Biology subjects

Tonini, R.

Publications and source records attributed to Tonini, R..

6 recordsLinked to original sources

bioRxiv2025

Nanoscale synaptic remodeling at corticostriatal circuits predicts flexible action control

Synaptic plasticity is a fundamental substrate of behavioral adaptation, yet the underlying molecular dynamics remain poorly defined. We tested the hypothesis that, within striatal circuits, flexibility relies on nanoscale remodeling of synaptic machinery coupling anterograde glutamatergic transmission to retrograde endocannabinoid signaling, a process disrupted in states of rigidity and aging. In the dorsolateral striatum, we found cell-type-specific facilitation of metabotropic glutamate receptor 5 (mGlu5)-dependent, endocannabinoid-mediated long-term depression at cortico-striatal synapses of indirect pathway neurons in flexible goal-directed behavior, but not after training promoting inflexibility. Stochastic Optical Reconstruction Microscopy (STORM) super-resolution imaging revealed that behavioral adaptation, but not rigidity, is accompanied by increased postsynaptic abundance of mGlu5 and diacylglycerol lipase- (DAGL), an endocannabinoid-synthesizing enzyme, and presynaptic CB1 cannabinoid receptors. In parallel, the nanoscale distance between mGlu5 and DAGL is reduced in postsynaptic spine heads. These nanoscale changes emerged within the time window required for behavioral updating. Intriguingly, the molecular densities of mGlu5, DAGL, and CB1 receptors predict the strength of behavioral adaptation. In aging mice, these nanoscale changes were absent in association with behavioral rigidity. These findings identify a nanoscale synaptic remodeling mechanism that enables behavioral flexibility and reveal how its failure contributes to rigidity, including that observed in aging.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2023

Serotonergic and dopaminergic neurons in the dorsal raphe are differentially altered in a mouse model for Parkinson's disease.

Parkinsons disease (PD) is characterized by motor impairments caused by degeneration of dopamine neurons in the substantia nigra pars compacta. In addition to these symptoms, PD patients often suffer from non-motor co-morbidities including sleep and psychiatric disturbances, which are thought to depend on concomitant alterations of serotonergic and noradrenergic transmission. A primary locus of serotonergic neurons is the dorsal raphe nucleus (DRN), providing brain-wide serotonergic input. Here, we identified electrophysiological and morphological parameters to classify serotonergic and dopaminergic neurons in the murine DRN under control conditions and in a PD model, following striatal injection of the catecholamine toxin, 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA). Electrical and morphological properties of both neuronal populations were altered by 6-OHDA. In serotonergic neurons, most changes were reversed when 6-OHDA was injected in combination with desipramine, a noradrenaline reuptake inhibitor, protecting the noradrenergic terminals. Our results show that the depletion of both noradrenaline and dopamine in the 6-OHDA mouse model causes changes in the DRN neural circuitry.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

A cross-species link between mTOR-related synaptic pathology and functional hyperconnectivityin autism

Postmortem studies have revealed increased density of excitatory synapses in the brains of individuals with autism, with a putative link to aberrant mTOR-dependent synaptic pruning. Autism is also characterized by atypical macroscale functional connectivity as measured with resting-state fMRI (rsfMRI). These observations raise the question of whether excess of synapses cause aberrant functional connectivity in autism. Using rsfMRI, electrophysiology and in silico modelling in Tsc2 haploinsufficient mice, we show that mTOR-dependent increased spine density is associated with autism-like stereotypies and cortico-striatal hyperconnectivity. These deficits are completely rescued by pharmacological inhibition of mTOR. Notably, we further demonstrate that children with idiopathic autism exhibit analogous cortical-striatal hyperconnectivity, and document that this connectivity fingerprint is enriched for autism-dysregulated genes interacting with mTOR or TSC2. Finally, we show that the identified transcriptomic signature is predominantly expressed in a subset of children with autism, thereby defining a segregable autism subtype. Our findings causally link mTOR-related synaptic pathology to large-scale network aberrations, revealing a unifying multi-scale framework that mechanistically reconciles developmental synaptopathy and functional hyperconnectivity in autism. SignificanceAberrant brain functional connectivity is a hallmark of autism, but the neural basis of this phenomenon remains unclear. We show that a mouse line recapitulating mTOR-dependent synaptic pruning deficits observed in postmortem autistic brains exhibits widespread functional hyperconnectivity. Importantly, pharmacological normalization of mTOR signalling completely rescues synaptic, behavioral and functional connectivity deficits. We also show that a similar connectivity fingerprint can be isolated in human fMRI scans of people with autism, where it is linked to over-expression of mTOR-related genes. Our results reveal a unifying multi-scale translational framework that mechanistically links aberrations in synaptic pruning with functional hyperconnectivity in autism.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2020

Plasticity of the glutamate transporter EAAT2 on striatal astrocytes regulates flexibility inbehavior

Modulation of striatal circuits is necessary for behavioral flexibility and confers the ability to adapt to environmental changes. Striatal astrocytes contribute to circuit neuromodulation by controlling the activity of ambient neurotransmitters. In particular, extracellular glutamate levels are tightly controlled by the astrocytic glutamate transporter EAAT2, thereby influencing synaptic functioning and neural network activity. While disturbances in EAAT2 have been related to neurological dysfunctions, it remains unclear if environmental cues influence this proteins function to specifically shape action control. In this study, we investigate the relationship between experience-dependent plasticity of EAAT2 expression and action inflexibility that follows overtraining for an instrumental task. We find that task overtraining is associated with the upregulation of EAAT2 in the lateral part of the dorsal striatum (DLS). Interfering with EAAT2 upregulation by chemogenetic activation of astrocytic Gq signaling or by transient in vivo knockdown of EAAT2 in the DLS restores behavioral flexibility. Astrocytes are emerging as critical regulators of striatal functions, and by demonstrating that plasticity of EAAT2 expression in the DLS shapes behavior, this work provides novel mechanistic insights into how flexibility in action control is regulated.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2018

Modulation of ERK1/MAPK3 potentiates ERK nuclear signalling, facilitates neuronal cell survival and improves memory in mouse models of neurodegenerative disorders

Cell signalling mechanisms are central to neuronal activity and their dysregulation may lead to neurodegenerative processes and associated cognitive decline. So far, a major effort has been directed toward the dissection of disease specific pathways with the still unmet promise to develop precision medicine strategies. With a different approach, here we show that a selective genetic potentiation of neuronal ERK signalling prevents cell death in vitro and in vivo in the mouse brain while ERK attenuation does the opposite. This neuroprotective effect can also be induced pharmacologically by a cell permeable peptide mimicking the loss of ERK1 MAP kinase, leading to a selective enhancement of ERK2 mediated nuclear cell signalling. The drug treatment prevents neurodegeneration in mouse models of Huntingtons (HD), Alzheimers (AD), and Parkinsons disease (PD). Importantly, the selective potentiation of ERK2 signalling facilitates both structural and synaptic plasticity, enhances cognition in healthy mice and rescues mild cognitive impairments in both models of AD and HD. Altogether, our observation truly represents a remarkable example of a shared molecular mechanism across multiple neurodegenerative disorders and a potentially valuable therapeutic target for neuro-enhancement.

neuroscience↗

bioRxiv2017

Brainwide Mapping Of Endogenous Serotonergic Transmission Via Chemogenetic-fMRI

Serotonergic transmission affects behaviours and neuro-physiological functions via the orchestrated recruitment of distributed neural systems. It is however unclear whether serotonins modulatory effect entails a global regulation of brainwide neural activity, or is relayed and encoded by a set of primary functional substrates. Here we combine DREADD-based chemogenetics and mouse fMRI, an approach we term \"chemo-fMRI\", to causally probe the brainwide substrates modulated by phasic serotonergic activity. We describe the generation of a conditional knock-in mouse line that, crossed with serotonin-specific Cre-recombinase mice, allowed us to remotely stimulate serotonergic neurons during fMRI scans. We show that chemogenetic stimulation of the serotonin system does not affect global brain activity, but results in region-specific activation of a set of primary target regions encompassing parieto-cortical, hippocampal, and midbrain structures, as well as ventro-striatal components of the mesolimbic reward systems. Many of the activated regions also exhibit increased c-Fos immunostaining upon chemogenetic stimulation in freely-behaving mice, corroborating a neural origin for the observed functional signals. These results identify a set of regional substrates that act as primary functional targets of endogenous serotonergic stimulation, and establish causation between phasic activation of serotonergic neurons and regional fMRI signals. They further highlight a functional cross-talk between serotonin and mesolimbic dopamine systems hence providing a novel framework for understanding serotonin dependent functions and interpreting data obtained from human fMRI studies of serotonin modulating agents.

neuroscience↗