Mice lacking the synaptic adhesion molecule Neph2/Kirrel3 display moderate hyperactivity and defective novel object preference.
Synaptic adhesion molecules regulate diverse aspects of neuronal synapse development, including synapse specificity, formation, and maturation. Neph2, also known as Kirrel3, is an immunoglobulin superfamily adhesion molecule implicated in intellectual disability, neurocognitive delay associated with Jacobsen syndrome, and autism spectrum disorders. We here report mice lacking Neph2 (Neph2(-/-) mice) display moderate hyperactivity in a familiar, but not novel, environment and defective novel object recognition with normal performances in Morris water maze spatial learning and memory, contextual fear conditioning and extinction, and pattern separation tests. These mice also show normal levels of anxiety-like behaviors, social interaction, and repetitive behaviors. At the synapse level, Neph2(-/-) dentate gyrus granule cells exhibit unaltered dendritic spine density and spontaneous excitatory synaptic transmission. These results suggest that Neph2 is important for normal locomotor activity and object recognition memory.
Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Daejeon, South Korea.
Su-Yeon
SY
Choi
Department of Neuroscience and Division of Brain Korea 21, Biomedical Science, College of Medicine, Korea University Seoul, South Korea.
Kihoon
K
Han
Department of Neurology, Columbia University Medical Center New York, NY, USA.
Tyler
T
Cutforth
Department of Biomedical Sciences, Graduate School of Medical Science and Engineering, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Daejeon, South Korea.
Woosuk
W
Chung
Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Daejeon, South Korea.
Haram
H
Park
Center for Synaptic Brain Dysfunctions, Institute for Basic Science Daejeon, South Korea.
Dongsoo
D
Lee
Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Daejeon, South Korea.
Ryunhee
R
Kim
Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Daejeon, South Korea.
Myeong-Heui
MH
Kim
Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Daejeon, South Korea.
Yeeun
Y
Choi
Department of Biology, Stanford University Stanford, CA, USA ; Howard Hughes Medical Institute Chevy Chase, MD, USA.
Kang
K
Shen
Department of Biological Sciences, Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology Daejeon, South Korea ; Center for Synaptic Brain Dysfunctions, Institute for Basic Science Daejeon, South Korea.
Eunjoon
E
Kim
autism spectrum disorder; cognition; hyperactivity; intellectual disability; memory; synaptic adhesion; synaptic transmission