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Integration of New Neurons into the Adult Hippocampus

  • Chapter
Neurogenesis in the Adult Brain I

Abstract

The hippocampus is one of the regions where continuous addition of new neurons occurs in adult mammalian brains. In this review, we describe the process of integration of newborn neurons into the neural circuitry of the hippocampus in adult rodents and discuss how hippocampal neurogenesis is regulated by the neural network activity. We further address the functional implications of adult hippocampal neurogenesis in learning and memory.

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Abbreviations

AMPA:

α-Amino-3-hydroxy-5-methyl-4-isoxazolepropionic acid

BLBP:

Brain lipid-binding protein

BrdU:

Bromodeoxyuridine

CNS:

Central nervous system

Dcx:

Doublecortin

DG:

Dentate gyrus

GFAP:

Glial fibrillary acidic protein

IEGs:

Immediate early genes

LTP:

Long-term potentiation

MAM:

Methylazoxymethanol acetate

MWM:

Morris water maze

NeuN:

Neuronal nuclei

NKCC1:

Na-K-2Cl cotransporter

NMDA:

N-methyl-d-aspartic acid

POMC:

Pro-opiomelanocortin

PSA-NCAM:

Polysialated form of neural cell adhesion molecule

SGZ:

Subgranular zone

Tk:

Thymidine kinase

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Jamie Simon for illustrations and Mary Lynn Gage for helpful comments. This work is supported by National Institutes of Health, Picower Foundation, Lookout Foundation, and J.S. McDonnell Foundations.

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Correspondence to Fred H. Gage .

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Deng, W., Zhao, C., Gage, F.H. (2011). Integration of New Neurons into the Adult Hippocampus. In: Seki, T., Sawamoto, K., Parent, J.M., Alvarez-Buylla, A. (eds) Neurogenesis in the Adult Brain I. Springer, Tokyo. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-4-431-53933-9_9

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