Name: calcium phosphate transfection of primary hippocampal neurons
Uploaded: 2013-11-12T18:30:00
Description: Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Calcium Phosphate Transfection of Primary Hippocampal Neurons at JoVE.com

Dette arbejde er støttet af NIH tilskud NS065183 og startfonde fra Rutgers Robert Wood Johnson Medical School.

1.. Forberedelse Rat astrocyte kultur for konditionerede medier og astrocyt-neuron cokulturer. <ol><li> Forbered dissektion buffer (BSS, se tabel 1 for opskrift) og opbevares ved 4 ° C, indtil klar til brug. </li><li> Bedøver neonatale rotteunger (P0-P2) med isofluran i et 500 ml bægerglas. </li><li> Når hvalpene er immobile, spray med 70% ethanol og halshugge. </li><li> Fjern hjerne. <ol><li> Hold hoved fast med et par Dumont # 5 pincet og anvende fine sakse til at gøre en midtlinjeincision genn...

<ol>
	<li>Karra, D., Dahm, R. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Transfection+techniques+for+neuronal+cells.">Transfection techniques for neuronal cells.</a> J. Neurosci. 30, 6171-6177 (2010).</li><li>Zeitelhofer, M., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=High-efficiency+transfection+of+mammalian+neurons+via+nucleofection.">High-efficiency transfection of mammalian neurons via nucleofection.</a> Nat. Protoc. 2, 1692-1704 (2007).</li><li>Janas, J., Skowronski, J., Van Aelst, L. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Lentiviral+delivery+of+RNAi+in+hippocampal+neurons.">Lentiviral delivery of RNAi in hippocampal neurons.</a> Method Enzymol. 406, 593-605 (2006).</li><li>Graham, F. L., vander Eb, A. J. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=A+new+technique+for+the+assay+of+infectivity+of+human+adenovirus+5+DNA.">A new technique for the assay of infectivity of human adenovirus 5 DNA.</a> Virology. 52, 456-467 (1973).</li><li>Craig, A. M., Banker, G. a. G. K. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Transfecting+cultured+neurons.">Transfecting cultured neurons.</a> Culturing Nerve Cells. , (1998).</li><li>Alavian, K. N., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Bcl-xL+regulates+metabolic+efficiency+of+neurons+through+interaction+with+the+mitochondrial+F1FO+ATP+synthase.">Bcl-xL regulates metabolic efficiency of neurons through interaction with the mitochondrial F1FO ATP synthase.</a> Nat. Cell Biol. 13, 1224-1233 (2011).</li><li>Zhang, Y., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Modulation+of+synaptic+function+by+VAC14,+a+protein+that+regulates+the+phosphoinositides+PI(3,5)P(2)+and+PI(5)P.">Modulation of synaptic function by VAC14, a protein that regulates the phosphoinositides PI(3,5)P(2) and PI(5)P.</a> EMBO J. 31, 3442-3456 (2012).</li><li>Dudek, H., Ghosh, A., Greenberg, M. E. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Calcium+phosphate+transfection+of+DNA+into+neurons+in+primary+culture.">Calcium phosphate transfection of DNA into neurons in primary culture.</a> Curr. Protoc. Neurosci. Chapter 3, Unit 3 11 (2001).</li><li>Goslin, K. A. H., Banker, G., Banker, G. a. G. K. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Rat+Hippocampal+Neurons+in+Low-Density+Culture.">Rat Hippocampal Neurons in Low-Density Culture.</a> Culturing Nerve Cells. , (1998).</li><li>Kohrmann, M., et al. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Fast,+convenient,+and+effective+method+to+transiently+transfect+primary+hippocampal+neurons.">Fast, convenient, and effective method to transiently transfect primary hippocampal neurons.</a> J. Neurosci. Res. 58, 831-835 (1999).</li><li>Jiang, M., Chen, G. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=High+Ca2+-phosphate+transfection+efficiency+in+low-density+neuronal+cultures.">High Ca2+-phosphate transfection efficiency in low-density neuronal cultures.</a> Nat. Protoc. 1, 695-700 (2006).</li><li>Goetze, B., Grunewald, B., Baldassa, S., Kiebler, M. <a target="_blank" href="http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?db=PubMed&cmd=Search&doptcmdl=Citation&defaultField=Title+Word&term=Chemically+controlled+formation+of+a+DNA/calcium+phosphate+coprecipitate:+application+for+transfection+of+mature+hippocampal+neurons.">Chemically controlled formation of a DNA/calcium phosphate coprecipitate: application for transfection of mature hippocampal neurons.</a> J. Neurobiol. 60, 517-525 (2004).</li></ol>

Der er flere vigtige parametre, der skal kontrolleres omhyggeligt for konsekvent succesfulde transfektioner 10,11. Den mest kritiske parameter for calciumphosphat-transfektion er pH-værdien af ​​2x HBS, som i vore hænder normalt varierer mellem 7,10-7,15. Vi anbefaler at tre partier af aktier med pH-værdier på 0,05 intervaller at tage højde for forskellen mellem pH meter. Alternativt Ciontech pattedyr transfektion kit giver 2x HBS, der konsekvent giver god effektivitet. Husk på, at pH-værdien i opl...

Primære neuroner er en af ​​de sværeste celletyper til transfektion, som de er postmitotiske og er meget følsomme over for mikro-miljø ændringer. Der er fire almindeligt anvendte typer af fremgangsmåder til ekspression af eksogene gener og short hairpin RNA (shRNAs) i disse celler 1. Hver har sine egne fordele og ulemper. For eksempel er elektroporering normalt udføres på frisk isolerede neuroner 2, som celler skal overføres til kuvetter til transfektion. Virus infektion kan normalt opnå en meget høj effektivitet 3, men er mere arbejdskrævende og risikabelt for operatører. Mange lipidmedieret transfektionsreagenser er kommercielt tilgængelige, med varierende grader af succes i neuroner og forskellige niveauer af cytotoksicitet. Calciumphosphat-transfektion udgør en praktisk og økonomisk fremgangsmåde til indføring af fremmede gener i neuroner. Fremgangsmåden blev først anvendt til at indføre adenovirus DNA i mammale cells af Graham og Van Der Eb (1973) 4.. Transfektion blev udført ved at blande calciumchlorid med rekombinant DNA i en phosphatpuffer. Dette tillader dannelsen af DNA / calciumphosphatudfældninger som, når efterhånden faldt på et monolag af celler, holde sig til celleoverfladen, bliver taget op ved endocytose og endelig indtaste kernen 5.. Denne proces vil føre til ekspression af indførte fremmede gener i målcellen. Typiske effektiviteten af calciumphosphat-transfektion på mellem 0,5-5% 6-8. Men med omhyggelig optimering og konsekvent gennemførelse af forsøgsprotokollen, er det muligt at opnå en transfektionseffektivitet på næsten 50%. Her beskriver vi vores detaljerede protokol for caiciumphosphattransfektion af primære hippocampus neuroner, der er dyrket sammen med astrogliale celler i en sandwich-format 9.

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			<td height="24" style="height:24px;width:284px;">Dumont #5 forceps</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Fine Science Tools</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">11251-20</td>
			<td style="width:269px;"></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">Fine scissors</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Fine Science Tools</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">14090-09</td>
			<td>straight / sharp 8.5 cm</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">Vannas-Tubinger spring scissors</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Fine Science Tools</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">15008-08</td>
			<td>angled / sharp / 8.5 cm / 5 mm cutting edge</td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">Standard pattern forceps</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Fine Science Tools</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">11000-16</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">Student surgical scissors</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Fine Science Tools</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">91401-14</td>
			<td>blunt / 14.5 cm</td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">Spring scissors</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Fine Science Tools</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">15006-09</td>
			<td>angled to side / 9 cm / 10 mm cutting edge</td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">Isoflurane</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Webster Veterinary</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">14043-225-06</td>
			<td></td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">Poly-L-lysine</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
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			<td></td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">MEM</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>M2279</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">100 mM Sodium pyruvate</td>
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			<td style="width:119px;">S8636</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">10x HBSS</td>
			<td>Sigma</td>
			<td>H4385</td>
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		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">1 M HEPES, pH 7.3</td>
			<td>Gibco/Invitrogen</td>
			<td>15630-080</td>
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			<td>Gibco/Invitrogen</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Neurobasal Media</td>
			<td>Gibco/Invitrogen</td>
			<td>21130-049</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">B27 Supplement (50x)</td>
			<td>Gibco/Invitrogen</td>
			<td>17504-044</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">N2 Supplement</td>
			<td>Gibco/Invitrogen</td>
			<td>17502-048</td>
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			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Ovalbumin</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">A5503</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;">Penicillin/Streptomycin</td>
			<td>Gibco/Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">15070-063</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">2.5% Trypsin</td>
			<td>Gibco/Invitrogen</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">15090-046</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">DNase I</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">DN-25</td>
			<td></td>
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		<tr height="20">
			<td height="20" style="height:20px;width:284px;">Cytosine arabinoside</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Calbiochem/EMD Millipore</td>
			<td align="right" style="width:119px;">251010</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
		<tr height="21">
			<td height="21" style="height:21px;width:284px;">Kynurenic acid</td>
			<td style="width:207px;">Sigma</td>
			<td style="width:119px;">K3375</td>
			<td></td>
		</tr>
	</tbody>
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calcium phosphate transfection of primary hippocampal neurons

Calciumphosphatpræcipitation er en praktisk og økonomisk fremgangsmåde til transfektion af dyrkede celler. Med optimering, er det muligt at anvende denne metode på svære at transficere celler som primære neuroner. Her beskriver vi vores detaljerede protokol for caiciumphosphattransfektion af hippocampus neuroner dyrket sammen med astrogliale celler.

Når de forskellige parametre for transfektion optimeres og kontrolleres omhyggeligt fra eksperiment til eksperiment, er det muligt at finde transfektionseffektiviteten på op til 50%. Figur 1 viser et felt af neuroner, der er transficeret med GFP på DIV4. Feltet indeholder i alt 28 neuroner, hvoraf 16 blev transfekteret. Dette svarer til en virkningsgrad på over 50%. Et udsnit af andre felter på samme dækglas viser den samlede effektivitet er omkring 50% (data ikke vist). Med astroglial cokultur sy...

Watch this Scientific Journal Video about Calcium Phosphate Transfection of Primary Hippocampal Neurons at JoVE.com

Calcium Phosphate Transfection of Primary Hippocampal Neurons

Calciumphosphat Transfektion af primær hippocampusneuroner

Calcium phosphate precipitation is a convenient and economical method for transfection of cultured cells. With optimization, it is possible to use this ...

calcium-phosphate-transfection-of-primary-hippocampal-neurons

Research

JoVE Journal

Neuroscience

Nucleofection and Primary Culture of Embryonic Mouse Hippocampal and Cortical Neurons

Hippocampal and cortical neurons have been used extensively to study central nervous system (CNS) neuronal polarization, axon/dendrite outgrowth, and synapse formation and function. An advantage of culturing these neurons is that they readily polarize, forming distinctive axons and dendrites, on a two dimensional substrate at very low densities. This property has made them extremely useful for determining many aspects of neuronal development. Furthermore, by providing glial conditioning for these neurons they will continue to develop, forming functional synaptic connections and surviving for several months in culture. In this protocol we outline a technique to dissect, culture and transfect embryonic mouse hippocampal and cortical neurons. Transfection is accomplished by electroporating DNA into the neurons before plating via nucleofection. This protocol has the advantage of expressing fluorescently-tagged fusion proteins early in development (~4-8hrs after plating) to study the dynamics and function of proteins during polarization, axon outgrowth and branching. We have also discovered that this single transfection before plating maintains fluorescently-tagged fusion protein expression at levels appropriate for imaging throughout the lifetime of the neuron (&gt; 2 months in culture). Thus, this methodology is useful for studying protein localization and function throughout CNS development with little or no disruption of neuronal function.

This protocol outlines the steps required to dissect, transfect via electroporation and culture mouse hippocampal and cortical neurons. Short-term cultures may be used for studies of axon outgrowth and guidance, while long-term cultures can be used for studies of synaptogenesis and dendritic spine analysis.

Hippocampal and cortical neurons have been used extensively to study central nervous system (CNS) neuronal polarization, axon/dendrite outgrowth, and ...

Isolation and Culture of Hippocampal Neurons from Prenatal Mice

Primary cultures of rat and murine hippocampal neurons are widely used to reveal cellular mechanisms in neurobiology. By isolating and growing individual neurons, researchers are able to analyze properties related to cellular trafficking, cellular structure and individual protein localization using a variety of biochemical techniques. Results from such experiments are critical for testing theories addressing the neural basis of memory and learning. However, unambiguous results from these forms of experiments are predicated on the ability to grow neuronal cultures with minimum contamination by other brain cell types. In this protocol, we use specific media designed for neuron growth and careful dissection of embryonic hippocampal tissue to optimize growth of healthy neurons while minimizing contaminating cell types (i.e. astrocytes). Embryonic mouse hippocampal tissue can be more difficult to isolate than similar rodent tissue due to the size of the sample for dissection. We show detailed dissection techniques of hippocampus from embryonic day 19 (E19) mouse pups. Once hippocampal tissue is isolated, gentle dissociation of neuronal cells is achieved with a dilute concentration of trypsin and mechanical disruption designed to separate cells from connective tissue while providing minimum damage to individual cells. A detailed description of how to prepare pipettes to be used in the disruption is included. Optimal plating densities are provided for immuno-fluorescence protocols to maximize successful cell culture. The protocol provides a fast (approximately 2 hr) and efficient technique for the culture of neuronal cells from mouse hippocampal tissue.

We provide a protocol for the culture of highly purified hippocampal neurons from prenatal mouse brains without the use of a feeder glial cell layer.

Isolering og dyrkning af hippocampus neuroner fra Prænatal Mus

Primary cultures of rat and murine hippocampal neurons are widely used to reveal cellular mechanisms in neurobiology. By isolating and growing individual ...

Imaging Dendritic Spines of Rat Primary Hippocampal Neurons using Structured Illumination Microscopy

Dendritic spines are protrusions emerging from the dendrite of a neuron and represent the primary postsynaptic targets of excitatory inputs in the brain. Technological advances have identified these structures as key elements in neuron connectivity and synaptic plasticity. The quantitative analysis of spine morphology using light microscopy remains an essential problem due to technical limitations associated with light's intrinsic refraction limit. Dendritic spines can be readily identified by confocal laser-scanning fluorescence microscopy. However, measuring subtle changes in the shape and size of spines is difficult because spine dimensions other than length are usually smaller than conventional optical resolution fixed by light microscopy's theoretical resolution limit of 200 nm.
Several recently developed super resolution techniques have been used to image cellular structures smaller than the 200 nm, including dendritic spines. These techniques are based on classical far-field operations and therefore allow the use of existing sample preparation methods and to image beyond the surface of a specimen. Described here is a working protocol to apply super resolution structured illumination microscopy (SIM) to the imaging of dendritic spines in primary hippocampal neuron cultures. Possible applications of SIM overlap with those of confocal microscopy. However, the two techniques present different applicability. SIM offers higher effective lateral resolution, while confocal microscopy, due to the usage of a physical pinhole, achieves resolution improvement at the expense of removal of out of focus light. In this protocol, primary neurons are cultured on glass coverslips using a standard protocol, transfected with DNA plasmids encoding fluorescent proteins and imaged using SIM. The whole protocol described herein takes approximately 2 weeks, because dendritic spines are imaged after 16-17 days in vitro, when dendritic development is optimal. After completion of the protocol, dendritic spines can be reconstructed in 3D from series of SIM image stacks using specialized software.

This article describes a working protocol to image dendritic spines from hippocampal neurons in vitro using Structured Illumination Microscopy (SIM). Super-resolution microscopy using SIM provides image resolution significantly beyond the light diffraction limit in all three spatial dimensions, allowing the imaging of individual dendritic spines with improved detail.

Imaging dendritiske udløbere af Rat Primær hippocampusneuroner hjælp Structured Illumination Mikroskopi

Dendritic spines are protrusions emerging from the dendrite of a neuron and represent the primary postsynaptic targets of excitatory inputs in the brain. ...

Primary Culture of Mouse Dopaminergic Neurons

Dopaminergic neurons represent less than 1% of the total number of neurons in the brain. This low amount of neurons regulates important brain functions such as motor control, motivation, and working memory. Nigrostriatal dopaminergic neurons selectively degenerate in Parkinson&#39;s disease (PD). This progressive neuronal loss is unequivocally associated with the motors symptoms of the pathology (bradykinesia, resting tremor, and muscular rigidity). The main agent responsible of dopaminergic neuron degeneration is still unknown. However, these neurons appear to be extremely vulnerable in diverse conditions. Primary cultures constitute one of the most relevant models to investigate properties and characteristics of dopaminergic neurons. These cultures can be submitted to various stress agents that mimic PD pathology and to neuroprotective compounds in order to stop or slow down neuronal degeneration. The numerous transgenic mouse models of PD that have been generated during the last decade further increased the interest of researchers for dopaminergic neuron cultures. Here, the video protocol focuses on the delicate dissection of embryonic mouse brains. Precise excision of ventral mesencephalon is crucial to obtain neuronal cultures sufficiently rich in dopaminergic cells to allow subsequent studies. This protocol can be realized with embryonic transgenic mice and is suitable for immunofluorescence staining, quantitative PCR, second messenger quantification, or neuronal death/survival assessment.

Dopaminergic neurons play a vital regulatory role in the brain. Their loss is associated with Parkinson's disease. In this video, we show how to generate primary cultures of central dopaminergic neurons from embryonic mouse mesencephalon. Such cultures are useful to study the extreme vulnerability of these neurons to various stresses.

Primær Kultur Mouse dopaminerge neuroner

Dopaminergic neurons represent less than 1% of the total number of neurons in the brain. This low amount of neurons regulates important brain functions ...

Fluorescence and Bioluminescence Imaging of Subcellular Ca2+ in Aged Hippocampal Neurons

Susceptibility to neuron cell death associated to neurodegeneration and ischemia are exceedingly increased in the aged brain but mechanisms responsible are badly known. Excitotoxicity, a process believed to contribute to neuron damage induced by both insults, is mediated by activation of glutamate receptors that promotes Ca2+ influx and mitochondrial Ca2+ overload. A substantial change in intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis or remodeling of intracellular Ca2+ homeostasis may favor neuron damage in old neurons. For investigating Ca2+ remodeling in aging we have used live cell imaging in long-term cultures of rat hippocampal neurons that resemble in some aspects aged neurons in vivo. For this end, hippocampal cells are, in first place, freshly dispersed from new born rat hippocampi and plated on poli-D-lysine coated, glass coverslips. Then cultures are kept in controlled media for several days or several weeks for investigating young and old neurons, respectively. Second, cultured neurons are loaded with fura2 and subjected to measurements of cytosolic Ca2+ concentration using digital fluorescence ratio imaging. Third, cultured neurons are transfected with plasmids expressing a tandem of low-affinity aequorin and GFP targeted to mitochondria. After 24 hr, aequorin inside cells is reconstituted with coelenterazine and neurons are subjected to bioluminescence imaging for monitoring of mitochondrial Ca2+ concentration. This three-step procedure allows the monitoring of cytosolic and mitochondrial Ca2+ responses to relevant stimuli as for example the glutamate receptor agonist NMDA and compare whether these and other responses are influenced by aging. This procedure may yield new insights as to how aging influence cytosolic and mitochondrial Ca2+ responses to selected stimuli as well as the testing of selected drugs aimed at preventing neuron cell death in age-related diseases.

Fluorescence and Bioluminescence Imaging of Subcellular Ca2+ in Aged Hippocampal Neurons

Intracellular Ca2+ remodeling in aging may contribute to excitotoxicity and neuron damage, processes mediated by Ca2+ overload. We aimed at investigating Ca2+ remodeling in the aging brain using fluorescence and bioluminescence imaging of cytosolic and mitochondrial Ca2+ in long-term cultures of rat hippocampal neurons, a model of neuronal aging.

Fluorescens og Bioluminescens Imaging af Subcellulær Ca<sup&gt; 2+</sup&gt; I Aged hippocampusneuroner

Susceptibility to neuron cell death associated to neurodegeneration and ischemia are exceedingly increased in the aged brain but mechanisms responsible ...

Low-Density Primary Hippocampal Neuron Culture

The ability to probe the structure and physiology of individual nerve cells in culture is crucial to the study of neurobiology, and allows for flexibility in genetic and chemical manipulation of individual cells or defined networks. Such ease of manipulation is simpler in the reduced culture system when compared to the intact brain tissue. While many methods for the isolation and growth of these primary neurons exist, each has its own limitations. This protocol describes a method for culturing low-density and high-purity rodent embryonic hippocampal neurons on glass coverslips, which are then suspended over a monolayer of glial cells. This &#39;sandwich culture&#39; allows for exclusive long-term growth of a population of neurons while allowing for trophic support from the underlying glial monolayer. When neurons are of sufficient age or maturity level, the neuron coverslips can be flipped-out of the glial dish and used in imaging or functional assays. Neurons grown by this method typically survive for several weeks and develop extensive arbors, synaptic connections, and network properties.

This article describes the protocol for culturing low-density primary hippocampal neurons growing on glass coverslips inverted over a glial monolayer. The neuron and glial layers are separated by paraffin wax beads. The neurons grown by this method are suitable for high-resolution optical imaging and functional assays.

Low-Density Primær Hippocampal neuronkultur

The ability to probe the structure and physiology of individual nerve cells in culture is crucial to the study of neurobiology, and allows for flexibility ...

Measuring Synaptic Vesicle Endocytosis in Cultured Hippocampal Neurons

During endocytosis, fused synaptic vesicles are retrieved at nerve terminals, allowing for vesicle recycling and thus the maintenance of synaptic transmission during repetitive nerve firing. Impaired endocytosis in pathological conditions leads to decreases in synaptic strength and brain functions. Here, we describe methods used to measure synaptic vesicle endocytosis at the mammalian hippocampal synapse in neuronal culture. We monitored synaptic vesicle protein endocytosis by fusing a synaptic vesicular membrane protein, including synaptophysin and VAMP2/synaptobrevin, at the vesicular lumenal side, with pHluorin, a pH-sensitive green fluorescent protein that increases its fluorescence intensity as the pH increases. During exocytosis, vesicular lumen pH increases, whereas during endocytosis vesicular lumen pH is re-acidified. Thus, an increase of pHluorin fluorescence intensity indicates fusion, whereas a decrease indicates endocytosis of the labelled synaptic vesicle protein. In addition to using the pHluorin imaging method to record endocytosis, we monitored vesicular membrane endocytosis by electron microscopy (EM) measurements of Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) uptake by vesicles. Finally, we monitored the formation of nerve terminal membrane pits at various times after high potassium-induced depolarization. The time course of HRP uptake and membrane pit formation indicates the time course of endocytosis.

Synaptic vesicle endocytosis is detected by light microscopy of pHluorin fused with synaptic vesicle protein and by electron microscopy of vesicle uptake.

Måling af Synaptic vesikel endocytose i kulturperler hippocampus neuroner

During endocytosis, fused synaptic vesicles are retrieved at nerve terminals, allowing for vesicle recycling and thus the maintenance of synaptic ...

Generation of Neurospheres from Mixed Primary Hippocampal and Cortical Neurons Isolated from E14-E16 Sprague Dawley Rat Embryo

Primary neuron culture is an essential technique in the field of neuroscience. To gain deeper mechanistic insights into the brain, it is essential to have a robust in vitro model that can be exploited for various neurobiology studies. Though primary neuron cultures (i.e., long-term hippocampal cultures) have provided scientists with models, it does not yet represent the complexity of brain network completely. In the wake of these limitations, a new model has emerged using neurospheres, which bears a closer resemblance to the brain tissue. The present protocol describes the plating of high and low densities of mixed cortical and hippocampal neurons isolated from the embryo of embryonic day 14-16 Sprague Dawley rats. This allows for the generation of neurospheres and long-term primary neuron culture as two independent platforms to conduct further studies. This process is extremely simple and cost-effective, as it minimizes several steps and reagents previously deemed essential for neuron culture. This is a robust protocol with minimal requirements that can be performed with achievable results and further used for a diversity of studies related to neuroscience.

Presented here is a protocol for the spontaneous generation of neurospheres enriched in neural progenitor cells from high density plated neurons. During the same experiment, when neurons are plated at a lower density, the protocol also results in prolonged primary rat neuron cultures.

Generation af Neuro kugler fra blandede primære hippocampus og kortikale neuroner isoleret fra E14-E16 Sprague Dawley rotte embryo

Primary neuron culture is an essential technique in the field of neuroscience. To gain deeper mechanistic insights into the brain, it is essential to have ...

Use of Primary Cultured Hippocampal Neurons to Study the Assembly of Axon Initial Segments

Neuronal axon initial segments (AIS) are sites of initiation of action potentials and have been extensively studied for their molecular structure, assembly and activity-dependent plasticity. Giant ankyrin-G, the master organizer of AIS, directly associates with membrane-spanning voltage gated sodium (VSVG) and potassium channels (KCNQ2/3), as well as 186 kDa neurofascin, a L1CAM cell adhesion molecule. Giant ankyrin-G also binds to and recruits cytoplasmic AIS molecules including beta-4-spectrin, and the microtubule-binding proteins, EB1/EB3 and Ndel1. Giant ankyrin-G is sufficient to rescue AIS formation in ankyrin-G deficient neurons. Ankyrin-G also includes a smaller 190 kDa isoform located at dendritic spines instead of the AIS, which is incapable of targeting to the AIS or rescuing the AIS in ankyrin-G-deficient neurons. Here, we described a protocol using cultured hippocampal neurons from ANK3-E22/23-flox mice, which, when transfected with Cre-BFP exhibit loss of all isoform of ankyrin-G and impair the formation of AIS. Combined a modified Banker glia/neuron co-culture system, we developed a method to transfect ankyrin-G null neurons with a 480 kDa ankyrin-G-GFP plasmid, which is sufficient to rescue the formation of AIS. We further employ a quantification method, developed by Salzer and colleagues to deal with variation in AIS distance from the neuronal cell bodies that occurs in hippocampal neuron cultures. This protocol allows quantitative studies of the de novo assembly and dynamic behavior of AIS.

Here, we described a protocol to quantitatively study the assembly and structure of the axon initial segments (AIS) of hippocampal neurons that lack pre-assembled AIS due to the absence of a giant ankyrin-G.

Brug af primære kulturperler Hippocampal Neuroner til at studere forsamlingen af Axon indledende segmenter

Neuronal axon initial segments (AIS) are sites of initiation of action potentials and have been extensively studied for their molecular structure, ...

Easy and Reproducible Low-Density Primary Culture using Frozen Stock of Embryonic Hippocampal Neurons

Neuronal culture is a valuable system for evaluating synaptic functions and drug screenings. In particular, a low-density culture of primary hippocampal neurons allows the study of individual neurons or subcellular components. We have shown subcellular protein localization within a neuron by immunocytochemistry, neuronal polarity, synaptic morphology, and its developmental change using a low-density primary hippocampal culture. Recently, ready-to-use frozen stocks of neurons have become commercially available. These frozen stocks of neurons reduce the time needed to prepare animal experiments and also contribute to the reduction of the number of animals used. Here, we introduce a reproducible low-density primary culture method using a 96-well plate. We used a commercially available frozen stock of neurons from the rat embryonic hippocampus. The neurons can be stably cultured long-term without media changes by reducing the growth of glial cells at particular timepoints. This high-throughput assay using low-density culture allows reproducible imaging-based evaluations of synaptic plasticity.

A ready-to-use frozen stock of neurons is a powerful tool for evaluating synaptic functions. Here, we introduce an easy low-density primary culture from frozen stock using a 96-well plate.

Nem og reproducerbar primærkultur med lav densitet ved hjælp af frossen bestand af embryonale hippocampale neuroner

Neuronal culture is a valuable system for evaluating synaptic functions and drug screenings. In particular, a low-density culture of primary hippocampal ...