Biogeomagnetism Group, Key Laboratory of Earth and Planetary Physics, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Innovation Academy for Earth Science, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, China.
Nat Commun. 2021 Feb 19;12(1):1174. doi: 10.1038/s41467-021-21468-x.
Adult hippocampal neurogenesis contributes to learning and memory, and is sensitive to a variety of environmental stimuli. Exposure to a hypomagnetic field (HMF) influences the cognitive processes of various animals, from insects to human beings. However, whether HMF exposure affect adult hippocampal neurogenesis and hippocampus-dependent cognitions is still an enigma. Here, we showed that male C57BL/6 J mice exposed to HMF by means of near elimination of the geomagnetic field (GMF) exhibit significant impairments of adult hippocampal neurogenesis and hippocampus-dependent learning, which is strongly correlated with a reduction in the content of reactive oxygen species (ROS). However, these deficits seen in HMF-exposed mice could be rescued either by elevating ROS levels through pharmacological inhibition of ROS removal or by returning them back to GMF. Therefore, our results suggest that GMF plays an important role in adult hippocampal neurogenesis through maintaining appropriate endogenous ROS levels.
成年海马神经发生有助于学习和记忆，并且对各种环境刺激敏感。暴露于低磁（HMF）会影响从昆虫到人类等各种动物的认知过程。然而，HMF 暴露是否会影响成年海马神经发生和海马依赖的认知仍然是一个谜。在这里，我们发现通过近乎消除地磁场（GMF）暴露于 HMF 的雄性 C57BL/6J 小鼠表现出成年海马神经发生和海马依赖学习的明显损伤，这与活性氧（ROS）含量的减少密切相关。然而，通过药理学抑制 ROS 清除来提高 ROS 水平或使它们恢复到 GMF，可挽救 HMF 暴露小鼠中出现的这些缺陷。因此，我们的结果表明，GMF 通过维持适当的内源性 ROS 水平在成年海马神经发生中起重要作用。
