclear receptor. Numerous human and animal data link vitamin D dysfunctions to various behavioural disorders. To examine this problem, we studied whether genetic ablation of vitamin D receptors in mice may be associated with altered emotional behaviours. Here we show that the receptor-deficient mice demonstrate increased anxiety-like behaviours when subjected to a battery of behavioural tests. These studies suggest that vitamin D and its receptors are an important factor in the brain, whose imbalance may significantly affect emotional behaviour.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy, Medical School, University of Tampere, FIN-33014 Tampere, Finland. avkalueff@inbox.ru
authors.forename: Allan V
authors.initials: AV
authors.lastname: Kalueff
authors.forename: Yan-Ru
authors.initials: YR
authors.lastname: Lou
authors.forename: Ilkka
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Laaksi
authors.forename: Pentti
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Tuohimaa
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001008:Anxiety Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000378:metabolism; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology; D001921:Brain / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005106:Exploratory Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D006120:Grooming / Q000502:physiology; D008297:Male; D018782:Maze Learning / Q000502:physiology; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D009043:Motor Activity / Q000235:genetics; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D018167:Receptors, Calcitriol / Q000172:deficiency* / Q000235:genetics; D015854:Up-Regulation / Q000235:genetics; D014807:Vitamin D / Q000378:metabolism*
chemical_list: D018167:Receptors, Calcitriol; D014807:Vitamin D