Epitranscriptomic mediators of environmental impacts on mouse behaviours

概要

In this chapter, I tested the role of environmental factors on animal behaviour. Our
surrounding environments critically shape and modify our behaviour. However, it remains
an ongoing challenge to elucidate the connections between a set of behaviours and a
specific environment.
Rodents allow researchers to use carefully controlled environments and invasive
approaches to explore underlying biological processes. In the laboratory standard housing
(ST), animals are housed in small cages with a few cage-mates. Social isolation housing (SI) is
also often used in laboratory: animals are singly housed in small cages without social
contacts. It is known that SI induces hyperactivity and anxiety-like behaviours in rodents
(Walker et al., 2019). In contrast, enriched environment housing (EE) is a housing condition
which provides rich stimuli over multiple modalities to animals. Although various EE
protocols are being used, EE typically consists of a variety of toys such as running wheels in
larger cages. It has been shown that EE enhances learning and memory, decreases anxietylike behaviour, facilitates motor function, and alters communication patterns in animals, for
example, increases fighting behaviour (Gubert & Hannan, 2019; Kempermann, 2019;
McQuaid et al., 2012; Nithianantharajah & Hannan, 2006). Recently, enrichment removal
(ER) housing paradigm to study the effects of negative environmental changes has also
attracted attention. When housed in EE and subsequently transferred to ST, thus under ER
situation, animals showed stressed-like behaviour and altered corticosterone response
(Morano et al., 2019; Smith et al., 2017). Thus, the ER paradigm can be potentially used for
studying the effect of negative change of surrounding environments. However, the
behavioural effect of ER is underexplored, especially from the aspects of social domains
despite their scientific and societal importance. ...

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